Restoring Teak Furniture

We had a lot of Teak Furniture to restore and refinish. Thirty-eight pieces to be precise. Most of it was in pretty good shape so all we had to do is make it look pretty again. If you want to do what we did here's what to do:
#1 Wash down with a power washer to remove all the old dirt, spider webs etc. You could do this by hand or scrub a lot but the power washer on a low setting and without heat will save you a LOT of time
#2 Brush on some teak wood conditioner. We used "starbright teak conditioner."
#3 Wash again with a power washer. This will remove all the oxidation and dirt and make it look like new. It won't stay that way until you apply the final finish.
#4 Allow the wood to dry thoroughly and sand off the raised grain with 120 or 150 grit sandpaper.
#5 Apply 2-3 coats of Teak oil or a similar product. We used "Presevawood." This works a lot like teak oil but leaves more of a hard top coat. It can be applied over and over again which is a good thing.
If necessary rub down your final coat of finish with steel wool or fine sandpaper.

NOTES AFTER SEVERAL "SCOULDINGS" REGARDING THE POWER WASHER.
The power washer will not destroy your wood although a "purist" might say so. If you want to scrub go ahead. If you use a power washer use it on a lower setting, don't use heat.. Using it may also require a bit of extra sanding and more oil on the backside but will save a lot of time on the front side. For us it has stood the test of 2 years time.

[kellygrace]

Love that you quoted proverbs at the end

[andyrix]

Oxalic acid is the active ingredient in the wood brightener products. It can be purchased in a powder form and mixed with very warm water. For full strength, add oxalic acid powder to the very warm water till the powder stops dissolving ( that's the saturation point). Also, using steel wool on any porous surface like wood will leave microscopic bits of steel embedded in the wood. Those microscopic bit of steel will rust and may create some unsightly rust spots on the surface.

[arpigracetarkhanian]

Love your proverb of the day 🙏 thank you for your skills🙏

[paulajohnson]

What a fabulous idea Bob! I just bought 1980s teak diningroom table, two leaves, one end tale one coffee table, and six chairs. I am beyond grateful I found your quick tricks like no teak oil, steel wool between coats, powerwash, sand 120. This is my first restore and you have me more hopeful and excited. Thank you for the demo on your church pews!.

[philiprogers]

Love to see quality wood furniture, whole lot of single use disposable junk out there unfortunately! Thanks for the teak restoring tips, will have to see if I can turn my old gray chairs back to that color. :)

[leereams]

Love everything especially the proverb 😊

[slaviapolandia]

So glad I watched this before getting on my project. Thanks so much!

[kstef]

Sorry, but you should never use a powerwasher on teak. That's what causes "the fuzz". It doesn't save you time when you have to sand it down afterwards. When 1 chair can be $675 you don't take a chance on ruining it.

[patrickodonogue]

The best final coat that we have used on all our teak and tropical hardwood outdoor furniture is a marine grade finish, such as commercial and sportfishing boats here in San Diego/SOCAL use for their teak boat railings. Specifically, Sikkens Cetol Marine Natural Teak. It comes in several shades, from light to dark. If given three to four coats after final sanding, it will last for quite a few years. Even longer if furniture covers are used. It is expensive, $70/gallon, but outperforms all other outdoor finishes for teak furniture.

[aprilfaieta]

You make this look really easy. I'm off to home depot now. This is going to be my project for tomorrow. Thanks for the lesson!

[DBerr]

I always wash my outdoor furniture and never had any problems.

[RNicolasRuvalcaba]

Penofin has a system that's way easier. You lightly scrub with a cleaner/brightener. After rinsing that (with a regular hose) let dry for 72 hrs, then apply one coat of Penofin sealer. The difference is, you're letting the cleaner gently do the work, whereas you're actually creating more work by pressure washing because you're removing the natural oils from the surface of the wood (slightly distressing it) that's why you popped the grain so much and that's why it's absorbing so much finish. If you did it less aggressively without popping the grain so much then one coat would be sufficient.

[vincefaro]

Thanks for the video . I tried to power wash my teak table and chairs with the power cleaner and power washer, but I used the electric power washer and it did not remove the old dirt and oil at all. I guess it was not powerful enough ?

[Jim-vihh]

Thanks for sharing your video. Did the finish you use have a pigment or was it clear? I liked the look of your finished project.

[moogoomoogoo]

Can u leave a follow-up comment after two years? Did the product work? Have you had to reapply? I finished mine with Helmsman spar polyurethane and it barely lasted a year. I’m not satisfied with what I used.

[ralphlazio]

Great tips Bob thank you. Question:
How long did the furniture have to stay out to dry after you power washed them?

[ribbitrocks]

interesting/ everything i've seen/heard about cleaning teak is to not use a power washer which will surely clean but remove natural oils and make the wood more worn

[mickhurley]

Hi Bob, I enjoyed this, you got a sub. Question, how the heck does someone end up with 30+ pieces of teak furniture... stay well friend.

[tonybersano]

How much do you charge to redo a teak swing

[messiahcacique]

Two cars garage is what I answer when asked what size of the shop I'm looking for rent 🙂