Thanks to a lot of the information that I've read here, I've recently become the proud owner of a Cape Dory 27 which my family and I will enjoy sailing on the Chesapeake.
I'm starting the process of finishing the exterior teak, and based on what I've read here I would definitely like to use cetol. My question is what is the best way to prepare the teak for the cetol ?
The previous owner has used something called perma-teak on the wood, which seems to be a type of stain that colors the wood a brownish color. It was last applied several years ago, and the teak is currently a dull faded brown color, and is rough with a raised grain.
Is it best to just sand the teak now and then apply cetol?
Should I use a teak cleaner of some type? I know that there is a perma-teak cleaner of some type which is specicically made to remove perma-teak? Is this necessary?
What should the teak look like when its ready for the cetol?
Thanks in advance for any advice that you can give to someone who's doing this for the first time.
Brian
teak preparation before cetol
Moderator: Jim Walsh
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Matt Cawthorne
Re: teak preparation before cetol
Brian,
Unless you want your boat to be an experiment chemistry I suggest that you spend the time and get the teak free of all previous coatings. Our CD36 had varnish which had gone bad, so it was not an option for us. I recommend sanding to get a reasonably good finish and using the teak cleaner. The wood should look very light in color when you are done. I have a friend that uses a pressure washer to remove his "all-teak" brand coating every year, but one must be very careful not to get too close or you can clean out the sealer underneath the teak and you can do damage to the teak itself. I have had good luck with Cetol, provided that enough coats are used. See previous messages.
A good book on brightwork that was written before the invention of Cetol was "Brightwork, the Art of Finishing Wood" by Rebecca Wittman. It has many good how-to's on preparation which still apply.
Good luck, and be careful when sanding not to mess up your fiberglass. This is a common problem when people use power sanders.
Matt
mcawthor@bellatlantic.net
Unless you want your boat to be an experiment chemistry I suggest that you spend the time and get the teak free of all previous coatings. Our CD36 had varnish which had gone bad, so it was not an option for us. I recommend sanding to get a reasonably good finish and using the teak cleaner. The wood should look very light in color when you are done. I have a friend that uses a pressure washer to remove his "all-teak" brand coating every year, but one must be very careful not to get too close or you can clean out the sealer underneath the teak and you can do damage to the teak itself. I have had good luck with Cetol, provided that enough coats are used. See previous messages.
A good book on brightwork that was written before the invention of Cetol was "Brightwork, the Art of Finishing Wood" by Rebecca Wittman. It has many good how-to's on preparation which still apply.
Good luck, and be careful when sanding not to mess up your fiberglass. This is a common problem when people use power sanders.
Matt
Brian wrote: Thanks to a lot of the information that I've read here, I've recently become the proud owner of a Cape Dory 27 which my family and I will enjoy sailing on the Chesapeake.
I'm starting the process of finishing the exterior teak, and based on what I've read here I would definitely like to use cetol. My question is what is the best way to prepare the teak for the cetol ?
The previous owner has used something called perma-teak on the wood, which seems to be a type of stain that colors the wood a brownish color. It was last applied several years ago, and the teak is currently a dull faded brown color, and is rough with a raised grain.
Is it best to just sand the teak now and then apply cetol?
Should I use a teak cleaner of some type? I know that there is a perma-teak cleaner of some type which is specicically made to remove perma-teak? Is this necessary?
What should the teak look like when its ready for the cetol?
Thanks in advance for any advice that you can give to someone who's doing this for the first time.
Brian
mcawthor@bellatlantic.net
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Jim Stull
Re: teak preparation before cetol
BrianBrian wrote: Thanks to a lot of the information that I've read here, I've recently become the proud owner of a Cape Dory 27 which my family and I will enjoy sailing on the Chesapeake.
I'm starting the process of finishing the exterior teak, and based on what I've read here I would definitely like to use cetol. My question is what is the best way to prepare the teak for the cetol ?
The previous owner has used something called perma-teak on the wood, which seems to be a type of stain that colors the wood a brownish color. It was last applied several years ago, and the teak is currently a dull faded brown color, and is rough with a raised grain.
Is it best to just sand the teak now and then apply cetol?
Should I use a teak cleaner of some type? I know that there is a perma-teak cleaner of some type which is specicically made to remove perma-teak? Is this necessary?
What should the teak look like when its ready for the cetol?
Thanks in advance for any advice that you can give to someone who's doing this for the first time.
Brian
We are finishing up redoing the teak on our CD25.
We used Cetol on the exterior and Epfinies (sp) varnish on the interior.
The Cetol was much simpler to apply, We used three coats vs. 8 for the varnish. Also just a simple scuff with a 3M pad between coats instead of major sanding required with the varnish.
My teak was in quite bad shape when we purchased the boat last fall. Much erosion from years of harsh cleaners and scrubing. Also several serious cracks as well as some missing pieces.
