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The eternal dilemma. What to do with teak?? Oiling it looks OK for a few months then it darkens. Various finishes all seem to break down and need re-sanding and refinishing every year or so.
I am currectly using some West Epoxy (with a 207 (clear) hardener) for another project and wondered if anyone has tried coating their external teak with epoxy? If so; did it stick/last?
Rather than try and fail, I hope to learn from someone else's experience.
Clare Jordan Aragorn
Clare Jordan,
Stormont Yacht Club,
Long Sault
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Aside from the application (i.e., on teak), I would consider this (from West System):
"An ultraviolet inhibitor in 207 helps provide a beautiful, long lasting finish when used with quality UV filtering varnish."
So, you will need to coat with varnish in any case.
Having said that, I've seen lots of teak (admittedly years ago) with the finish peeling off of it -- but the oil won't do that. I think it may be the price of entry for teak on the exterior of a boat.
Cheers
Chuck Lanning
NSC, Ottawa
Chuck Lanning
C&C 27 Mk V, Chivas & Champagne
NSC, Ottawa
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Don't do it!!!
I decided to take that advice from the Gougeon Brothers' website three seasons ago. I removed my grabrails and brought them home, then stripped all of the external teak and sanded it back to bare wood. I followed the recommended process exactly, cleaning the external surfaces with solvents to remove the natural oils from the surface layer, then coating them with 3 coats of epoxy, using the Special Coatings Hardener. The epoxy was then overcoated with 3 coats of Cetol Natural Teak finish to provide UV and wear protection. For the first season, it looked fabulous. By the second season, the epoxy had started to release from various parts of the teak, leaving milky-looking areas in the finish. This started first at points where there was a seam in the teak joinery, or a plug, and the process accelerated over the course of that summer and the following one. My own conviction is that the natural oils in the teak asserted themselves and caused the epoxy to separate. This spring I had to strip off all of the epoxy coating. In the "milky" areas, I could just peel the finish off with my bare hands and a scraper. Where the epoxy was still bonded, I had to use a heat gun to strip off all of the old epoxy and then sand back to bare wood again. From now on, I am sticking to Cetol Natural Teak, which doesn't have the orange tone of the original Cetol. I touch it up with a fresh coat each spring and it just keeps on going.
I also realized that wherever the epoxied teak took damage, from a knock or a chip, it was going to be harder to repair the finish. All in all, it seems to be simpler to stick with a regular external coating, such as Cetol or varnish and accept the annual recoating process.
Marcus from Carriden
Mk III, Hull #847
Oakville, Ontario
Marcus Opitz,
Formerly from Carriden, Mk III, Hull #847,
now skippering "Everdina," a 1975 Ontario 32
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I'm having a good result with a penetrating teak oil that I added a red mahogany stain to, that retards the presence of grey, before, during and after application. Lol
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Many thanks , Marcus for your excellent description of your adventure with trying epoxy over teak. Had you not warned me , my intended path would have followed yours pretty closely!!( with very likely the same results)
That's why this forum is so valuable--- Over the years, it must have saved hundreds of 27 owners countless hours, dollars and frustrations.
My teak got sanded this Spring (nothing more) and it is now slowly turning that silvery-grey colour and, you know, maybe I'll just learn to love it as it is!
Clare Jordan, Aragorn
Clare Jordan,
Stormont Yacht Club,
Long Sault
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I use Cetol Light. It holds up for 1+ seasons and is less orange than Cetol.
copasetic
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