After years of asking marine professionals and long term live aboards how to best maintain our teak deck, time after time we’ve been told to use Boracol. Boracol is a chemical that can be used for the management of mold, fungal growth, mildew, slime, dry rot and insect attack.
Before being a boat owner I never realized that teak decks are prone to algae and mold growth.
Algae and mold issues can disfigure a teak deck and make it slippery
After enquiring about the cost of replacing our teak deck (just out of curiosity), I first had to pick myself off the floor and then I became very eager to make sure we had a teak deck maintenance system in place. For our 56’ sailboat with full teak decking the replacement cost to remove, prepare and relay new teak came to around the $95,000 mark. I was told it’s cheaper to get a new teak deck in Thailand but I wonder just how much cheaper it would be?! I also pondered when I’d next be sailing by Thailand with the boat…
When I heard the high cost of replacement I realized the importance of teak deck maintenance
So here is our teak deck maintenance regime:
On a routine basis we hose the deck down with fresh water. When we want to give the deck a nice clean, perhaps once a month or when in a marina, we use a very soft brush and with diluted dish soap we lightly scrub the teak going across the grain as opposed to going with the grain.
We’ve always been advised to avoid pressure washers as they can damage the wood. Furthermore, professionals have indicated that scrubbing with a hard brush or going with the grain can negatively affect the teak deck.
Once a year we treat the whole deck with Boracol using the following process:
1. Check the weather. As long as it’s not going to rain for three to four days, it’s a good time to start. Light drizzle and dew will not impact the treatment. You just don’t want heavy rain to wash the Boracol off the boat before it has time to work.
2. Wash the whole deck with a light stream of hose water, soft brush and diluted dish soap. Always use the brush lightly across the grain.
3. After the deck is clean, wet down the area where you want to start and allow the teak to dry until it’s damp.
4. Working in small sections apply the Boracol with a paintbrush. You want the Boracol to be visably wet but not running off the surface.
5. Allow the teak to dry out until it’s just damp again and apply a second coat of Borocol.
6. The following day, you can spray the deck with a tiny bit of water. This will help the Boracol to penetrate into the teak.
7. After three to seven days wash the teak deck with a soft brush/sponge and diluted dish soap.
The deck might look worse before it looks better. If your deck had signs of algae and mold, after around ten days the deck should start to look better.
Some boat owners treat their deck at the beginning and end of each boating season whereas others do it once a year or as required.
Teak Deck Maintenance using Boracol Video
If you have any comments or questions, please write them below.
Also, we did try out a product called, Teak Wonder, a while back. At first we were happy with the results but the nice appearance didn’t last long. The amount of work required for such a short result wasn’t worth it (in our opinion). Article: TEAK WONDER: HOW TO MAKE THE TEAK DECK ON YOUR SAILBOAT LOOK AMAZING IN 3 STEPS
I too have teak decks and found a solution that works amazingly well… mind you I haven’t sailed off shore with it. I use Semco teak sealer http://www.semcoteakproducts.com … I’ve had it on my boat for 3 seasons now and I apply a coat once at the beginning of the season and once at the end (living up in Vancouver … wet, wet, wet in the winter) and the deck looks marvellous. It takes me a couple of hours on a 41 footer…
Semco not only looks good, it doesn’t get slippery, and it is a sealant… each coat adds more to the sealant and is very protective. I know John and Amanda Neal applied it to their new deck of their Hallberg-Rassy and of course have been sailing extensively. They used the clear tone and weren’t super happy but it takes a few coats to last. Clear tone also is the weakest of the sealants for durability. I’ve used the natural tint and am very happy with it.
I have heard the same— doing the Semco sealant on my 44′ German Frers this winter!!
Fair winds,
Thomas
S/Y Explorar Conmigo
If you use a dish-washing detergent , keep in mind NOT to use any product that carries LEMON OR lIME in it, those ingredient does the teak wood no good. Normal Laundry detergent, powder that is, is what we used in the olden days.
Great information Fred! Thank you 🙂
Hi Kim
I read about your experiance with teak wonder and the note that it was a lot of work and the effect of new teak did not last long. hwo long does it last befor you need to repeat the process?
as I see from the Boracol video, it’s a long process too. in both cases you clean the deck and then “paint” it with 2″ brush.twice in the case of Boracol.
need help to choose between the two
Rami
s/y Sea-U
Hey Rami, I think it only looked good for about three months. And it was a pain with staining the fiberglass. Every time we washed the boat we’d have brown streaks of Teak Wonder that we’d have to wipe off all the white parts. We gave up with it! It’s not on my recommendation list. Smiles, Kim
Hi
I am Mike Jackson,I would like to purchase Teak Deck Cleaner,in your store/company i would be happy if you can get back to me again with the prices and dimensions you having available in a moment,and also do you take all types of Credit Cards as your payment required?Kindly get back to me here or on phone so that we will work together as one panther. All the best and stay blessed.
Mike.
Mike…I don’t sell Teach Deck Cleaner. Try and google it and look where you can purchase it online 🙂 If you can’t find anything, check out West Marine.
Had two boats, both with teak decks. Tried most popular methods, including doing nothing but cleaning and sea water. Finally found what works over the long term. Keep it sealed from the elements. Including fixing the caulking and plugs. Seal it twice a season with Semco with a bit of Borocal if it gets a bit green in the depths of the Euro winter. I would use a full cover in winter if I had one as well.
How do I know my methods work, ? My current boat is 15 years old, and there is another identical boat the same age in the marina, where the owner uses the just chuck sea water over it method, my teak looks almost new, and his looks like he need a new deck.
Hey John – we use Borocal but not Semco. I need to look into that. Thank you! Kim
Thank you for all your comments. I’m treating teak on my house ballastrade. Will probably use Semco now and some boracol.Has anyone used Starbright teak oil sealer?
Hi all, isn’t sealing teak with Semco unhealthy for this type of wood that’s known to want to work and “breathe”? Cheers, Jens
We’re talking about Boracol and not Semco. Kim