Best way to remove Watco Teak Oil from Teak Desk

[Alan Lightstone]

I have a 30 yo teak desk that has sadly had way too many coats of Watco Teak Oil rubbed on it, and not wiped off in time. This has occurred over many years, but the latest is the worst.

It's likely teak veneer, so not that thick surface.

What's the best way to remove the present teak oil, and refinish (I was thinking about using Waterlox)?

Also, it's a huge desk, so this will have to happen indoors, with not awesome ventilation.

Also, any other suggestions for the new finish? I won't be able to spray a finish like lacquer on this one, as my spray booth is out of commission for now. It will have to be wipe on.

Thanks.

[Jim Becker]

The "has to be done indoors" thing directly conflicts with the best way to remove the existing finish so you can move to the varnish, unfortunately. You really need to use a good chemical stripper and that's not something safe for indoors. The same goes for any of the more powerful solvents that might help you clean up the gunk...

But perhaps someone else has an idea that will accomplish what you need to do without the need for significant ventilation and PPE.

[Alan Lightstone]

If I had too, I guess I could remove the desk top and move it to my garage, but it would complicate things (though make chemical stripping easier, I guess).

[Wayne Lomman]

Use a cabinet scraper and remove it dry. It will work with care. However, it's better really to remove the top and work where you can use a stripper. Cheers

[Alan Lightstone]

Any recommendations for good chemical strippers?

[Sam Murdoch]

If I were doing this I would sand it - lightly - using Abranet Mesh maybe start with 180 or 220 and move up to up to 320 or 400, using my Festool ETS/3. The mesh does not gum up (right away ) as other abrasives do but I would still expect to go through 2 or 3 before moving up to the next grit. Of course you could just sand by hand. This would clean the surface and make it smooth. I don't think that you would get into the veneer as you describe a build up of Watco to get past. My finish coat would be a product called MonoCoat Plus2.

I have used this catalyzed oil over Watco many times on a variety of projects - mostly cabinet doors and panels but also, a bench, a bath room bureau and some other freestanding cabinets including a few desk tops, with excellent results. It is very easy to apply, smells lovely, and results in a very silky finish - no spray booth or concern for ambient dust necessary. The down side is that it is expensive. I guess as it is supposed to be a ONE COAT product (marketed as a floor finish) you pay for the small quantity usage. It goes a loooonnnng way. I typically apply over Watco because it builds a base of color and seals the pores so that I require even less of the MonoCoat - BUT - I use 2 coats in any case. You can sand between coats if you prefer but use no coarser than 400.

A caveat - I don't think it will wear as hard as does Waterlox. Waterlox is an amazingly durable finish. I don't hesitate to recommend Waterlox for bar tops or table tops. Still, the MonoCoat Plus 2 has been a very good finish for the purposes I detailed above.