A few months ago, I refinished an old Teak picnic table I picked up
for a bargain. The previous owners had put all sorts of finishing
agents on it, and it looked pretty splotchy and bad. So I got a
vibrating sander and took it down to the bare wood.

I know that teak weathers out to a nice silver patina, but I really
prefer that golden 'hardwood floor' look of varnished wood, so I got a
quart of marine varnish and did some internet research.

Most of the sites I found were about refinishing boat decks, and they
mentioned things like putting on 10 or 12 coats, and how even that
required refinishing every few years. That seemed excessive to me, so
I figured it had something to do with the rigors of salt water and
spray, and probably wouldn't affect my table on the back deck.

So I put one coat on the tabletop, which made a huge improvement (of
course), and then a second coat, which made a bit more of an
improvement. But the third coat barely made any change at all, so I
stopped after three coats.

For about six or eight weeks, it looked great and all the neighborhood
wives oohed and ahhed, but then little 'bare spots' started showing
up. Over time, they grew and increased until now when about 20% of the
table has exposed patches that are showing that silver teak patina
instead of the golden brown finish. So today I had to restrip the
table and start over.

My question: where does the varnish go? Why does something require
10-12 coats to last? I surmise that it might be one of these things:
a) varnish actually evaporates over time
b) the wood soaks up the varnish from below
c) its so thin that each coat doesn't really cover the wood
adequately, so you need a lot of coats to get a good protective layer
d) varnish breaks down in sunlight and decomposes

Can anyone tell me more about this? Is it acceptable to just keep
adding layers over the top before the bare spots show up?

Thanks.
--riverman

riverman wrote:

A few months ago, I refinished an old Teak picnic table I picked up
for a bargain.
snip

If it is really teak, it's oily.

After a while, the varnish loses it's grip due to the internal oils in
the teak.

You can put a 100 coats on and still lose.

PLAN; A

Only thing I know that works, is to wipe down the teak with acetone,
then apply a coat of epoxy TOTALLY encapsulating the teak.

Allow to dry for 24 hours, then lightly sand and apply another coat of
epoxy.

Repeat daily unit you have 4-6 coats of epoxy, then allow to cure for
about 10 days, then lightly sand and start applying coats of varnish
that contains UV inhibitors on a one coat a day basis, sanding lightly
between coats.

About 6-8 coats should do it.

Keep a nail polish bottle full of varnish and a ScotchBrite pad handy
to repair scratches immediately.

Be totally paranoid about protecting tho table when ever anybody comes
around.

PLAN: B

Screw it, let it go silver and enjoy life.

Have fun.

SFWIW, building a boat with NO external teak or any other wood for
that matter.

Lew

On Apr 30, 8:49 pm, Lew Hodgett wrote:
riverman wrote:

A few months ago, I refinished an old Teak picnic table I picked up
for a bargain.
snip

If it is really teak, it's oily.

After a while, the varnish loses it's grip due to the internal oils in
the teak.

You can put a 100 coats on and still lose.

PLAN; A

Only thing I know that works, is to wipe down the teak with acetone,
then apply a coat of epoxy TOTALLY encapsulating the teak.

Allow to dry for 24 hours, then lightly sand and apply another coat of
epoxy.

Repeat daily unit you have 4-6 coats of epoxy, then allow to cure for
about 10 days, then lightly sand and start applying coats of varnish
that contains UV inhibitors on a one coat a day basis, sanding lightly
between coats.

About 6-8 coats should do it.

Keep a nail polish bottle full of varnish and a ScotchBrite pad handy
to repair scratches immediately.

Be totally paranoid about protecting tho table when ever anybody comes
around.

PLAN: B

Screw it, let it go silver and enjoy life.

Have fun.

SFWIW, building a boat with NO external teak or any other wood for
that matter.

Lew

Plan B for me... Tom

Oddly, insects like the stuff. I built a porch swing out of white Oak, put
Spar Varnish on it and "Wasps" devoured the finish.

Leon wrote:
Oddly, insects like the stuff. I built a porch swing out of white Oak, put
Spar Varnish on it and "Wasps" devoured the finish.


