Refinishing my teak floor

[Lou_tribal]

Like for soup every one has his own recipe.
For varnish, water or oil, varathane, minwax or any other brand, a varnish is nothing more than a solvent and a resin.
On water based solvent is water, less odor, easier to clean but puting water on wood can have side effect like grain rise.
On oil based solvent is... well oil, being a tung oil, or any other nut oil etc.
Whatever the varnish you will use it will certainly be urethane or polyurethane at the end.
What would make a difference? The way you apply it, clean, rush it or not, temperature etc. Many thin layers better than one thick one as on each layer you will fix any flaw of the one beneath.

For soup, well that is another story

L

 

[Newtrawlerowner]

I'm refinishing my teak floor. I have a 1981 Marine Trader with the traditional teak strip flooring. It's gotten a lot of use over the last 16 years that I have owned her.

I am going to do a light sanding and my choice of finish is Epiphanies or Varathane satin polyurethane.

What are your thoughts for a floor covering?

I recently refinished the floors on my Mainship 400 which are like your floors. I opted to use a heat gun and scraper to remove the existing finish because of the sun damage to the finish. Then lightly sanded with 350 grit by hand to remove any finish I missed and smooth out after scraping. After thoroughly vacuuming and multiple wipe downs with mineral spirits I then brushed 4 coats of Epiphanes Rapid Clear. The can says sanding between coats is not necessary but I did sand between coats 3 and 4. Then lightly sanded again and applied 1 coat of Epiphanes Rubbed Effect Satin. The only thing I should have done differently is reduced the last coat and maybe sanded again for a 5th coat, which I could still do. It came out pretty nice and because the last coat was Satin, its not too shiny. The whole job took me 2 weeks, but applying each coat only took 1.5 hours with 24 hours of drying time between coats.

 

[grandbanksbayfield]

I'm refinishing my teak floor. I have a 1981 Marine Trader with the traditional teak strip flooring. It's gotten a lot of use over the last 16 years that I have owned her.

I am going to do a light sanding and my choice of finish is Epiphanies or Varathane satin polyurethane.

What are your thoughts for a floor covering?

Varathane. None of the varnishes are hard enough to take the occasional blows and scratches that a floor gets. Put on at least three coats and then lightly sand and put on a coat every few years.

 

[Chris A MacKenzie]

Refinish badly worn Amtico galley sole.

We have a 2007 NT42. I am almost certain we have Amtico flooring in the galley and both heads. The galley is in desperate need of refinishing, the heads still look reasonably good. Most of the discussion boards I’ve read involve more robust parquet flooring or solid teak and holly. I’m looking for advice on how to refinish this engineered Amtico teak and holly flooring.

Striping. What is the preferred method, heat gun, chemical stripper or could I get by with very light sanding? There is almost no finish left on the galley sole. I was going to very lightly sand with 120 and then 220. I am aware that the thickness of the top teak layer is about an 1/8” so sanding has to be done cautiously.

Finish. I enjoyed the post above about finish being like ‘soup’! This post has diminished some of my concern over what actual finish to apply. However I would be grateful for any advice on what might be a good choice for our ‘engineered’ Amtico product. Of course, I want it all, easy to apply, quick to dry, durable enough for a galley and, looks like I hired a pro!

Attached below are pictures of what I have to start with.

Many thanks.

Chris MacKenzie.
NT 42.

 

[Datenight]

Hi Chris,
If your flooring is Amtico it is a vinyl product. There are refinishing kits for it. I would not recommend using a solvent based finish on it.
If it is wood and truly 1/8” thick you will have no problem sanding and using the urethane of choice. Even 1/16” inch is quite thick unless you go absolutely crazy with a sander.

I would start with a chemical stripper and scraper. Sand with a max 150# paper on an orbital sander after stripping and finish. If the floors are stained after stripping you might try treating with oxalic acid. Rinse the acid with fresh water and let dry at least one day before the 150# sanding.

Rob

 

[Newtrawlerowner]

Refinish badly worn Amtico galley sole.

We have a 2007 NT42. I am almost certain we have Amtico flooring in the galley and both heads. The galley is in desperate need of refinishing, the heads still look reasonably good. Most of the discussion boards I’ve read involve more robust parquet flooring or solid teak and holly. I’m looking for advice on how to refinish this engineered Amtico teak and holly flooring.

Striping. What is the preferred method, heat gun, chemical stripper or could I get by with very light sanding? There is almost no finish left on the galley sole. I was going to very lightly sand with 120 and then 220. I am aware that the thickness of the top teak layer is about an 1/8” so sanding has to be done cautiously.

Finish. I enjoyed the post above about finish being like ‘soup’! This post has diminished some of my concern over what actual finish to apply. However I would be grateful for any advice on what might be a good choice for our ‘engineered’ Amtico product. Of course, I want it all, easy to apply, quick to dry, durable enough for a galley and, looks like I hired a pro!

Attached below are pictures of what I have to start with.

Many thanks.

Chris MacKenzie.
NT 42.

