Best way to preserve the original color of teak outdoor furniture

[jtpr]

I am buying some new teak lawn furniture. I want it to remain the color it is, not turn grey. Is there a treatment I can use to accomplish this?

Thanks, Jim

[Art Greenberg]

We've had a teak set on our back deck for a few years. That deck is on the south side of the house, in full sun all day long. The first two years, we had no permanant sun shade (we do have a couple of "market" umbrellas, but they can't be left open unattended due to thunderstorm concerns). Each spring, we applied an oil finish that was suggested and sold by the retailer we purchased the table from. It kept the teak looking good for about half the season. The first year, I did clean and refinish the teak at that point, and it was OK for the rest of the season. I didn't bother the second season.

Last year, we set up a garden canopy (not this one, but something like:

on the deck, and after just cleaning the furniture, no oil, we put it under that. The teak looked great until a nasty thunderstorm came by and wiped out the canopy. In a matter of weeks after that, it turned grey again.

We're just now trying to decide what to do this year. I have not done any research yet on available finishes, but I'm fairly sure there is nothing that will be maintenance free. One of the products intended for use on boats would probably perform the best, and probably will be the most expensive as well. You will still need to clean and refinish the wood periodically. The more sun/rain it is exposed to, the more often you'll have to do it.

I am leaning toward just letting it turn grey.

[Edwin Pawlowski]

You mean aside from paint?

I've had very good results with some mahogany furniture I coated with Penofin Oil. It has UV inhibitors. Easy to apply and in the scheme of things, not all that expensive as you don't use a lot. If your local dealers don't carry it, there is a Penofin dealer on line if you do a Google search.

[Pat Barber]

That will require a "great deal" of maintenance, which most folks are unable/unwilling to perform.

Anybody who has ever owned a boat can give you a detailed history of teak.

You want it to stay "natural"...leave it > I am buying some new teak lawn furniture. I want it to remain the

[Lew Hodgett]

jtpr wrote: > I am buying some new teak lawn furniture. I want it to remain the > color it is, not turn grey. Is there a treatment I can use to > accomplish this?

You can't get there from here.

The only way to treat teak if you want it to maintain the color is to become a slave to your furniture.

Probably the best way is to wipe the surface with acetone to remove surface oils, then coat with 4-6 coats of epoxy, also sanding lightly between coats.

Allow to cure for about a week after the last coat then apply about

4-6 coats of marine varnish that has UV inhibitors in it.

Allow 24-48 hours between coats, again sanding lightly between coats.

Maintenance:

At the sign of the first scratch in the varnish, repair it or the UV will damage the epoxy.

(I know people who keep a nail polish bottle of varnish handy to make scratch repairs)

As an alternate to the above, learn to enjoy gray teak. It grows on you.

Lew

[SWDeveloper]

I use CWF on my redwood outdoor furniture. If I bring in the furniture during the winter it will last two years, otherwise I need to recoat every year. CWF has UV protection. The instructions day it will dry in a day but I found it takes about a week of drying time for the stickiness to go away. It will darken the wood. Bought it at the BORG.

[Joe]

That's not going to work if it's grey paint.... :-D

Kind of a funny visual though. What's teak going for a bdft nowadays.... and PAINT it!!!

[ROY!]

Penofin

[Lew Hodgett]

Plantation teak is about $18-$20 per bdft.

Forget Thai teak, it's been declared illegal.

Lew

[darkon]

Keep it in a dark, temperature and humidity-controlled room with a nitrogen atmosphere.

[pat_edfischer]

Jim,

I recently made some teak parts for my daughter's boat and did a search on how to finish. Came accross this product Teakguard, Teak Maintenance Kit (TGK016) at

Says that you only need to do once a year so gave it a try. Looks good now but have no idea as to long term results.

Ed

[A.M. Wood]

Nothing will be permanent. Oil will work for a few weeks to months depending on the climate. Varnish will last longer in the same climate.

For me, the best thing to to has been to clean well, sand and apply

4-6 few coats of varnish. To maintain, every 4-6 months (depending on clilmate) very very lightly sand and add another coat. The critical step to keeping the workload down is to not let the finish deteriorate to the point where it is cracked and peeled. Keeping it under cover (out of direct sunlight durning summer) is a big help.

A.M. Wood