So what was your solution?

Lew

riverman wrote:
A few months ago, I refinished an old Teak picnic table I picked up
for a bargain. The previous owners had put all sorts of finishing
agents on it, and it looked pretty splotchy and bad. So I got a
vibrating sander and took it down to the bare wood.

I know that teak weathers out to a nice silver patina, but I really
prefer that golden 'hardwood floor' look of varnished wood, so I
got a quart of marine varnish and did some internet research.

Most of the sites I found were about refinishing boat decks, and
they mentioned things like putting on 10 or 12 coats, and how even
that required refinishing every few years. That seemed excessive to
me, so I figured it had something to do with the rigors of salt
water and spray, and probably wouldn't affect my table on the back
deck.

So I put one coat on the tabletop, which made a huge improvement (of
course), and then a second coat, which made a bit more of an
improvement. But the third coat barely made any change at all, so I
stopped after three coats.

For about six or eight weeks, it looked great and all the
neighborhood wives oohed and ahhed, but then little 'bare spots'
started showing up. Over time, they grew and increased until now
when about 20% of the table has exposed patches that are showing
that silver teak patina instead of the golden brown finish. So
today I had to restrip the table and start over.

My question: where does the varnish go? Why does something require
10-12 coats to last? I surmise that it might be one of these things:
a) varnish actually evaporates over time
b) the wood soaks up the varnish from below
c) its so thin that each coat doesn't really cover the wood
adequately, so you need a lot of coats to get a good protective
layer d) varnish breaks down in sunlight and decomposes

It's called "weathering". And yes, it is primarily the result of
sunlight...no sun no (or little) weathering. I made a teak dash board
for my car in 1992, varnished it and have done nothing since. Still
pristine.
_______________

Can anyone tell me more about this? Is it acceptable to just keep
adding layers over the top before the bare spots show up?

That's the normal method. You need to sand before applying new to
remove the oxidized layer.


--

dadiOH
____________________________

dadiOH's dandies v3.06...
....a help file of info about MP3s, recording from
LP/cassette and tips & tricks on this and that.
Get it at http://mysite.verizon.net/xico

"Lew Hodgett" wrote in message
ink.net...
Leon wrote:
Oddly, insects like the stuff. I built a porch swing out of white Oak,
put Spar Varnish on it and "Wasps" devoured the finish.


So what was your solution?

Lew

This was actually for a customer. I told them I did not guarantee the
finish against mother natures creatures.
Very strange, they would eat the finish completely off in one spot and
expand that spot. It took about 1 year for the finish to be completely
removed.

Since the finish was on a bench they chose to not spray repellents to defend
the bench.

No solution. But like any outdoor clear finish, it should have been
reapplied every few years although this finish was not lasting that long.

"dadiOH" wrote in message
newsUEZh.3980$IJ3.412@trnddc07...

It's called "weathering". And yes, it is primarily the result of
sunlight...no sun no (or little) weathering. I made a teak dash board
for my car in 1992, varnished it and have done nothing since. Still
pristine.


Apparently windshields have some type of filter and or indirect light does
not affect the finish. Some automatic tenting prescription glasses will not
darken behind a windshield.

"Leon" wrote in message
t...

"dadiOH" wrote in message
newsUEZh.3980$IJ3.412@trnddc07...

It's called "weathering". And yes, it is primarily the result of
sunlight...no sun no (or little) weathering. I made a teak dash board
for my car in 1992, varnished it and have done nothing since. Still
pristine.


Apparently windshields have some type of filter and or indirect light does
not affect the finish. Some automatic tenting prescription glasses will
not darken behind a windshield.

Yup ...something to do with UV blocking so I've been told.
Jim

In article , removespamlcb11211
@swbell.net says...

Apparently windshields have some type of filter and or indirect light does
not affect the finish. Some automatic tenting prescription glasses will not
darken behind a windshield.


Glass does cut a great deal of UV out of direct sunlight. Alas, not all of it.
The jarrah inlay in my kitchen table has faded from purple to pale brown :-(

-P.

