cleaning teak

[bigbill]

i'm sure this has been talked about before, but i cant seem to find a thread in the archives about it. i am re finishing my salon aft doors, new glass, sand and varnish, and replacing the original 3 hinge setup(i have worn out 2 sets already) with stainless piano hinges. what is the best method to clean dirty,heavily weathered, water stained teak doors? (no varnish left) i have used the 2 part cleaner in the past, but i have read that it eats up the teak. i have heard about using ammonia to maintain the natural look, but will it clean weathered teak, if so how do you dilute it ?i am open for all ideas. thanks, bigbill

[SeaEric]

If you plan to varnish, just sand them down smooth, a coat or 2 of sealer and then go for it with the varnish. With a proper sanding as prep, they should look like new wood.

[dsharp]

A pressure washer with a slight fan pattern will clean it up. I wouldn't use one rated much more than 2500-3000 psi. The two part cleaners dissolve the soft parts of the boards leaving pretty deep grooves.

[lumina]

Hi All,

Bill,

We have cleaned sanded and refinished more teak bright work than I can comprehend and as you know it's a perpetual thing, never ends, as soon as you finish the cockpit you've got to start back at the bow.

As far as cleaning goes I think it depends how badly the teak is weathered/damaged. If there's still a good deal of finish on the doors but a little wood is showing and there is no (black) mold stains or heavy weathering, I'd agree with Eric. A good step up sanding ie 150, 200 then seal and at least 5 coats of finish (depending on what you use).

If it's really neglected (silver grey) but not badly blackened or stained you could go with dsharps power washing suggestion then a good step up sanding ie 150, 200 then seal and at least 5 coats of finish (depending on what you use).

In the cases where there is significant staining from mold the only really effective solution I've found is strip the wood and then scrub the wood with Oxalic Acid Marine Cleaner or a similar product. This will kill the mold that causes the black stains. Sanding alone or even power washing won't eliminate it. If you don't kill the mold and you finish over it, it will re-appear over time.

An example: Since I bought Glittering Image I totally neglected all of the teak on the fly-bridge concentrating all our efforts on the rest of the boat. I decided to tackle the fly-bridge teak this winter and in this case not only were there remnants of old finish, there was severely weathered (grey) areas and a lot of black stains.

What I ended up doing was stripping each piece entirely, washing it, then scrubbing it twice with Oxalic, flushing with lots of water in between, then drying it out and then step up sanding after that.

In this case what I ended up with was basically virgin teak with beautiful grain and very consistent color. All of the severely weathered soft wood was removed, all stains were eliminated and a nice hard surface remained ready for finish sanding and finishing.

I usually go this route with anything that is really neglected. It’s a lot of work but worth it in the long run, looks stunning and is easier to maintain.

[SeaEric]

Gene is absolutely correct about the need to chemically kill black mold if its present. I have to disagree on the power washer though. Sorry! The power wash will blow away any soft grain making the sanding and varnishing project a much bigger job. If its badly weathered it will take lots of sanding, perhaps even starting with 80 or 100 grit and working up to 150 and 220. From 150 on I would sand with a sanding block, with the grain by hand to remove and avoid machine marks from the more coarse papers.

This is a very easy quick job if you don't mind the results looking crappy. To get a nice finish will take time and lots of elbow grease. Or, you could hire a professional.

[Maynard Rupp]

I use Bristol Finish on our door and steps etc. I have found the greatest teak treatment on earth for our swim platform and those 2 strips on the bow pulpit. The product is made by Cabot and is called Austrailian oil. I cleaned the swim platform and wiped on 4 coats. It looked perfect all summer in Miami and is still like new today. I will re-coat next month before we leave for the summer. I may switch to this stuff for all our teak. Why hasn't anyone else discovered this product yet? A local boat service guy told me about it when he saw me cleaning and sanding our swim platform. This stuff is awesome, try it.

[SKYCHENEY]

Is this the stuff?

http://www.google.com/products/catal...ed=0CDsQ8wIwAw

What does it look like on the teak? Does it look like oil, or Sikkens, or what?

[lumina]

Hi All,

Eric, I can't really defend the power washer option because I've never attempted it, however I know several folks that used it on teak decking at very low pressure with a cleaning additive and were satisfied with the results.

Makes sense that it could at high pressure strip the soft wood away and make prepping for finishing even more difficult.

[Avenger]

I've power-washed mine and it comes out clean and fairly light, ready for a brightener and oil or whatever. But you've got to exercise a LOT of finesse with the power washer or you will pull the fibers out of the wood. It's not a job I'd hand off to the guy who cleans the bottom of the boat. Also, that's on bare or oiled teak. Trying to remove varnish with it would be a mistake.

[piripucha]

Some time ago I saw an article on Marlin magazine regarding the use of CASCADE dish washer. Its not so hard on the wood. as the 2 part cleaners.
Good luck