Replacing topside teak with Plasteak

[Ketoj]

After years of pain in maintaining the narrow teak eyebrows along the length of the cabin top, I purchased and installed new "Plasteak" eyebrows.

http://www.plasteak.com/osc/

My experience is good and I'm very pleased with the product, but there are few things I'd like to share.

On the good side; it's made from recycled plastic, the price is comparable if not cheaper than teak, it cuts and sands like real wood, the color and molded grain looks just like teak, the finish, color and shine has held-up well through first year, and most of all it is expecetd to NEVER require any maintenance!!! When you look at it from the dock you'd never know it was not real teak. The company is great to work with and will custom cut to your dimensions.

On the caution side; long lengths will grow and contract with temperature. I installed fasteners in same holes as old teak eyebrows in the spring when cool. When the warmer summer weather came it bowed between fasters and I had to tape all-around, remove and then bed with sealant and reinstall. Unfortunately the company doesn't provide any guidance on this when you order (I should have bedded it to begin with). Also, the maximum length UPS will ship is 8 feet.

In summary, I highely recommend this product and will use it again for any further topside teak replacement.

 

[SamLust]

The material is not all that different from the PVC used for vinyl siding for your house. Nailing slots and overlapping seams are provided to allow for expansion/contraction of the panels. Temperature and of course summer sum versus dark. The first time the sun hit my new siding I thought the house was caving in from all the noise. I have been considering using a piece of "Trex" plastic decking and cutting/machining myself to length. The worn teak ones on my 1983 Hunter 33 are well over the 8 foor max shipping length. I'm sure I'll get to that project right after I finish changing my chain plates and enlarging my rudder. At least now I know to plan for thermal expansion.

 

[Ed Schenck]

PlasTeak is pretty amazing stuff. And I can drive just a few miles to get it. My issue was that I purchased it before they had a good color match. I made my own handrails but after a couple of years I reinstalled the old teak ones. Just did not like the color. I also made my dorade covers and traveler base as seen in the picture. I wish that I had the time to do handrails, winch pads, and main traveler in the better color. Oh, and I also did the brow trim as seen in the picture. Have since removed it for reason mentioned.

 

[Rick Sylvester]

I couldn't stand all those holes in the cabintop

just to hold on decorative pieces. I just took mine off and filled the holes. After a year of UV there's no evidence of their having been there.

You've made a great point about lowering maintenance chores though. Most of my exterior teak is gradually being replaced with stainless and starboard.

 

[Dan Johnson]

Eyebrows...

I stripped the ones on my H34 off at the end of this sailing season as they were begining to splinter and were determined to be the source of several cabin interior leaks. The mounting holes are presently sealed with dabs of caulk to get through the winter until I decide what to do about them in the Spring. Am considering ripping and routering them out of Poplar wood and Cetol-ing them for the color and sealant. Plas-teak looks interesting and will consider "slip joints" for expansion if that's the course of action taken.

When finished they do add a nice touch of brightwork to an otherwise plain cabintop. It's a shame they were such a pain in the back and knees to do! Ed S. has some nice ideas to do "dress-up" with.

 

[RichH]

Suggest that you store the removed teak eyebrows, etc.

Polymers, even with UV stabilizers, will eventually degrade (to some degree) when exposed to UV and atmospheric ozone. I did similar to a boat about 20 years ago and only got 10 years service from cockpit flooring / seating, when that 'went' I replaced with teak.

 

[mark_swart]

Trex works too

When I purchased my boat, one of the cabintop hand rails was broken so I made two new ones out of Trex (available at Home Depot). From 10 feet, you can't tell the difference and I'll never have to worry about varnishing it.
I had seen the article in GOB, it appears that some applications will work better than others. I was able to maintain the faux woodgrain on the top of mine.

 

[Florida sail]

Re: Trex works too

I wonder if I replaced the eyebrows on my boat with trex if I would have the same thermal expansion problems such as Ed S experienced?

 

[DannyS]

I replaced my teak toerail caps with a product called Timbertech. http://www.timbertech.com/products/decking-planks/earthwood/default.aspx
They have a variety of maintenance free decking called Earthwood-teak and it is the best looking match I've found for real teak. Home Depot has samples and will order it for you. The only downside to this I've found is the color of the raw "wood" after it's been machined. It never matched the factory finished sides so I did a little experimenting. I used a product called Penofin penetrating wood oil that I had leftover from a cedar deck project, to darken the worked edges of the caps. I know people might think why bother with this project if you still need to oil the faux teak. My argument is that I am not using this to preserve and protect the "wood" but only as a color match to make it appear indistinguishable from real teak. I expect to only do this every other year at most, but time will tell. The color match was perfect, the photos should give you an idea of what you can expect from your own project.