Best way to re-finish teak/holly cabin sole and oak counters?

[Ryban]

We've been putting off the cosmetic projects on our new-to-us Westsail 32 until we could get all the other systems in order, but now it's time to do some bright work.

I've re-done all our floor hatches (teak and holly), and a few of our counter hatches (oak and teak). In the process I removed all the old varnish through various means, and then tried my best to clean the wood with soap + water and oxalic acid, but I don't think I was super satisfied with the result. What are some other methods I can employ to clean the wood before sanding? The last thing I want to do is sand a bunch of oil and dirt into the wood.

The first two photos show the state of the cabin floor, and the stark contrast of the refinished hatches. The second two photos show the fridge hatches in different states of re-finishing.

[osprey877]

I revarnished my teak and holly floors a few years ago. They were rougher than yours appear to be. I used a heat gun and scraper to remove the old varnish. Much quicker, easier, and much less messy than sanding or chemically removing the old finish. Refinished with 3 or 4 coats of Interlux gold varnish (IFIRC). You can matt the finish if you want by rubbing or wetsanding the final coat once its thoroughly dried, or using a matt varnish for the final coat. Good luck.

[James S]

Mine seemed to only have been finished with varnish when I refinish them.. so sanding worked quite well.. Tough call on the oil though..

[Ryban]

I think I'm just worried about sanding in oils and dirt in the process, and want to clean them before going at it with the sander, given that the varnish has been completely worn away in places.

[Patient]

When we bought our Baba, the PO had stripped the entire interior using several different methods, chemical, scraping, heatgun etc, I know he meant well and was probably trying to make the tired finish show better. Unfortunately for us though, we found that the discoloration on the sole where a heatgun was used was "cooked in".

On the sole, I used powdered TSP (Red and White box) diluted with measuring spoons in warm water and gunk-off spray that I could spot on to loosen oil and brighten dark spots, then scotchbright the crud out of the opened grain. Everything else got a light hand sanding then a wipe down with mineral spirits.

[marcjsmith]

Ended up being one of the easiest and cheapest jobs I’ve done on my boat. Nice thing about the 376 is that all the board are removable and able to be taken home. Woo Hoo, no dust in the cabin.

I started with a chemical strip using a liquid stripper. And a drywall taping knife with rounded edges. It worked well. But in the ended I had to resort to a sander.

I used a 6” random orbital and a small ¼ sheet sander. I also used a block sander with the various grits. I started with 60 grit and my final sand was 220 grit. Using a sander is “dangerous” in that you don’t have much wood to work with, veneer is thin. Sanding through the veneer is not good, do not pass go, do not collect $200.

When sanding near the edges of the boards, you have to be very careful not to “round over” the edge and sand through the veneer.

I used the 1/4" sheet sander and the block sander with I did the ends of the boards taking care to keep the sanders level with the edge. Sanding/refinishing the underside is also something not to be ignored. It doesn’t really add much more time, and this way you are completely resealing the boards top bottom and ends.

After sanding I made up a thick liquid, not quite a paste of oxalic acid (barkeepers friend) and scrubbed the boards using a green kitchen scrubby. And then let it sit for about 30 minutes. Then rinsed and dried. If after drying you still have some stains do a spot treatment of oxaclic acid, if it remains, as a last resort, a 50/50 of bleach and water may help. Rinse and dry. This process will likely raise the grain of the wood. Block sand with the 220 and then wipe it down with acetone or mineral spirits.

The moody cabin soles are screwed down and the board shave a brass(?) thimble for the screw to pass through. I did not remove these.

Once you have everything sanded, and nice and dry, it is time to apply the varnish.

I used Minwax Helmsman Spar Varnish, satin finish with a high density foam 4” roller.

I did the bottom and ends first. On the bottom I didn’t exhibit quite the attention to detail scrubbing, cleaning ect. Since it wasn’t going to be seen. The bottom really soaked up the varnish. I think I ended up with 3-4 coats until it was acceptable. With a light scuff of 220 between coats Care must be exercised when doing the edges in that you may well get run off and drips. You do not want the drips to dry such that you end up with a blemish on the good topside of the sole. To that end using a foam brush I knocked down any drips that formed.

Once the bottom and edges are dry. You can flip the boards over and start varnishing the top sides. If you end with a wayward drip that has blemished the top side, scrape or cut the drip with a small razor and then wipe with a spirit to smooth it down.

You are now ready to start varnishing the top sides of the sole. I ended up with 5 coats, again with a light scuff between coats. The process will be the same as the bottom. Wipe the surface down with spirits and a clean lint free rag. Once you apply varnish any marks or stains that are on the wood will remain until the next time you refinish the wood. So make sure everything is clean and ready.

When scuff sanding between coats, take care around the edges. You don’t want to sand through the new varnish nor do you want round over the edges.

With every coat you put on you will be building up layers of protective finish. Be mindful of your work space. Watch your dust, watch for stray hairs, bugs, shirt sleeves, etc. You don’t want to ruin all your hard work at this stage.

When I did this project. I took a few boards home on Sunday, and when I went back to the boat on Saturday I dropped off the fresh boards and took home another section of boards. I also did the companionway ladder. Since I didn’t have any veneer to worry about I used chemical stripper and sanders to clean the ladder before varnishing.

It’s a very rewarding project, relatively easy, and pretty cheap. Once you do the sole, you start looking at the bulkheads and other bright work.

Notes: When I was done varnishing between coats, I took my roller and wrapped a plastic bag around the roller. This enabled me to use the roller for a longer period of time until it got hard. STIR THE VARNISH. If you don’t stir the varnish the deglossers will settle to the bottom of the can, and mess you up (don’t ask).



TLDR:

Step 1 strip varnish with a very light sanding or Chemicals or both
Step 2 wash with oxalic acid solution (barkeepers friend) let dry
Step 3 sand again(lightly) to remove any raised grain
Step 4 varnish
Step 5 wait
Step 6 scuff sand
Step 7 repeat 4 5 6 until you are satisfied then finish with step 4



Parts/tools

Sander (electrical and block sander)
60-220 grit sand paper
Various scrapers and razors
3m scrubby pad
Spirits
Stripper
Oxacli acid (barkeeper friend)
Bleach
Clean rags
Foam rollers
foam brushes

[Ryban]

Thanks for the tips! I did a lot of the same things for the hatches I removed.

Luckily the teak and holly are thick, solid piece, and not a thin veneer over plywood, so I won't have to worry about accidentally burning through the veneer.