Epifanes Clear Varnish on Teak Slats and Tables

[Bobby P.]

I'm redoing the teak slats on the underside of the hardtop on my 2017 31CB. There are only six 1.5" slats. I removed them easily, sanded and now want to put a finish on them. They previously had no finish, so they were a little grey and had some water stains.

I am thinking of using Epifanes clear varnish. However, this stuff is expensive for just a few pieces of wood, so I am thinking about redoing the tables as well.

Does anyone know how Epifanes might hold up on both the slats and the tables (interior and exterior cockpit tables)? And, does anyone what the original tables are coated with?

Thanks,
Bobby

 

[BB marine]

I use Deks olje it is made for teak. It is pricey and requires a 2 step process to get real good results. Once it is applied you may never have to do it again. I have used this product for years. I started using it in the late eighties when everything made in the past ten years was teak, swim platforms, teak steps, rails, decking, hatches ..... We used oil but it only lasted maybe a season and it looked bad again. I used Deks olje the first time on a 1976 25' wellcraft Nova restore. This boat was full of teak. The finished product came out beautiful and lasted many seasons. I saw the boat 5 years after selling it and it still looked good. The owner said he never touched the wood. Once again it is pricey and only comes in quart sizes.

 

[scross]

I have replaced the exterior teak bait will cabinet doors on Our Journey with white starboard. Looks great!
I’ve read than many other R31 owners have replaced the teak on the underside of the hardtop with starboard as well.
While I live the look of teak on the inside, I hated the constant maintenance of it on the outside.

viewtopic.php?f=24&t=9918&hilit=Replace+teak+starboard#p68397

 

[Salty7]

Epiphanes is excellent varnish but it is varnish and the sun will degrade it over time. I used it on one of my boats both interior and exterior. The interior looks like new 4+ years later, the exterior started to peel after about 14 months. It had to be stripped and done again, I used a 2 part varnish on the redo.

If you really want varnish on exterior wood you might consider two part varnish. There are several, I used the Jamestown Distributors Total Boat Envy. That has been on my exterior table for about 4.5 years now and still looks just like the day I applied it. If you use this it is serious chemistry, wear a respirator! It looks great, is durable and has a very hard finish.

I also have used Deks Olje and it is very easy to use and forgiving to touch up. Make sure the wood is absolutely dry before application. In my experience, it did need touching up once or twice a year but it was fairly easy to do.

I was told the factory uses Minwax Helmsman Varnish. I have used it on the interior of my tug. It is easy to use, lays down well and seems fine for the interior. It doesn't have the depth of Epiphanes varnish but it is a really good product for the money. I doubt that it would hold up well in an exterior application and wouldn't use it outside even though it says exterior on the can. I have a few spots around the edge of my table that have had water ingress from a water glass and Helmsman didn't do well at all with that, so sun and water are not it's friend in my humble opinion.