Teak water damage
- Thread starter GaryPete
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FF
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"can I improve its looks? Lightly sand with super fine grit paper and teak oil?"
Worth a try , but until you solve the water source it will, come back.
Worth a try , but until you solve the water source it will, come back.
Newtrawlerowner
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If it is teak, use some teak oil and 600 grit sandpaper. Use Wet or Dry sandpaper available at Home Depot or some paint stores.
Be sure to use a sanding pad or multiple layers of sandpaper to prevent uneven sanding.
Sand with the grain. Wipe off with clean towel to see the results. I've done this on my sailboat to remove water glass stains. Works great.
If you have black stains, use oxalate cleaner, available at HD or even Amazon. Be sure to follow directions and neutralize with water once clean.
Post back a picture once done. It helps the community.
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If it’s a veneer, be careful that you don’t sand through it. Don't ask me how I know. 
Datenight
Guru
Gary,
I would start with at least 200 grit paper. From the photo you have a lot to remove and 600 grit paper with teak oil will be very slow going. I agree with using a block/pad to avoid uneven pressure.
I do a great deal of this type of work and often start with 100 grit paper especially when removing old finish and water damage. You do have to be careful as Larry says but as long as you are working by hand and not really leaning into it you will be fine.
Rob
I would start with at least 200 grit paper. From the photo you have a lot to remove and 600 grit paper with teak oil will be very slow going. I agree with using a block/pad to avoid uneven pressure.
I do a great deal of this type of work and often start with 100 grit paper especially when removing old finish and water damage. You do have to be careful as Larry says but as long as you are working by hand and not really leaning into it you will be fine.
Rob
Most of what we are seeing here is a varnish like finish lifting, but that also means that you are going to likely need to get to the bottom of some of the grain and that’s a decent cut.
I would not do anything until I figured out if this is veneer or not.
If it was veneer, I’d sand lightly with 400 grit to try to get the finish mostly off while not sanding the grain flat, then I’d wet sand with teak oil, then wipe the resulting paste across to try to fill the grain. The problem here with a hardened finish is that teak oil is only sorta going to work since you will be blending two different kinds of finishes. Not a lot of finish there, but if veneer, not much room to work with.
If not a veneer, just a bit more aggressive sanding, does not look horrible to my amateur eyes.
I would not do anything until I figured out if this is veneer or not.
If it was veneer, I’d sand lightly with 400 grit to try to get the finish mostly off while not sanding the grain flat, then I’d wet sand with teak oil, then wipe the resulting paste across to try to fill the grain. The problem here with a hardened finish is that teak oil is only sorta going to work since you will be blending two different kinds of finishes. Not a lot of finish there, but if veneer, not much room to work with.
If not a veneer, just a bit more aggressive sanding, does not look horrible to my amateur eyes.
Datenight
Guru
All this worry about sanding through the veneer is over the top in my opinion. Of course you can but most boats especially older ones have thicker veneers. If you are working by hand you will have to be very aggressive to sand through.
As mentioned, I have done a lot of this work over the years and have yet to blow through. I don't think it is because I am particularly good.
My usual procedure when refinishing a teak and holly veneer sole is to coat with stripper (stripper not a stripper
) and scrape. If necessary wash with oxalic acid and neutralize. Then sand with my ancient Porter-Cable 333 or Fein 6" orbital with #180 grit paper. Vac and begin coating.
PM me if I can answer any questions for you. By the way I should have said #220 not #200 it my previous post.
Rob
As mentioned, I have done a lot of this work over the years and have yet to blow through. I don't think it is because I am particularly good.
My usual procedure when refinishing a teak and holly veneer sole is to coat with stripper (stripper not a stripper
) and scrape. If necessary wash with oxalic acid and neutralize. Then sand with my ancient Porter-Cable 333 or Fein 6" orbital with #180 grit paper. Vac and begin coating.PM me if I can answer any questions for you. By the way I should have said #220 not #200 it my previous post.
Rob
Newtrawlerowner
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What stripper do you use?
Datenight
Guru
Truthfully I use whatever is cheapest because my scraper is always razor sharp. I have had good luck with Strypeeze, Zip Strip and 5f5. There are many others. Strypeeze gives me the most bang for the buck.
As a side note, I stripped the bottom of a previous trawler (37') with Strypeeze. Cheaper by far than marine strippers and more effective. I laid on about a 4' x 4' area, let it work for 10-15 minutes and scraped it off. Went very fast. After scraping I neutralized with water.
Rob
NWSeadog
Senior Member
Datenight - Are you talking about stripping/sanding just the area with the stain that GaryPete has or are you talking about the whole wall?
I've never had luck with getting teak oil to color the stained area. Maybe I just hadn't sanded far enough into the wood???
I've never had luck with getting teak oil to color the stained area. Maybe I just hadn't sanded far enough into the wood???
rsn48
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What stripper do you use
I have found one from No5 Orange in Vancouver BC to be very good.
https://www.no5orange.ca/
I have found one from No5 Orange in Vancouver BC to be very good.
https://www.no5orange.ca/
Datenight
Guru
NW,
I use the stripper when refinishing a sole or very big area. For what GaryPete has shown I would not use stripper just sandpaper. I might dry scrape if the area is small or sandpaper was taking too long. As mentioned in a previous post if sanding start with #220 paper. I would not be afraid to begin with #100. Don't go finer than #220 before the first coat of stain or sealer, you want the finish to penetrate. Finer sanding can burnish the surface you are working on.
I never use teak oil but suspect that if you want to match a color you will need to experiment with stain.
Rob
