Pros and Cons of Teak Decks

I've seen it done, however if you want rainbow oil streaks all over your paint everytime it rains I would not recommend it.

teak gone grey

In market looking for a 45'-50' MY. A few of the boats I've been viewing have had all teak decks which have a grey or darker look to them. Is it possible to revive this? Since I'm looking at older boats (late '80's to early '90's) should I be concerned with the cost of replacing the decks?

Yes, to remove the grey or dark look and bring teak to the blondish look that you see in pictures on new yachts and such. All you have to do is clean the teak or lightly sand it. It's not an issue. You may have to replace the teak decks on an older boat, the thickness of the existing teak decks will tell you. If the decks are cleaned with an abrasive 2 part cleaner like snappy teaknu, it will remove a little bit of the teak each time it is cleaned and eventually you won't have any wood left after many years.......

With the older boat, if they teak was ignored, you've got a find. Like Capt. J mentioned cleaning and oiling the teak will bring back the color. I personally like Tip Top. It has a nice light honey color. If it was sanded a lot or improperly the grain may be gone, in which case it won't hold oil well and may need to be replaced. However, on older boats they used thicker teak and you may be able to just take it down a bit with brass wool. On many newer boats it's almost a vaneer, maybe 1/8th ". When that's gone it's pretty much gone.

2 from mid 80's

Both boats are from the mid-80's. Looking forward to viewing them next week. For the price of teak these day's, am a little cautious.

Depending on the quality of the boats involved I might be hesitant to replace teak $$$; possibly going with the artificial teaks (I hesitate to use a name because I recently read about patent infringment judgements and many may be disapearing) or removing the teak and going with a fiberglass deck.

Tip Top Teak has not been produced for about 2 years now. The owner of the company died and nobody could run it, so his wife closed it was what I heard.

On a well cared for teak deck, you should find yourself repairing/replacing the caulking more often than the wood. Sluicing the deck once or twice a day (more often in very hot conditions) with clean sea water keeps the grain swollen and tight. This not only gives a natural barrier to some liquid spills abut also stops water working its way under the deck, thus preventing leaks, permanent damp and rotting from beneath. I have found Teepol to be a good cleaner on teak and it copes well with salt water too.

Heart breaker. There are still a few gallons around, but they're getting harder to find.

http://www.sportfishermen.com/board/f17/tip-top-teak-now-available-oth-70407.html

Evidently it is back on the market..... ...someone always picks up a quality product....