Teak flooring refinish

[Tcubed66]

I have removed the teak flooring for refinish due to looking very grungy and have seen multiple references where people coat with epoxy and then varnish their wood pieces. Should I do the same on the flooring? My initial thought was to use a polyurethane only. I have stripped the old finish off already and it was thick and the wood looks to be in good shape. Epoxy then poly, poly only? Why? Best process?

[Bill O]

Is it plank wood or a veneer over ply?

Poly will make it slippery when it gets wet.

We used real tung oil for our cabin sole made of teak planks. The teak looks very good, is water/stain repellent and best of all maintains the natural slip resistant nature of the teak. Here is a link to an article we wrote up about cabin sole finishes.

[Tcubed66]

It is a veneer. I was hoping to get that deep clear look. I have read that the gloss poly was what gives that slipperiness to the flooring. I was going with a semi or satin gloss. I wonder if that is the case?

[Bill O]

They are all relatively slippery.

It has been a while since we wrote that article, maybe someone is marketing a newer gym floor finish that isn't slippery again.

Many want a shiny/gloss look to their cabin sole. I'll take the trade off with the tung oil finish for ease of application, easy spill clean up, simpler overall maintenance and the non slip quality.

[bstreep]

Bill O has some good advice. We redid ours about 3 years ago. Ours are solid teak, not veneer. But shouldn't matter. We used Daly's Profin. Allegedly, Hunter used it years ago on their real wood floors. It's very durable, it's available in either satin or gloss, it's insanely easy to apply, and get this: it's not slippery when wet! We will probably throw a maintenance coat on it sometime this year. All it takes is a good cleaning, and scuffing with a maroon scratch pad.

[s/v Jedi]

If you want glossy, this is no good for you but check out this Jatoba wood that I just finished with Odies’s Oil (on-line, Amazon etc.) Looks amazing, I didn’t try if it’s slippery yet…

[Tcubed66]

Thanks for the advice everyone. I’m looking into coating with epoxy followed with a few coats of some type of UV stable final finish. I’m still doing my research though and continue to be open to suggestions. It is interesting that there are so many different processes to refinish and confusing for sure.

[s/v Jedi]

Originally Posted by Tcubed66

Thanks for the advice everyone. I’m looking into coating with epoxy followed with a few coats of some type of UV stable final finish. I’m still doing my research though and continue to be open to suggestions. It is interesting that there are so many different processes to refinish and confusing for sure.

I wouldn’t recommend epoxy at all; teak doesn’t need it. That said, I used on with very good results on birch and thus is what I found:

I use TotalBoat penetrating epoxy. First mixed it with the hardener, then reduced it 40% with denatured alcohol. Yes, 40%. Use a wide brush or even a yellow spreader to put it on as quickly and thin as possible. When you look back at the work and see a dry spot where all the epoxy went into the wood (a knot, imperfection etc.) I brush that spot again.

Now let cure for 24 hours. After this, wash the floor with just plain water, (if at all possible hose it down while scrubbing with a Scotch pad) to get rid of any amine blush. Let dry. Now put 120 grit on a random orbital sander and sand until you’re back at the wood grain. Follow up with 220 grit to make it look good. Now it will look just like the bare wood you started with but it feels like a rock hard plastic.

I have tried a Minwax wipe-on oil based polyurethane as well as Epifanes varnish matte, both with excellent results. You only need a couple of finish layers to build up depth because nothing will penetrate the wood anymore.

[Tcubed66]

I would think that the OEM refinished the original teak and holly laminated floor with epoxy due to no wood grain/seams seen. I wouldn’t think that they spent many of days with multiple coats of varnish to achieve that look but probably wrong. Why not seal the teak with epoxy? Will it cause damage? I’m not going to oil it due to the many bumps and bruises that would detract from the desired look, but still deciding.

[s/v Jedi]

Originally Posted by Tcubed66

I would think that the OEM refinished the original teak and holly laminated floor with epoxy due to no wood grain/seams seen. I wouldn’t think that they spent many of days with multiple coats of varnish to achieve that look but probably wrong. Why not seal the teak with epoxy? Will it cause damage? I’m not going to oil it due to the many bumps and bruises that would detract from the desired look, but still deciding.

OEM’s usually choose the cheapest option that still is (barely) acceptable. I would not make that part of the decision on refinishing.

If you finish sand the boards with 220 grit, you have reached the best they’re gonna look. You can wet then with some alcohol to see how they will look with finish.

If there are repairs needed, you can use epoxy for that, but they will be visible. Small nicks you can drill out with a Forstner drill bit and glue a teak plug in which does make it blend in. Scratches etc. are best left as is and see them as natural wear of the floor. The only solution is to sand them out but the thickness of the veneer will most probably not allow that.

