Removal of old Cetol

[Bob Maguire]

Does anyone have a suggestion or a tried and true method for removing aged and weathered Cetol from exterior brightwork?
I suspect that if there are areas of exposed wood that all of the Cetol must be removed down to bare wood. I am about to pay the price for a year of neglect.

Thanks in advance for your help.

Bob Maguire
CD 30
Anacortes, WA

[Doug Oliver]

Bob

A heat gun and a putty knife will make the job surprisingly fast and easy. Good luck.

Doug

[Anthony P. Jeske]

Bob:
Along with a heat gun, I use a ProPrep scraper to remove the softened Cetol (or varnish). I find the pulling motion associated with a scraper is faster, also there's less chance of gouging the teak. The ProPrep scraper is available with a series of interchangable differently shaped blades which allow efffective scraping of curved shapes, etc.
Happy Scraping!
Tony

[Gary M]

Bob,
An earlier post recommended Aqua Strip. I ordered some but haven't received it yet.

[David Hest]

I used a carbide blade paint scraper to remove Cetol on my Typhoon Daysailer this spring. A fresh blade and a fair amount of pressure on the scraper sliced the Cetol off in ribbons. Although the blade is flat, it worked well on the rub rail/toe rail as well. By carefully gauging the pressure, I was able to scrape off the top layer of wood as well, which reduced sanding. Didn't leave a single gouge. I used a Warner brand scraper, and went through two blades at $7-8 each. This project took less time than I thought it would, though I have nothing to compare it with.

Good luck.

David

[Bob Maguire]

Thanks!

[rtbates]

I'm currently about half way through removal of Seraph's Cetol using AquaStrip.

Amassing stuff. Apply very heavy, shouldn't see wood underneath, and letting it sit and do it's job for up to several hours, until it turns from blue to white as it dries. Once it dries and lifts the finish, it dissolves in water and the fish love it!
All cleanup is via water.