On the Deck
Nothing makes a boat look shabbier than a worn-looking teak deck and transom covering boards baked to an unappealing gray by the harsh tropical sun. The rest of the boat may shine like a new penny, but if the cockpit teak looks bad, you and your boat won't make a good first impression. After all, it's the first place you step when coming on board.
Upgrading your teak comes down to two options: hitting your deck with a sander and a lot of elbow grease or replacing the whole thing in one shot. John Bayliss of Bayliss Boatworks says the amount of material you have left determines what you should do. "If you have plenty of teak left and if it was a good installation in the first place, you can redo it — you can bring it back," says Bayliss. "But if the teak is coming loose and lifting off the substructure, you're going to have to start from scratch and rip it out. You need to have at least a 1/2-inch of material left after sanding on the covering boards — and even that's on the extreme low side. The bare minimum on the deck is 1/4 of an inch, and once again, that also depends on the initial installation."
Bayliss says his workers frequently take off up to an 1/8-inch of material with the sander on some of the tougher jobs. But although you might lose a little wood during a reconditioning, you should save some dough by not having to do a refit. "You can spend between $1,200 and $2,500 to sand and get your deck into good shape — and about the same amount for the covering boards. If you have to replace any of the caulk, the rubber stuff in between the boards, then it will run you more. But to replace the whole deck, it will cost between $10,000 and $20,000, depending on the size, and again, about the same for the covering boards."
Pretty pricey to be sure, but it's not all labor that's driving the cost up. "The price of good boards keeps getting higher," says Bayliss. "A single large board for a covering board can cost more than $2,000 in the rough –– and most need at least three. That's one thing that isn't dropping in price — they aren't making any more old-growth teak."
With that said, piecing together a nice transom and deck isn't a job for the weekend warrior. "A good installation is imperative, so you shouldn't let your brother-in-law do it just to save a few dollars," says Bayliss.
Once you get that deck revitalized, stay away from the harsh cleaning chemicals to keep it looking its best for as long as possible. "If used too often, chemical cleaners start to strip away the soft grain of the teak — leaving the hard grain and ridges behind," says Capt. George Sawley. "Instead, use a soft brush, some watered-down sudsy ammonia and the "B" part of the teak cleaner (brightener) — not the "A" part, which is the acid — to clean your teak. This reduces the amount of sanding you'll have to do in the long run and saves your paint, lettering, aluminum tower legs and the chrome on your fighting chair from harsh acids."