We removed all the wood (for re-beding) and sanded it smooth with an random orbit sander (down to 220 grit). The wood is very easy to sand. Did the repairs using West System Epoxy.
The results were great. The wood now looks like the pictures in the dream books.
Jim
jtstull@icubed.com
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C.C.
Re: teak preparation before cetol
The folks who make Cetol (I think it's Akkeins) publish a nifty brochure which I got my mitts on. They say to do the following:
1.) remove any old varnish
2.) use a two part teak cleaner to clean the teak
3.) sand the teak to raise the grain
4.) remove all dust with a rag
5.) use acetone to remove any impurities & oil
6.) apply with a long, china bristle brush with the grain
7.) let dry & do not sand between coats. Use at least 3 coats
Basically they say the wood needs to be as moisture free as possible prior to application. Do not apply in direct sunlight.
You may want to go to your local Boat U.S. or West Marine and see if they have one these brochures. That way you have it straight from the cat's mouth.
I plan on using it on my teak this year. It's quite pricey, I hope it's worth it!
HOOPS3350@aol.com
1.) remove any old varnish
2.) use a two part teak cleaner to clean the teak
3.) sand the teak to raise the grain
4.) remove all dust with a rag
5.) use acetone to remove any impurities & oil
6.) apply with a long, china bristle brush with the grain
7.) let dry & do not sand between coats. Use at least 3 coats
Basically they say the wood needs to be as moisture free as possible prior to application. Do not apply in direct sunlight.
You may want to go to your local Boat U.S. or West Marine and see if they have one these brochures. That way you have it straight from the cat's mouth.
I plan on using it on my teak this year. It's quite pricey, I hope it's worth it!
HOOPS3350@aol.com
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Geoff Safron
Re: teak preparation before cetol
Hi, Brian;
I'm presently about half-way through my brightwork re-do on my CD30. I cosidered using chemical strippers, and decided to just do the good old mechanical sand-off as I've done for many furniture refinishings. The overwhelming vote on this board in favor of Cetol led me to choose it.
I first removed any "piecework" (wheel housing, cockpit grate, companionway boards, etc.) for finishing in my garage. I then used a combination of power and elbow-grease to take off the old, peeled, greyed-out cowlings, handrails and toerail. I have a dependable old Porter-Cable belt-sander which made relatively short albeit exhausting work of the exterior surfaces of the toerail and cowiling, first with 50-grit belts, then 80-grit. For the in-board side of the toerail and detailed areas in general, I used the little 120-grit sanding barrels on my Dremel rotary tool...careful not to press too hard or you'll leave little wavy divots. I then went back and hand-sanded everything with 120-grit on a rubber block. I used a shop-vac to get what sawdust I could, then wiped down with a rag and mineral spirits. Mask with 3-M's "blue" tape, pressing carefully on the gel-coat edge to seal it off from seepage.
I have two coats of Cetol Marine (Matte) on the boat's teak so far, and intend to put two more coats of mat on, then three coats of Cetol Marine Gloss...7 coats total. I've had more time to spend on the small pieces so far, and I'm one coat away from done—and they look absolutely gorgeous. Reflection you can shave in.
I'm told the finish will darken with UV exposure, but I guess I assume that's part of the UV protection, and I won't have to go through this again for a bunch of years.
Keyword: Patience!
Happy Sanding,
Geoff
Pixel179@AOL.com
I'm presently about half-way through my brightwork re-do on my CD30. I cosidered using chemical strippers, and decided to just do the good old mechanical sand-off as I've done for many furniture refinishings. The overwhelming vote on this board in favor of Cetol led me to choose it.
I first removed any "piecework" (wheel housing, cockpit grate, companionway boards, etc.) for finishing in my garage. I then used a combination of power and elbow-grease to take off the old, peeled, greyed-out cowlings, handrails and toerail. I have a dependable old Porter-Cable belt-sander which made relatively short albeit exhausting work of the exterior surfaces of the toerail and cowiling, first with 50-grit belts, then 80-grit. For the in-board side of the toerail and detailed areas in general, I used the little 120-grit sanding barrels on my Dremel rotary tool...careful not to press too hard or you'll leave little wavy divots. I then went back and hand-sanded everything with 120-grit on a rubber block. I used a shop-vac to get what sawdust I could, then wiped down with a rag and mineral spirits. Mask with 3-M's "blue" tape, pressing carefully on the gel-coat edge to seal it off from seepage.
I have two coats of Cetol Marine (Matte) on the boat's teak so far, and intend to put two more coats of mat on, then three coats of Cetol Marine Gloss...7 coats total. I've had more time to spend on the small pieces so far, and I'm one coat away from done—and they look absolutely gorgeous. Reflection you can shave in.
I'm told the finish will darken with UV exposure, but I guess I assume that's part of the UV protection, and I won't have to go through this again for a bunch of years.
Keyword: Patience!
Happy Sanding,
Geoff
Pixel179@AOL.com