so this is the first boat I’ve worked on that has teak and I’m kind of at a loss. I’ve been keeping it clean with soapy amonia which works great but I know it’s time for a light sanding because the grain is starting to show sings of scrubbing. So what are some tricks for sanding. By hand or orbital? What grit? With or against the grain? Please help
Short (weekly) periodic care I wash the teak with a lot of clean sea water scrabbling it with medium/hard brush Perpendicular to the wood fibers (grain). For the long term care, I do the above and let it dry well. Then I use DEKS OLJE D1 (http://www.deksolje.com/index.php?langue=en&page=products-deks-olje-d1) , Saturating Wood Oil for Tropical Woods - Matte Finish. I brush the wood as many layers an long as it absorbs the oil. the company recommends sending it lightly with #100 paper, but I don't do it this way the wood absorbs more oil. After this treatment, I brash the teak every six month with DEKS OLJE D1. The next time you'll need the big treatment again is in 3-6 years. I do this treatments for the last 40 years on my teak decks in the Med which you know is hot humid an very sunny and they look magnificent. Please fell free to contact me if you need more info. Nahum
Unless it's in real bad shape, 120-180 grit with an orbital should be coarse enough to do the job without taking forever or removing too much material. Worst case hit it with 80 grit on a first pass till you get about 80% sanded then drop back to 180 for the finish pass. Decks are the easiest to sand, use a hard enough backing pad to cut the rubber down even, too soft a pad will leave it proud. It's more work but taking the time to remove rod holders and hawsepipes will speed up sanding the covering boards in the long run. If there's a tower leg, double or triple tape the base so you don't scratch the anodized coating, it can't be repaired! Same goes for the bumper metal.
Now, If you want a real fine finish, It's gonna take a bit more sanding; A couple more coats should finish it.
Never use any oil on the deck. it gets hot and slippery. One of the main reasons teak is used on boats is that when it's wet it's NOT slippery. Half the sportfish boats oil the rail, half do not. It's all personal preference. Use Oxy-clean powder on the deck first spread evenly and then a medium/stiff brush cross grain and rinse well. Then Snappy teak #2 diluted 4/1. I like to spray it on so that it's even. Push the #2 around with a medium brush and then rinse well again. Once a year you'll need to sand lightly- start with 120 and move up to 180.