To Teak or not to Teak... that is the Question

[SailPenelope]

You could sell your boat and buy one with teak decks - and the difference in price would probably be less than the cost of installing new. Once you have a teak deck you lose the fear - you just deal with what you have. I'm lucky - I may have some core rot......but I can't tell - no soft spots.....and I haven't gone looking for them. I do lots of salt water baths........of the deck, that is........

[tropicalescape]

Originally Posted by Julie Mor

I'm no expert but I did a lot of research when considering boats to buy with teak decks. We ended up taking them all off the list. But here's what I learned:

Around here teak goes for about $30 bd/ft. That's rough cut. Not sure what deck planked mill would run. I've seen videos of the installation and it is very labor intensive if done properly. I do a lot of woodworking and I know wood doesn't like to bend the way you want it to. There are not many straight teak planks on a deck. So they have to be properly secured to the deck. And if you screw it down you, have all those holes that could later create water infiltration problems.

There are substitutes, such as Nu Teak, that don't present the installation or maintenance issues. The pictures look great. I've never walked on a fake teak deck but I have seen one. At a distance, it was hard to tell is wasn't real teak. It might be worth a look.

If you want to keep your teak deck looking pretty, it has to be cleaned regularly, like once a week, minimum. Each time you take a brush to it some of the fibers are washed away, even with the gentlest of brushes. Many experienced with teak decks recommend cleaning it with a very soft brush and salt water. The salt is absorbed into the teak and helps keep it moist. The deck will remain new looking but it is wearing away.

Teak decks are certainly gorgeous. But like most beautiful things, there's a price to maintain them as they age.

Do the teak deck,its easy to do if you have laid floor covering before and you can get "antique teak" on Woodplanet for 4.50 bf (under reclaimed I think or "for wood workers"...) I dont really know how easy it is to install, I saw the ad on WP and thought I would throw it out there,I dont have a business interest or connection to the "Antique Teak" on WoodPlanet ...

[ssanzone]

coming along nicely... tomorrow it will be finished.

-steve

[JazzyO]

Looking good!

[Kenomac]

Very nice. I'm in the middle of my own teak deck project... lot's of hard work.

[ssanzone]

yeah, i am happy with it. this is the synthetic teak so i get what i want (ascetically) without the long term headache of laying down real teak.

I think dollars for dollars, i could have laid down real teak for the same $.

-steve

[Cheechako]

Originally Posted by ssanzone

yeah, i am happy with it. this is the synthetic teak so i get what i want (ascetically) without the long term headache of laying down real teak.

I think dollars for dollars, i could have laid down real teak for the same $.

-steve

So.. tell us more! what is the "glue" that holds it on, how is it to work with etc....

[ssanzone]

it is similar to 5200. i will get the exact product name when i am back at the baot this afternoon.

surface is irrelevant thou... i have been working on the deck a lot after recoring part of it so it was a combination of fresh primer, sanded primer, resin, 407 and 410 fairing so i was a bit anxious about adhesion.

this stuff bonds to any and all including stainless and ply (marine and cdx).

one of the things i really like about the product is is it largely self bedding so i can install the stanchions and windlass etc right on top of it with a dolphinite or whatever.

btw: 80 grip paper does nothing... go 40 or go home.

-steve

[Stu Jackson]

Originally Posted by ssanzone

one of the things i really like about the product is is it largely self bedding so i can install the stanchions and windlass etc right on top of it with a dolphinite or whatever.

Have you considered Maine Sail's butyl tape for bedding hardware?

http://forums.catalina.sailboatowner...d.php?t=117172

[Cheechako]

So how do you hold the product down securely until the adhesive cures?
I was going to use 5200 when I put Treadmaster on the HC38 (avatar), but figured I couldnt find a reasonable way to hold each piece down for 1-2 days while it cured.... I would have had to do one panel every 2 days or so..... any air pockets will rise up and bubble in the hot sun.....

[ssanzone]

hmmm, good question.

i have not had to deal with that as the deck is flat but i will adhere some to a vertical object this afternoon and let you know.

it is pretty tacky out of the tube. applied almost like tile. spread the adhesive, lay down the synthetic teak (32' lengths) roll over it to get the air out and properly set into the adhesive and move onto the next run.

-steve

[wetdog]

Have you considered installing a teak veneer? Originally developed by the Gougeon Brothers, founders of West System. Google "Installing a teak deck on Zatara" and "The Gougeon Brothers on Boat Construction". Very interesting option. And no holes through deck.

[kentobin]

Another thing to consider is what if you ever have to remove any of the deck. I am currently pulling the teak deck off of my boat and whatever they used as a sealer/glue is pulling up pieces of the deck with the teak. Wherever it comes off you can see the roving mat fiberglass. I assume the sealer/glue is thiokol polysulfide sealant.

A boat surveyor I talked to said this is very common.

Rather than just filling up the screw holes in the deck I was planning on reglassing to make sure there would be no leaks but it isn't a choice now.

[Cheechako]

The deck came off my Hans Christian very hard, much of the teak ended up 1-2ft pieces.....but fortunately no fiberglass came off with it.

[ssanzone]

Originally Posted by kentobin

Another thing to consider is what if you ever have to remove any of the deck. I am currently pulling the teak deck off of my boat and whatever they used as a sealer/glue is pulling up pieces of the deck with the teak. Wherever it comes off you can see the roving mat fiberglass. I assume the sealer/glue is thiokol polysulfide sealant.

A boat surveyor I talked to said this is very common.

Rather than just filling up the screw holes in the deck I was planning on reglassing to make sure there would be no leaks but it isn't a choice now.

i would never drill into my deck... this all started because 35% of the deck needed to be re-cored. after finishing the coring and glassing i had another 75 hours into fairing and the deck was still not to a point where i would be happy after spraying on the awlgrip.

if i was to install teak, i would template out the deck and shiplap the teak using bungs to secure the joints, cut it to form and glue the entire thing down. individual lengths could still be removed by drilling out the bungs and direct heat.

another option i considered was laying wide boards down (see above about shiplap and bungs) and routing out a channel every 2.5 inches to 'color' black. it would give me real teak with the ascetic i want at 30% of the cost and effort (but a pretty big cheat).

-steve