I just checked on my boat )on the the hard) after the remnants of 'Sandy' blew through Sandusky, OH. Apparently, the rain blew in through the hatch during the storm. The bilge was full and water was sitting on the teak flooring. Bilge cover is saturated, for sure. Lots of dark areas. I had stripped the teak this summer so it was bare. I'm concerened that the teak is ruined. Any opinions as what to do with this situation?
Swollen, wet teak flooring
- Thread starter JOHNEVERARD
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Your teak is not ruined.
Get the water out out and dry out your cabin.
There may be some water marks or stains left behind.
Get a can of 'Bar Keepers Friend' which is basically oxalic acid crystals. Oxalic acid is the main ingredient in the 1 part teak cleaners sold at places like WM.
Bathe the stained areas (it may be best to bathe the entire sole) with a mix of water and BKF - let sit for 20 minutes. Wash off with fresh water, let dry.
Repeat if necessary.
When completely dry I'd consider a thorough light sanding with a fine grit.
Of course if there are no stains or water marks you can ignore the above.
Get the water out out and dry out your cabin.
There may be some water marks or stains left behind.
Get a can of 'Bar Keepers Friend' which is basically oxalic acid crystals. Oxalic acid is the main ingredient in the 1 part teak cleaners sold at places like WM.
Bathe the stained areas (it may be best to bathe the entire sole) with a mix of water and BKF - let sit for 20 minutes. Wash off with fresh water, let dry.
Repeat if necessary.
When completely dry I'd consider a thorough light sanding with a fine grit.
Of course if there are no stains or water marks you can ignore the above.
Zee,
I truly respect you in so many ways... You are an inspiration!
That being said, suggesting that John salt his teak is so wrong on so many levels.
We work so hard to keep salt out of a boat interior. When the salt is in there it is there forever, and it will ALWAYS attract moisture. To suggest salting wet teak is to guarantee it stays wet.
I want to ask you to elaborate and clarify, but in light of some clear scientific methodology to back up the statement, I am going to toe a line and suggest that John absolutely NOT go salting his raw unfinished interior wood.
Can you elaborate please to make sure I am not missing something?
It may or may not help you in this situation, but when I first bought our pre-Katrina sailboat, there were a few small leaks and intrusions of water. In between my trips to the boat to fix it, I would strategically place several diapers (the modern kind, not the cloth kind, which were no longer needed since the mostly successful potty training of my son) around the interior. When I'd return to the boat to continue fixing the intrusion points, the inside was bone dry and the diapers swollen.
i am not Zee but i will give you some things to ponder here.....back before fiberglass boats they were made mostly of wood and calked with okeum...in order to keep the below the water line moist and wet for swelling and sealing purpose they would salt the bilge to insure that the inside was wet....
as for salting to stop rott that is very true as salt water pickels the wood fibers and keeps it from rotting ....fresh water or sweet water as it is some time called will induce rotting.....
hope this is of some help in your thoughts ...
regards
woody
I am a wood boat restorer and fully understand that dry doesn't rot and soaked doesn't rot, but that just right, (11%?) moisture will rot hideously. That is all logical for a wood boat. For a production glass boat you don't want a wet interior, which salt will guarantee...woodster said:
That's where I'm coming from
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