Teac finishing/refinishing

[bob waxler]

We have a Teak dining set inherited from my grandmother. It is in need of refinishing. My wife and I are at odds about the best way to remove the factory finish and re-do it. Is a regular paint/varnish remover the answer or does teak need something else.

Thanks in advance for your help.

[Mark Kornell]

What is the factory finish? Teak is usually just oiled and mostly, refinishing consists of simply re-oiling.

[bob waxler]

I assume that the factory finish is oil as you said. This is a manufactured set, not something that I built.

[John TenEyck]

If it's an oil finish there's no need to use a chemical stripper on it. So, why is it in need of refinishing? Does it just look tired, or are there stains and maybe even bare spots on it? If it's just looks tired, then a careful cleaning with Murhpy's Oil Soap should remove any dirt that's on it. Perhaps a gentle sanding and then it should be ready for a new coat of finish, oil or whatever. If there are stains and bare spots then you have more work ahead of you. Black spots often can be removed with oxalic acid. Other stains might come out with Murphy's Oil Soap or Naptha, depending upon what they are. Sanding is probably in order after getting the stains out. Then you are ready to apply new finish.

Before you do anything, however, take a good look at it to determine whether any of it is veneered or it's all solid wood. If it's veneered, proceed very carefully, especially with regards to sanding.

John

[Steve Schoene]

A lot of factory teak furniture was finished with thin coatings of matt sheen lacquer, looking considerably like oil finish, but drying very much faster so the pieces could be packaged and shipped more quickly. You should still go through the test sequence to determine the finish.