Cleaning tips for doors

[Xtina24]

Hello everyone! First post on here after creeping around for a bit. I'll try to keep things short...

My husband and I are in the process of purchasing a 2008 Leopard 40, hoping to close in the next 2 weeks.

It needs some love, most of the projects we feel confident on, (my husband was a diesel mechanic and I'm a self-proclaimed DIY'er) however one thing I had a question on are the doors to the heads.

It seems the previous owner cleaned/stained them with what looks like bleach spots. Any ideas on how to get this off? We haven't actually taken possession of the boat, or I'd be investigating it a bit more on my own. Photo below.

https://imgur.com/a/gMJPTz9

[tkeithlu]

Welcome to the forum, Xtina24.

I think I'm seeing dings as well as damage to the varnish from some solvent or other. The surface of the varnish is roughed up so it's now "white" rather than reflective/transparent.

The question becomes whether you can fill the damaged varnish, or need to sand and varnish the whole door. Try some touch up with clear varnish, and see it the blemishes disappear. If that fails, you have lost little, and can move to sanding and varnishing at your leisure.

[Tayana42]

I’ve had reasonable results with Howard’s Restor-A-Finish. It is available on Amazon in several wood colors. It works best on varnish, not so good on polyurethane.

[GreenWave]

+1 on Restore a finish. We are in middle of project restoring our salon walls and doors. It works great on removing water spots. However if the wood is bleached underneath the varnish you may need to remove the varnish, sand and then recoat.

[Cheechako]

I agree with tkeithlu. Give it a try after cleaning well.
Also, don't try any "miracle stuff" with silicone in it.
There are good wipe on poly's now days also. If you aren't up to doing the door finish you could try that after you do the test spot. They are usually a more satin finish.

[Exctyengr]

If it were mine, I would probably take the door off the hinges, lay it flat and refinish. Start with wiping down with alcohol (to remove any oil or wax), sanding probably starting with 120 then finish sand with 220, once everything looks even, perhaps a coat of tung oil, (let dry 24- 48 hours), two coats of sanding sealer, then three + coats of satin varnish.
This is not complex, sounds more complicated than it is but in my experience the miracle stuff is short lived, do it right without shortcuts.

[waterman46]

Congrats on your purchase - great choice IMHO. I agree with the previous post about total refinish. Whatever else you do you'll just be wasting time, very likely, unless you just like to experiment a little.

Total refinish is not that hard since you'll be removing all hardware, you can take the door home to work on it during the week, etc. You'll need an orbital sander.

And with refinish you can eliminate that glossy look I think I'm seeing in the picture. Satin finish is what you want below decks, except for areas that often get wet and will be wiped dry, such as counter top trim in the galley or head. Gloss is useful there, but a large area like a door in gloss to me is just glaring.

[Pete7]

Before you sand the door, try some of the techniques for removing white cup rings from wood. You might strike lucky.

Pete

[Exctyengr]

Originally Posted by waterman46

Congrats on your purchase - great choice IMHO. I agree with the previous post about total refinish. Whatever else you do you'll just be wasting time, very likely, unless you just like to experiment a little.

Total refinish is not that hard since you'll be removing all hardware, you can take the door home to work on it during the week, etc. You'll need an orbital sander.

And with refinish you can eliminate that glossy look I think I'm seeing in the picture. Satin finish is what you want below decks, except for areas that often get wet and will be wiped dry, such as counter top trim in the galley or head. Gloss is useful there, but a large area like a door in gloss to me is just glaring.

Absolutely concur with the above. Two comments, though1) use an orbital sander but finish by hand sanding to avoid the little swirls that orbitals leave. (2) use the finish gloss that matches the rest of the interior. I absolutely agree that satin works best below decks but if the rest of the interior wood is gloss then stay with gloss (unless you are a masochist and want to do the entire saloon!)

[dfelsent]

If you refinish and want to be fancy first coats gloss, last coat satin/matte

[Xtina24]

ah, thank you everyone! we're in the closing process of our purchase so it's been a little busy over here

i’m definitely thinking the previous owner bleached it, though who knows. it’s mostly around the door handles so it seems they sprayed something on them to try to clean them i’m assuming, which obviously only made them worse. it's not on any of the other areas of the boat - why they would spray down door handles, i really don't know.

totally agree on not taking shortcuts. it seemed that’s all the previous owner of this boat did at this point, i'll see if a good clean helps them out, if not i'm not opposed to taking them entirely off and re-doing them.

[Exctyengr]

Xtina24: I've taken another look at your pics of the door. While I previously opined that I would simply remove the door and refinish, that door might be a teak veneer in which case sanding would simply remove the first layer of veneer. I would first try some of the other suggestions but sand with a piece of Scotch Brite first to see if that removes the white spots. Then you can put a coat of satin varnish on if you want. AVOID ANYTHING WITH SILICONE!!! (Silicone is next to impossible to remove and nothing sticks to it) Good luck great boat.

[GreenWave]

In large part this is why we are trying restore a finish. Any significant sanding would do irreparable damage. And stripping everything is more than I want to take on. So far the results are meeting expectations.