View Full Version : Lady owner...need advice
julie bell
12-11-2006, 03:46 am
She is a 1976 22' Catalina. What should I do to the teak on exterior? What is easiest for a girl who uses monthly at best
droopy
12-11-2006, 03:58 am
lenon oil.
Stu Jackson
12-11-2006, 05:22 am
Julie I recommend doing an Archive Search on the words Cetol and Varnish. There have been a great many discussions of the "proper" way to handle teak on boats. Just go up to the top of the page and click on Archive and fill in the blank box.
Lowell Irwin
12-11-2006, 05:46 am
The best and easiest product for teak I have used and will continue to use is called Teak Guard. It is simple to use, lasts, and looks great!
Oil is easy, varnish can be a lot of work, Then there is that awful Cetol stuf. Rebecca Wittman has a book called Brightwork: The Art of Finishing Wood. It is pretty good book that covers all the finishes. Teak has natural oils in it so the wood protects itself. You have to keep it clean. Then it turns silver. Some people like the silver look. Dan
Micklejester
12-12-2006, 12:23 am
For the once a monther, Teak oil would be the easiest. I took all of my wood off and then refinished with Cetol. It has lasted well for me. Lance Jones C-22 #9713 Breab Tho'in!
NautiDuck
12-13-2006, 04:48 am
Let it go silver gray. Just wash it now and then. If you sail once a month then spending any time on the teak is wasted time in my opinion. I let the teak go gray on my C22 and it looked fine.
Micklejester
12-20-2006, 02:45 am
Letting it go is in deed the easiest. However, what is happening is that the wood is drying out. As it gets drier, it shrinks and is on it's way to decay. May look uniform and be easy to care for; but, I wouldn't trust it for strength. It will eventually start to split too.
paphman
12-20-2006, 05:28 am
use the teak guard and your teak will look great. It is so easy to use that it is a joke. Look it up on the web, and get all the info you need. You have notheing to loose but your gray!!
Bilbo
12-22-2006, 02:10 am
In my opinion the Teak looks best as a finished wood but as has been mentioned, it takes time and regular maintenance to keep it that way. One other alternative is to replace it with the stuff that Catalina is using for the newer boats. The CD site sells white plastic parts for replacing just about all of the teak exterior boards. This stuff is white, UV stabilized, marine grade polymer and probably needs no maintenance for years. It isn't wood but it will do the job just as well. The wood interior boards should last without much maintenance as long as they are kept dry. The bulkhead boards up by the V berth really need to be kept dry or it compromises a fairly serious safety issue with the shrouds and mast.
NautiDuck
12-26-2006, 03:16 am
Treating teak does not have anything to do with its strength. Teak lasts many decades untreated. The whole teak thing is way over-rated. Do you want to sail or be a slave to your teak? If you plan to sail once a month then spending any time at all on your teak is a total waste. Leave it alone. It is fine.
Dave Pilsen
12-26-2006, 10:54 pm
Julie,I agree with Lowell. It's so easy it's silly. Teak Guard is the best and easiest product I've found.This past summer I took possesion of a 72 Cat 22, with some seriously weathered teak.After following the directions, my teak was like new.
When we bought our IP 38 in 2001 it had a 2 part epoxy finish that had been applied 2 years previous. We finish the rest of the exterior teak with this product and set sail for the Caribbean. The finish was still in excellent condition when we sold the boat in late 2004. I then used it on our 80 C22 and it has been flawless after 2 years of hard sailing. The product is spendy at about $80 a quart but that will do about 4 or more C22's. It retains the standard teak color rather than the yellowing of cetol. Well worth the investment and very easy to install. Ray.
Eric1803
12-31-2006, 02:03 am
Julie, If you varnish the teak (I do), cover the cabin top and hatch boards when you are not sailing. For most people, this means your teak's finish is protected 99+% of the time. Even an inexpensive blue tarp will do the trick. Plus, if you have even the smallest rain leak thru the cabin top, hatch, or hatch boards (50 mph winds WILL drive lots of water thru the hatch board slots), that problem is solved, too. Eric