Carpentry Advice needed for my Sole

[KismetP362]

This winter, while the boat is all covered and it's too cold to do any work on the boat, I've decided to tear into my nasty looking floor boards. The pictures below tell the tale of abuse and neglect. I've kept them covered with rugs since I owned the boat but enough is enough.

Link to current look

The big question I have for everyone is this, How do I bring the Holly Strips back to yellow? They appear to be stained though, some look rotten. Where would I go to get holly strips or do I have to make them from larger stock? (that would suck)

Link to brown Holly

The Teak layer is coming back awesome, looks great after being stripped. So much so that it makes the dingy Holly strips all the worse.

Link to stripped Teak.

What would you all do?

Thanks,

[chucklesR]

Ryan, put away the scraper and go with a chemical stripper and plastic scraper. Then use (your choice) TSP, bleach, Oxaclic acid to clean the wood, all of it. I can't tell if that is mold or oil stains, likely both tho, so a combo of all three cleaners might be best.
Search elsewhere on the forum, lots of advice.

[sailingdog]

Would help if you linked the photos in your post like this:
Current Look

Brown Holly

Stripped Teak


Of the chemicals Chuckles has recommended, the Oxalic acid is probably the strongest and will work the best at brightening the wood. I'd use the TSP first to get rid of any oil or dirt though and rinse well between using different chemicals, as you don't want to mix them.

[camaraderie]

Kismet....chuckles has it right BUT you need to understand that NOTHING will restore those floorboards as the veneer is only microns thick and the damage is not just surface damage but through the wood. You can get a bit of improvement in the look following Chuckles advice but if I were you, I'd buy a sheet of teak and holly and use the existing boards as templates before throwing them out. Nothing to lose by trying the cleaner and seeing if it turns out good enough...just don't expect it to come back fully.

[teshannon]

Kismet,
I do a lot of woodworking and Cam is right, those stains go deep into the wood and cannot be removed. the best you can hope for is to brighten them up a little but if you keep sanding or scraping you'll not remove them.

[chucklesR]

IF replacing, I'd suggest looking into the synthetic ones like I have, the don't look quite as good, need sealing on the back, but then never rot:

[TrueBlue]

What would you all do?

A hot air gun is what most professionals would use to remove the layers of varnish from brightwork and T&H. I have always used one on marine teak, with excellent results.

After a few minutes, you'll get into a groove of how long to point the gun in one spot - just before the varnish begins to blister, and follow along with a sharp scraper to remove the finish in ribbons. Keep the heat moving slowly and the job goes quickly - without the use of caustic chemicals. Here's the type I use, with carbon steel blades:

Make a paste from oxalic acid powder and water and lightly rub the darkened areas, or other cleaners as chuckles suggested. But, as cam stated, some of those areas look pretty nasty and will not be restorable to new condition. Be very careful of the veneers, which in some plywoods, are wafer thin - so, avoid aggressive sanding.

[j34035]

Originally Posted by chucklesR

IF replacing, I'd suggest looking into the synthetic ones like I have, the don't look quite as good, need sealing on the back, but then never rot:

Where did you get the synthetic? Looks good to me. I have re-done 3 soles in the past, the next I might use this type of material.
DD

[RickLaPaz]

Isn't teak 'n holly ply still about $140.00 a sheet still? And bungs a nickle a pop?


Just wondering..............

[Quickstep192]

Originally Posted by chucklesR

IF replacing, I'd suggest looking into the synthetic ones like I have, the don't look quite as good, need sealing on the back, but then never rot:

That's Synthetic?!? It looks teriffic. What's it called, and where can I get it?