Teak Oil

I was shopping at my local boat store for teak oil and noticed a number of different manufactures and prices. Obvious $6 aside, what is the difference between a $7 bottle of Meguires and a $13 bottle of Star Bright? One company wanted $22 per bottle for their 16oz's of golden liquid.

forget all about teak oil. Got to your local hardware store, buy boiled linseed oil, lather up your cleaned platform, allow it to soak in and then wipe off the excess. It's what the boat shops use. Just don't allow to pool up and dry.

Chris
Get the Grip you Deserve
www.wakejunky.com

^x2. That's what I do. For color, add a little stain to the linseed oil to your liking (different color stains, different add amounts).

I used Starbright this past summer and don't know that it is any better than others. The best I've used have usually been natural colored teak oils for furniture. They seem to soak in the best. I think the Starbright is marketed as having more protection added to it but I don't know how much or if it's effective.

I've been researching too as i get ready for the winter projects - here is a pretty good article on the difference between tung, linseed and teak oils

http://www.boatus.com/boattech/casey/29.htm

Perhaps the linseed versus tung plus those "proprietary" special ingredients is what drives the price difference. What is interesting is the line that teak lasts just as long untreated as treated. I may learn to love the gray. I guess the next question; does is help to stain or seal my pressure treated wood dock?

Not sure on wood - but I used to be in the decorative concrete business. Sealers were the achilles heal of the business. Anytime you seal and only seal one side, moisture is going to want to move through it (MVT - moisture vapor transmission). You know when you pick up your doormat in front of your house and it's moist underneath - same idea happens with sealers, the moisture will wick up towards the blocking agent and then accumulate as it has nowhere to go. Enough MVT pressure and it starts lifting off the sealer.

I'm pretty sure wood is going to act the same way - so if you seal your dock with a urethane or something of that sort that is a total block and you don't seal the underside and ends - I think you're headed for trouble.[as you will if you seal in the moisture too]

My unfounded opinion is that the the linseed or teak oil has some breathability to it and won't lift off - it will just wear off. So it sounds like a good option and just depends upon the environment on how long it will last. I like that you can reapply without taking the old off.

I used linseed oil and it looked good for almost 2 years. I'm not paying $22!

I'm going to try linseed oil for the good looks. I don't mind a little grey because fresh oil is going to track a little into the boat.