Thread subject: Whaler Central - Boston Whaler Boat Information and Photos :: best way to clean teak

Posted by Finnegan on 04/20/15 - 10:43 AM
#5

I have cleaned a lot of teak in my life, and for teak which has been uncared for for many years, (as was the situation on three old classic Whalers I have purchased), I first use Amazon's ONE-step teak cleaner, sprayed on and lightly scrubbed with a Scotch-Brite pad (the kind with a handle). It generally takes three applications and light scrubbings to get it clean. Under no circumstances use two step cleaner - they will destroy the soft grains of the wood. Also, DO NOT scrub with any kind of brush since the bristles dig out the soft grain, leaving raised hard grain and a lot more follow up sanding, which reduces the wood thickness.

I lot of people do not recommend teak cleaner at all, just sanding. In my case, where I am preparing for varnishing, I use the teak cleaner to be sure I am getting rid of any teak oil and varnish residue, since all teak oils have varnish in them. The one step cleaner dissolves the varnish, and also gets rid of any other stains which may have been on the wood, such as gasoline/oil spills, heavy dirt. etc.

After cleaning, sanding is imperative to get rid of any black lines/specs remaining. Be aware that oiled teak has a short life of looking good, unless the boat is stored indoors. When exposed to the elements
it requires constant cleaning, sanding and re-oiling to remain looking good. Which is why I finally gave up, and switched to long lasting varnish coatings.