Cetol or varnish below deck

[Ed Welp]

My winter project is refinishing the wood below deck on my 1986 Hunter. The wood close to the companion way is in ruff shape. It still has the factory finish or stain and varnish. I have used Cetol for years above deck. Anyone have experience using it below deck. What do you see as the pro's and con's.

Ed Welp
Alure, Norfolk, VA

 

[stephen Penny]

Suggest strip, sans, bleach, seal/sand and then several coats Epifanes clear varnish with sanding in between. Then install new anti-skid tred.

 

[higgs]

If it has been effective topsides it should be a terrific choice below deck.

 

[Stu Jackson]

Only if you like the shiny finish below decks. We like simple teak oil on ours, so the answer is neither.

 

[Steve L22188]

Ultimate Sole

Used Ultimate Sole on my cabin sole (teak and holly veneer) and it turned out terrific. Was so pleased, I used it on the companionway steps -- they look terrific.

This is a great product, easy to use (follow the directions carefully), has good non-slip properties and looks like a million bucks.

 

[woodster]

steve do you have sources for that product....
regards
woody

 

[jibes138]

Are they in business??

The Ultimate Sole website is not listing any products for sale and appears as if the company no longer is in operation? I too need a sole refinish and would like to try this product, anyone have a source? Last time I used Amada and was pleased with the result. High VOC content and it dried amazingly fast.

 

[Joe]

varnish.... it simply looks better. Since it's inside maintenance is minmal.

 

[digby sailor]

oil

I would never use anything but oil on interior teak,sole excepted of course which requires more protection.

 

[philwsailz]

Cetol can be had in a low gloss version. Its ease of application and maintenance makes it a no brainer for me...

Assuming you can find the low gloss version, there are no downsides to using it in my book. If you can find low gloss in their crystal clear, so much the better!

Cetol

 

[Paul356]

Try Watco oil. i have been very pleased with results of a light coating. No need to strip, etc. I just wipe on a bit from time to time.

 

[Warren Milberg]

I've used Cetol on my salon table, chart rack and a number of other places inside my boat and have found it easy to use and I like the way it looks.

 

[jibes138]

MAybe a bettter solution?

My interior teak with the exception of the cabin sole is done with Formby's Tung Oil. It goes on like water or teak oil and has some amount of varnish in it. When it dries it has a beautiful gloss shine to it and lasts for years. I just refinished my v-berth, head, and hanging locker at end of last year and a quick cleaning followed by application of the tung oil and it looks like new. Sorry no picture. This is on a boat that is now 24 years old.
You can get the tung oil at Home Depot or Lowes. It was what was used by the original owners so I just stuck with it.
I used Amada on the sole and liked it a lot. Hard to find, maybe only available over the internet now, not sure. A guy in my marina with a Passport 46 uses Amada exclusively for all his brightwork, loves the stuff. I used it before I met him, but it is another data point for favorability of the product.

 

[appleman]

When I bought our O'Day 26, the interior was a mess, with rotten bulkheads. I removed all woodwork, replaced what was damaged, and then started cleaning the old stuff that was still good. I used Don Casey's mix of water, laundry detergent and bleach. Soaked it in good, brushed it with a stiff brush , rinsed and dried by the wood stove. Then I went one step further to try to match the old to the new. I soaked in a solution of oxalic acid and rinsed and dried. Then sanded enough to take off the raised grain and soaked in a homemade solution of 1 part solvent based gloss polyurethane, 1 part boiled linseed oil and 1 part mineral spirits. Soak in just like stain, and after no more will soak in, wipe with a linen cloth. When dry, lightly sand and do again. when the solution starts to "stiffen" wipe to a nice satin finish. Now the only maintenance is a yearly wipe down with lemon oil.

What it looked like when I bought the boat

and after

 

[zeehag]

watco leaves the wood looking like wood cetol makes it loook artificial. varnish is nice bit a pita
oil is good
watco leaves a shell on th ewood--the oili usually use doesnt---this is good for longevity...i am testing on my exterior wood as we speak..LOL...all 110 ft of caprail and railings on my formosa.....

 

[Steve L22188]

Ultimate Sole Source - Woody

Woody, I bought the Ultimate Sole from their website. Tried to pull it up a moment ago and it's essentially blank. Don't know what happened to these folks. Anybody else know what the deal is? This was/is a great product and I hope they don't go away.

 

[woodster]

thanks steve i to had that same thing happen when i tryed it the otherday was hopeing you had another one ....o well i guess i will be doing it with teak and holly when that time comes lol

thanks

woody

 

[Maine Sail]

Ultimate sole is out of business. Gym floor finish is very similar to Ultimate sole as it has to be tough, shiny and have limited slip.

As for interiors there are many options but Cetol would not be one I'd personally choose. You don't need the UV protection in the cabin that you do outside. The UV inhibitors in Cetol make the finish tend towards cloudy. Any good polyurethane, Danish or Tung oil finish or a varnish will work. I use polyurethane and Varathane oil is the one I prefer but the PO's used Minwax Helmsman Spar Urethane so I have continued with it.

Catalina and others are using water based polyurethane finishes these days..

 

[Steve Dion]

I suggest that you use the original finish. It was Seafin. It is extremely easy to use and last for years when you take care of the interior. My 1985 H'31 still has most of the original finish in place and looks very good.

 

[mark_swart]

Ed -- I have an 84 H34 and am using clear satin polyeurythene varnish. Cetol is sort of overkill and it's cloudy. The clear satin keeps the wood grain and the orignial look, but lasts indefinitely. If you do a gloss varnish, you're going to have to do everything for it to look right. With the satin poly you can sort of do it section by section without it looking mismatched.
For decks, I've heard good things about ultimate sole and bet there must still be some out there somewhere.
BTW -- how do you like sailing out in that area? I'm moving to the Hampton Roads area soon and am planning on sailing out of Hampton.