Cleaning teak with TSP?

I read somewhere (maybe here, can't remember) that you can use TSP to clean teak instead of buying expensive teak cleaner. Is this the case? Does it do a job as good as commercial cleaners? Other homemade recipees?

I use TSP to clean teak before oiling or cetol. It's a harsh cleaner so start out with a weak dilution and go from there. It is not available in the concentrated form in some areas but that is the best if you can find it.
It will remove the surface oils and bleach out the teak surface. Try a test area and see what you think.

Thanks Chip. Do you have a certain mix ratio to recommend?

Fotoman wrote:
I read somewhere (maybe here, can't remember) that you can use TSP to clean teak instead of buying expensive teak cleaner. Is this the case? Does it do a job as good as commercial cleaners? Other homemade recipees?

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*Try sudsy amonia it works great! Cheap when you buy it at the grocery store. Use it straight and rinse with water. Done.


-- Edited by jleonard on Thursday 15th of September 2011 08:58:46 AM

Sudsy? What does that mean?

Try*Cascade Liquid Dishing washing solution with a white 3-M scotch pad.* Non-aggressive with good results.

The TSP we like is the powder concentrate. Use about a tablespoon in a gallon of water for general cleaning. Use rubber gloves! The scotch pads work great.

Fotoman wrote:
Sudsy? What does that mean?

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*It is sold as that. Sudsy amonia. It is regular amonia with soap in it.

I don't know what the exact concentration is. It is reputed to clean better than clear (plain) amonia.

*

*

Fotoman wrote:
I read somewhere (maybe here, can't remember) that you can use TSP to clean teak instead of buying expensive teak cleaner. Is this the case? Does it do a job as good as commercial cleaners? Other homemade recipees?

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*This is not a homemade recipe and actually is a commercial cleaner.*TSP is a staple of just about every refinishing shop in America. After stripping furniture, a high pressure washer is used to wash off and neutralize the chemical. Then TSP is applied with a a small 2 gal hand pump style Bug Sprayer and rinsed off. It will help bleach the wood and clean it from any residual oils that may have been left behind.

A bucket of CLEAN salt water and a soft Scotch-Brite pad on a stick. Bess clean it when we are in Beaufort, NC or behind Topsail Island. Looks fabulous when she is done. The teak looks good too.


-- Edited by GonzoF1 on Sunday 18th of September 2011 06:57:29 PM

charles wrote:
For several decades I used powder ZUD cleanser from the grocery store.

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****** My brother cruised the coasts of Mexico & Central America for many years and always swore that "Zud" was the best cleaner out there.