Hand rail refinishing / finish repair question

[Bob Quinn]

So 70 percent of the handrails look o.k. I have a section that the varnish or urethane is peeling off on. Just for kicks I brushed on some Teak oil. The sections were the urethane had peeled off and the wood was white turned basically black. I know teak oil is not the solution, but why would it turn black?

Also, I know on the area were it is badly peeled I will need to sand and re-do, but is there a solution where there is just some spot peeling? can I sand that area and re-urethane it or will it just look like crap?

Also my bow pulpit is raw teak, and very dark grey in color. I put teak oil on it and got the same black appearance. How do you get a nice brownish orange out of that or is that not possible?

Thank you, and please pardon my ignorance, first time trying any of this!

[madhatter1]

For teak to look right oiled it needs a 2 part cleaner which basically strips away the gray layer of wood. Or it can be sanded. It needs to be a nice tan color of raw wood to take the oil (or any finish).

[cww]

Teak oil is a lot less long lasting on exterior wood than varnish, especially if it bakes in the sun it will look good for about 16 minutes and if you don't recoat it every few weeks it will turn grey, then black. That's why I hate it. Even if you have new teak you're applying it to, it still won't be long before it turns fugly. The only thing worse is linseed oil, what a mess. It's a pain in the ass but nothing lasts longer than a good spar varnish assuming you're willing to do a light sand and maintenance coat, in Florida that's about every year. Yes it sucks but everything else is worse.

[Pascal]

For the pulpit, you can clean the teak with Snappy Nu which is a two part product. If your skin i sensitive wear rubber gloves and shoes. Down side is that it a tough on the teak so it’s the kind of thing you use one a year

For the rails, you can scrape the old finish with a heat gun and scraper or sand. It’s tough to get good results touching up areas

Personally I ve tried everything over the last 20 years including varnish, Bristol, cetol etc. i now is Awlwood by Awlgrip. First the clear primer then gloss. Not cheap at $80 a quart but worth it. No sanding between coats till the last couple and last a year in Florida. Then slightly sand and add a few coats.

[Fanfare]

After refinishing I have found the best way to preserve my varnished railings was to have Sunbrella covers made to cover all the wood. Velcro fasteners on the bottom of the rail. Sunbrella seems to shrink a bit with age so add some extra cloth, put the velcro in the center of each rail--don't get close to where the metal stanchions come up and you will then have wiggle room for future adjustments. I also have Sunbrella covers for all my exposed wood, even the unvarnished dock boxes and flybridge seats.

Essential for my boat in Florida.

[skinners1]

Just had ours professionally refinished...

1 coat awlgrip awlwood primer
8 coats awlgrip awlwood top coat