SeaHorse II wrote:
"To oil or not to oil is the question."
You will regret it if you do.* An oil finish on exterior teak lasts even less time than varnish.* If you spill lube oil on a teak deck, not to worry because the oil will weather out of the wood fairly quickly.* Same thing with teak oil.*
The only valid use for oil on the exterior of a boat, in the opinion of the shipwrights I know who do a lot of teak work on GBs and the like in our marina, is as temporary protection to wood that will eventually be refinished but there isn't time to do it now.* In the large GB charter fleet, a piece of teak that is having a problem with the finish will sometimes be sanded back and then oiled if the boat is departing on a long charter too soon for the wood to be properly prepped and finished.* The oil will protect the wood until the boat gets back.* They usually give the person chartering the boat a little can of oil and a rag and ask him to rub some onto the wood once a week or so.* If they don't do this, the wood could start going gray before it gets back, so it will have to be sanded again which, of course, removes more wood.* The oil also protects the bare wood from moisture.
When we used to use varnish I used this technique from time to time and the oil really does weather out of the wood very quickly.* But it was a good way to protect the wood until my schedule gave us enough time to properly varnish it.* Once we switched to Bristol I couldn't do this anymore as Bristol (and I assume the other similar finishes) will not adhere properly over an older oil finish.* You have to remove all traces of the oil.
Almost all the boats I see with "wood colored" swim steps in our marina are in boathouses.* Some of them are varnished, which as John says provides a wonderfully slippery surface unless you put traction material in the varnish on the top surfaces.* Others appear to have Cetol on them--- the finish is dull and a bit orange.* There are a few that are simply painted brown.
But whatever you decide to do, oil will not give you a labor-free finish.* In fact, you'll find it will be a much more labor-demanding finish than just about anything else.* Oil also holds all the dirt and soot that falls on it, which is one reason it's a terrible thing to put on a teak deck.
If you keep your boat in a boathouse and the stern is completely protected from the weather you'll get more time out of the oil, although you'll still have the dirt problem.* There's a very good reason why most boats with teak swimsteps have silver/gray ones.
-- Edited by Marin on Friday 26th of February 2010 11:41:15 AM