You might consider buying 1 piece of this Amtico as a test piece. I needed some teak/holly plywood to attempt a repair, posted here and several other blogs and someone responded with a donated piece. Plus they paid for shipping which I offered to reimburse. People typically have some left over.
OR sand 1 piece or small area of what you have an experiment with refinishing. I would avoid stripping and opt for sanding instead. Then wipe with mineral spirits to see what it could look like.

 

[Chris A MacKenzie]

Hi Chris,
If your flooring is Amtico it is a vinyl product. There are refinishing kits for it. I would not recommend using a solvent based finish on it.
If it is wood and truly 1/8” thick you will have no problem sanding and using the urethane of choice. Even 1/16” inch is quite thick unless you go absolutely crazy with a sander.

I would start with a chemical stripper and scraper. Sand with a max 150# paper on an orbital sander after stripping and finish. If the floors are stained after stripping you might try treating with oxalic acid. Rinse the acid with fresh water and let dry at least one day before the 150# sanding.

Rob

Thank you Rob.

I’m not certain where I got the idea the brand was Amtico, however it is definitely not vinyl, it is plywood. I was guessing at the 1/8”, so if it is in fact only 1/16” it is reassuring to know that I can still sand it, although lightly. Would you remove with 150 and then finish with 220, or do you have another preference? Or, will the 150 be appropriate for both jobs?

The Chevy vs Ford question.. Any recommendations on what finish to use and steps you’d suggest. The choices are numerous and confusing. With only 1/16” of material, I need to get the finish right the first time.

Chris.

 

[Chris A MacKenzie]

You might consider buying 1 piece of this Amtico as a test piece. I needed some teak/holly plywood to attempt a repair, posted here and several other blogs and someone responded with a donated piece. Plus they paid for shipping which I offered to reimburse. People typically have some left over.
OR sand 1 piece or small area of what you have an experiment with refinishing. I would avoid stripping and opt for sanding instead. Then wipe with mineral spirits to see what it could look like.

Thank you, great advice. I’ve got that transition piece from the carpeted area. It is small in width, about 1.5”. I’ll try that.

Chris.

 

[JackConnick]

Looks to me that a light sanding and some varithane should do the trick.

 

[Datenight]

Thank you Rob.

I’m not certain where I got the idea the brand was Amtico, however it is definitely not vinyl, it is plywood. I was guessing at the 1/8”, so if it is in fact only 1/16” it is reassuring to know that I can still sand it, although lightly. Would you remove with 150 and then finish with 220, or do you have another preference? Or, will the 150 be appropriate for both jobs?

The Chevy vs Ford question.. Any recommendations on what finish to use and steps you’d suggest. The choices are numerous and confusing. With only 1/16” of material, I need to get the finish right the first time.

Chris.

Chris,
It looks like most of the finish is worn off and the wood is dirty. Do I have this right? If sanding I would first scrape the edges and corners. Use chemical stripper or heat gun to soften the finish first. My scraper of choice is one that uses a 1” Red Devil steel blade. The blade is easily kept sharp with a file. If the blade is sharp it only takes a light touch to remove the finish.
I will often start with 80# sandpaper on a Porter-Cable 333 orbital sander if there is still finish on the sole or it is very dirty. No problem to begin with 100# you will just use more paper. Follow up with 100# then 150#. No finer as you can begin to burnish the surface. It is a floor not fine furniture. Keep the sander moving and change paper often. Have the sander on the floor before you start it.
If there are still stains after the 100# sanding, wash with oaxlic acid. This will remove most stains (unless from pets). Rinse well then sand with 150# to remove any raised grain.

I use Lenmar urethane however there are many good brands out there. It is available in sheens from flat to gloss, applies easily and is self leveling. As has also been discussed here there are many good waterborne finishes as well. No need for a “marine” finish.

Rob

 

[Chris A MacKenzie]

Thank you Rob.
You are correct, I don’t believe there is very much finish left, mostly embedded dirt. Both heads have the same flooring and are in very good shape for their age. Depending on how this project goes, the heads will be next.
I have the same scraper. My kids ski raced, so I have plenty of hours on files!
I have to go lightly with the sanding as the material is plywood with 1/16” of teak and holly, so I may even just hand sand with blocks. I’ve got a new shoulder now so, I’m anxious to try it out. I do have a nice orbital sander. I picked up a smaller triangular one for the corner work.
Your advice on finishing with 150# is not what I would have expected but it does make sense, I will follow that. I was going to finish with 220#.
I’ve been emailing the Nordic Tug factory who, as most of us know, provide excellent support. They used a DuraSeal product on the flooring for finish and they still use it. I was able to contact a DuraSeal rep today and am getting some guidance on what finish to use and how to apply it. The application seems way less complicated and time consuming. One coat, applied with a rag. Mop up the excess, wait 6 hours, repeat. They are getting back to me about the necessity of applying a polyurethane top finishing coat.
I am looking forward to this project. I’ll be starting in April after we get back from our first trip this season. Leaving Sidney on Sunday, Comox, Powell River, a week in Desolation, then make our way back.
Thank you for your advice.
Chris.

 

[Datenight]

Chris,
I think I would start with the 100# in this case and do the acid wash followed with 150#. DuraSeal is a very good product. I used to use a very durable urethane by them.

Rob