Varnish...laminated wood?

G

gtg

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Sep 12, 2019
103
Catalina, Hobbie 22, 16 Windycrest
Id like to spruce up my cabin. Is it unheard of to lay a coat or two of varnish on laminated wood for shine?
Table, stair step (would add sand if needed), mast support and laminate between v-berth and main cabin. Is this a terrible idea? It would look great if it was all shiny.
 

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TomY

TomY

Alden Forum Moderator
Jun 22, 2004
2,768
Alden 38' Challenger yawl Rockport Harbor
gtg said:
Id like to spruce up my cabin. Is it unheard of to lay a coat or two of varnish on laminated wood for shine?
Table, stair step (would add sand if needed), mast support and laminate between v-berth and main cabin. Is this a terrible idea? It would look great if it was all shiny.
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At first I thought it was (a terrible idea), but then again. The material is plastic laminate with no wood in it. You can paint this material and it's regularly done to bulkheads after cleaning and sanding to give the surface some 'tooth' for the coating to adhere to.

But surfaces like the step wouldn't hold up over time I don't think.

So going to varnish or a clear finish, I'd be inclined to try a water based clear coat like an acrylic urethane. That tends to be harder than varnish and is glass clear as opposed to the slight amber spar varnish adds. If it doesn't hold up though you'll have to refinish it occasionally. I'd test a spot to see how a couple coats look.

My first thought was paint the bulkhead and put a new sheet of plastic laminate right over the table top and step(it's a great base for another layer of laminate). It's a fairly easy DIY application if you can remove the pieces and apply an oversized piece and trim with a router and laminate trim bit.
 
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PaulK

PaulK

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Dec 1, 2009
1,355
Sabre 402 Southport, CT
Varnishing wood laminate is done all the time - think of all the curvy tillers out there. They are made of wood that has been laminated. Your surfaces are laminates of plastic (as Tom has mentioned) that is supposed to LOOK like wood. Dlochner is right to suggest that varnish on plastic is likely to peel off. Tom mentions sanding before painting, which gives the surface “tooth” to hold paint, but if you sand the plastic, the “wood look” on its surface is going to disappear and show the scratches under the varnish. Adding a new layer of laminate might shine it up, but if you’re thinking of going that route and are eager to varnish, perhaps adding a nice-looking layer of 1/4” plywood (it can be had in Birch, Maple, and other hardwoods ) would work as well. You’d want to add trim to the edges to cover the end-grain, but it would definitely take varnish. A lot more work than plastic, of course.
 
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JRT

JRT

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Feb 14, 2017
2,054
Catalina 310 211 Lake Guntersville, AL
That stuff is pretty much junk. I did the same thought experiment and came up with you replace the bulkheads, paint them or cover with a countertop contact paper product. I was planning the contact paper route on my O'Day 25 but sold her.
 
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Will Gilmore

Will Gilmore

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Oct 19, 2017
7,951
O'Day Mariner 19 Littleton, NH
I use to reface kitchen cabinets for a living and Tom's suggestion for refacing your surfaces is a very doable solution. That would be the route I'd take. That said, dlochner's link for waxing laminate to shine it up should work fine.
Sanding is a no.

You could encapsulate it in a bartop epoxy, but that is a whole big project that can get messy fast. Although, laminating a cool pirate's map or local chart into the top, under the epoxy could be really cool.

-Will (Dragonfly)
 
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Ken Cross

Ken Cross

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Oct 24, 2010
2,405
Hunter 30 Everett, WA
Replace the laminate.
Heat gun and remove the old laminate, then replace it. It isn't difficult. Just go slow. Cut the new laminate oversize, contact cement it down, and then trim it with a router. Now sand the sharp edges so they don't cut you. Take the parts out of the boat to do the work. Router dust gets everywhere.

Ken
 
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capta

capta

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Jun 4, 2009
4,909
Pearson 530 Admiralty Bay, Bequia SVG
Never, ever, use sand as a nonskid. It cannot be sanded, so repairs and refinishing are pretty much out of the question, unless you have an alternative method of removing paint with sand in it.
They sell crushed walnut shells in various grits expressly made for this purpose. It is very cheap and if you use a flour sifter to apply it into a wet coat of paint/varnish and then recoat over it, you can get a very even and good nonskid surface.
 
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