--
=========================================
firstname dot lastname at gmail fullstop com

"Peter Huebner" wrote in message
t...
In article ,
removespamlcb11211
@swbell.net says...

Apparently windshields have some type of filter and or indirect light
does
not affect the finish. Some automatic tenting prescription glasses will
not
darken behind a windshield.


Glass does cut a great deal of UV out of direct sunlight. Alas, not all of
it.
The jarrah inlay in my kitchen table has faded from purple to pale brown
:-(


The angle and thickness may have a lot to do with it also. Sunlight through
a windshield is not as much of a constant as a window glass in a house.

On 30 Apr 2007 20:30:31 -0700, riverman wrote:

A few months ago, I refinished an old Teak picnic table I picked up
for a bargain. The previous owners had put all sorts of finishing
agents on it, and it looked pretty splotchy and bad. So I got a
vibrating sander and took it down to the bare wood.

I know that teak weathers out to a nice silver patina, but I really
prefer that golden 'hardwood floor' look of varnished wood, so I got a
quart of marine varnish and did some internet research.

Most of the sites I found were about refinishing boat decks, and they
mentioned things like putting on 10 or 12 coats, and how even that
required refinishing every few years. That seemed excessive to me, so
I figured it had something to do with the rigors of salt water and
spray, and probably wouldn't affect my table on the back deck.

So I put one coat on the tabletop, which made a huge improvement (of
course), and then a second coat, which made a bit more of an
improvement. But the third coat barely made any change at all, so I
stopped after three coats.

For about six or eight weeks, it looked great and all the neighborhood
wives oohed and ahhed, but then little 'bare spots' started showing
up. Over time, they grew and increased until now when about 20% of the
table has exposed patches that are showing that silver teak patina
instead of the golden brown finish. So today I had to restrip the
table and start over.

My question: where does the varnish go? Why does something require
10-12 coats to last? I surmise that it might be one of these things:
a) varnish actually evaporates over time
b) the wood soaks up the varnish from below
c) its so thin that each coat doesn't really cover the wood
adequately, so you need a lot of coats to get a good protective layer
d) varnish breaks down in sunlight and decomposes

Can anyone tell me more about this? Is it acceptable to just keep
adding layers over the top before the bare spots show up?

Thanks.
--riverman

I used to have a fresh-water sailboat with teak trim.

Varnish is for masochists. If you want to spend all your time at the
dock refinishing, go for it.

The rest of us used a product called Cetol (Sikkens is the
manufacturer AFAIK). Sand the wood down to remove the old stuff, put
on a couple of coats of Cetol over a day or so. Another coat every
six months will work just fine. There is an "exterior" version and a
"marine" version. I think the main difference was the marine version
lasted twice as long and cost three times as much...

Just my $0.02Cdn...
rgds, g.

On May 2, 10:06 am, Peter Huebner wrote:
In article , removespamlcb11211
@swbell.net says...



Apparently windshields have some type of filter and or indirect light does
not affect the finish. Some automatic tenting prescription glasses will not
darken behind a windshield.

Glass does cut a great deal of UV out of direct sunlight. Alas, not all of it.
The jarrah inlay in my kitchen table has faded from purple to pale brown :-(

Auto safety glass is a glass-plastic-glass sandwich. The glass
doesn't
block the UV, the plastic core does. Printers who use UV exposure
lamps
use glass plate holders, never plastic.

On Sun, 06 May 2007 16:57:24 GMT, Gerry Wolfe
wrote:



I used to have a fresh-water sailboat with teak trim.

Varnish is for masochists. If you want to spend all your time at the
dock refinishing, go for it.

The rest of us used a product called Cetol (Sikkens is the
manufacturer AFAIK). Sand the wood down to remove the old stuff, put
on a couple of coats of Cetol over a day or so. Another coat every
six months will work just fine. There is an "exterior" version and a
"marine" version. I think the main difference was the marine version
lasted twice as long and cost three times as much...

Just my $0.02Cdn...
rgds, g.


I second that. I use Cetol on a pair of benches outside 24/7/365. I
do have to refinish, but after 3 or more years. It's great stuff.
It's also expensive stuff.