teak swimout -HELP
 

I RECENTLY OILED AND OILED OUR TEAK SWIMOUT PLATFORMS. NOW ALL BLOTCHY AND
WHITE. I WAS INFORMED THAT I SHOULD HAVE PROBABLY HAVE SPENT A LITTLE TIME
PREPING. NOW THAT THEY'RE ALREADY OILED, CAN I STILL SAND THEM DOWN AND
START OVER, OR DO I NEED TO PRETREAT THE WOOD WITH CLEANER BEFORE I CAN DO
ANYTHING ELSE. THANKS

teak swimout -HELP
 

ves911 wrote:
I RECENTLY OILED AND OILED OUR TEAK SWIMOUT PLATFORMS. NOW ALL BLOTCHY AND
WHITE. I WAS INFORMED THAT I SHOULD HAVE PROBABLY HAVE SPENT A LITTLE TIME
PREPING. NOW THAT THEY'RE ALREADY OILED, CAN I STILL SAND THEM DOWN AND
START OVER, OR DO I NEED TO PRETREAT THE WOOD WITH CLEANER BEFORE I CAN DO
ANYTHING ELSE. THANKS

First you need to get rid of the oil-over dirt mess. That won't be the
easiest thing you ever tried to do.
Mix up a stong solution of "Tide With Bleach", get a plastic bristle
scrub brush, and have after it. Don't scrub so hard you dig out the
"pith" (soft wood between the lines of grain) from the teak. Try to
avoid using a pressure washer on teak because it too will dig out the
pith and leave a rough, grainy surface.

Once you get the exterior dirt and gummy oil mess off, sand and the
teak down to where it is clean and smooth, or at least smooth. You can
apply some oaxaylic acid (wood bleach) to help clean and brighten the
teak. Then, after the teak is clean and dry, apply some teak oil.