For finishing a teak sole I really believe Odie’s Oil is the best option. Please check out some of their instructional videos to learn about the product. In tests on waterproofing it outperforms other products, even 2-component ones.

[jordanbigel]

We refinished our teak/holly soles 20 years ago with many coats of polyurethane (gloss not mat) - no epoxy, I don't think that is necessary because the poly seals all you need. Our teak is not a veneer, so not sure if our experience transfers to your sole. As for it being slippery, I have no idea because we don't walk around on it wet with bare feet.

We cover our sole with strategically placed small rectangular area rugs because it's more comfortable to walk on in bare feet, and, if you are coming down the companionway with wet feet/sea boots, the rugs absorb the water and later when the sun is out you can take them outside to dry if needed. Also protects the sole from damage when you drops things.

After 20+ years, our sole is badly in need of refinishing again. I think I can just sand it down a bit and add a few more coats to bring it that "new" look. If I was *more* obsessive about aesthetics, I probably could have done it 5 years ago.

WRT tung oil (on anything) I am curious why some people (BillO for example) say it is low maintenance - my experience is you have to re-oil interior teak each year - at minimum every 2 years. We have a lot of oiled teak trim (not on the floor) and even indoors it fades and gets dirty after a while, and no one is walking on it.

I am thinking an oiled sole has to re-coated every couple of years, every fourth year at most? I would call that maintenance. A polyurethane sole needs zero maintenance. Ever. Spills don'f affect it, they wipe right up. You just have to clean it like any floor in a house.

[s/v Jedi]

Originally Posted by jordanbigel

We refinished our teak/holly soles 20 years ago with many coats of polyurethane (gloss not mat) - no epoxy, I don't think that is necessary because the poly seals all you need. Our teak is not a veneer, so not sure if our experience transfers to your sole. As for it being slippery, I have no idea because we don't walk around on it wet with bare feet.

We cover our sole with strategically placed small rectangular area rugs because it's more comfortable to walk on in bare feet, and, if you are coming down the companionway with wet feet/sea boots, the rugs absorb the water and later when the sun is out you can take them outside to dry if needed. Also protects the sole from damage when you drops things.

After 20+ years, our sole is badly in need of refinishing again. I think I can just sand it down a bit and add a few more coats to bring it that "new" look. If I was *more* obsessive about aesthetics, I probably could have done it 5 years ago.

WRT tung oil (on anything) I am curious why some people (BillO for example) say it is low maintenance - my experience is you have to re-oil interior teak each year - at minimum every 2 years. We have a lot of oiled teak trim (not on the floor) and even indoors it fades and gets dirty after a while, and no one is walking on it.

I am thinking an oiled sole has to re-coated every couple of years, every fourth year at most? I would call that maintenance. A polyurethane sole needs zero maintenance. Ever. Spills don'f affect it, they wipe right up. You just have to clean it like any floor in a house.

It’s because of the confusion on different products. When you talk about tung oil, I guess you mean the product as is sold at the Lowe’s etc. That is not tung oil, don’t believe the label. Some brands don’t even have any tung oil in it; all have a mix of oil, solvents, varnish (!) etc. It is no wonder that this requires frequent refinishing.

You can still buy pure tung oil from specialized places. Very different product.

When I talk about a product like Odie’s Oil, it is completely different. It is a modern adaptation to the old European oiled and waxed floors, i.e. how it was done for centuries. The oil completely penetrates the wood without leaving anything on the surface (you remove what’s left on the surface) and the wax leaves a protective super thin surface layer when it is buffed.
Depending on use, a single application lasts 5-10 years. That’s a long time plus, because there is no real surface layer, all that is required for refinishing is a good cleaning and the application of the oil.

When you use a polyurethane, you add a surface layer that has cured. It wears away and upon refinishing all the old needs to be sanded off to prevent color differences. It’s like a modern form of varnish.

Some woods need the level of protection you get with polyurethane; others like exotic hardwoods do not. Teak actually has so much oil in it, that you must remove some with a solvent wipe before gluing or varnishing or it won’t bond.

[Tcubed66]

I don’t think my veneer has enough oil to make much difference, it’s only a few mm thick. Maybe not the case with solid teak flooring and maybe why your oil is the way to go. I was originally going to go with a polyurethane finish only but after doing some digging I seen where it is acceptable to use an epoxy filler for that, and use the UV stable varnish/ poly for the finish coat.

[s/v Jedi]

Originally Posted by Tcubed66

I don’t think my veneer has enough oil to make much difference, it’s only a few mm thick. Maybe not the case with solid teak flooring and maybe why your oil is the way to go. I was originally going to go with a polyurethane finish only but after doing some digging I seen where it is acceptable to use an epoxy filler for that, and use the UV stable varnish/ poly for the finish coat.

No you can’t do that. When you use an epoxy filler you can’t use a transparent finish anymore.

I think you got all the info you need, good luck!