So early on we decided to use International Woodskin Flexible Wood Oil/Varnish on some of the teak on board.  This is a varnish-like finish that allows the wood to “breathe”.  It also doesn’t need quite as much preparation as varnish with only a light sanding needed to get additional coats on.  Once we are away, we will be doing this on a six-monthly basis to protect the wood and keep it looking good.

However, we were slightly unhappy with the existing state of the handrails, which hadn’t been touched for a couple of years.  In particular, these were not very smooth and had ridges all over them.  This caused problem for the woodskin too which didn’t go on evenly.  We decided that it would be best to take the handrails back down to the natural teak colour using scrapers and sandpaper.  This would then give a smooth finish for the woodskin to soak into.  However, it is best to do this with your eyes open and not how I appear in the photo!

We had started the process at the back end of last season but hadn’t been able to complete it prior to the bad weather.  So I started this on the Friday and soon had the handrails back down to a finish that was more acceptable.  Having had issues with the woodskin getting onto deck, stainless etc as part of the application, I decided to use masking tape across the bases of each of the handrails.  This did take time, since I wanted to make sure that the tape was shaped around the curved handle and provided the protection needed.  By late on Sunday, after a glorious sunny day, I was ready for the first coats of the woodskin.  The plan would be to apply a minimum of four (light) coats but realistically as many as we can since the depth of colour and protection gets better with more coats.  The touch dry time is 4 hours and then 24 hours for it to be fully dry, so a reasonable week of weather and it will be done.  I apply the first coat on all four handrails and it looks great so I can settle down, relax and admire my handy work.  Five hours later, the first of the rain hits 😦 grrrrh!  Fortunately it looks like the woodskin was dry enough but we waited for everything to dry out before adding the additional coats.  So three coats down and it has consistently rained five to six hours after I have done them!

her is a link to our original work using wood skin: Exterior wood