Recommendations for oil/preservative for the floorboards of my Beg-Meil project

[DeanP]

Hi All,

I have almost finished the installation of the (Cypress) floorboards for my Beg-Meil project. I'm looking for recommendations for an oil/preservative that I can apply to protect the wood while leaving a non-slip surface. I have polyurethane on the seats, but I believe the floorboards would be too slippery to finish in this manner. Thanks in advance.

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[JimConlin]

Cypress needs no protection. By putting a coating on it, you’re only adding another thing to maintain.

[wizbang 13]

Cypress needs no protection. By putting a coating on it, you’re only adding another thing to maintain.

tru dat , but bare wood is the highest maintenance thing on my boat … keeping it clean .
I might put a thinned out coat of the same poly, flooded then wiped up with a rag, to keep the dirt out of the grain and retain non slipperyness.
Its what I do on my inside sole of my big boat , which gets wet sometimes.

[johngsandusky]

I have used non skid compound in varnish.

[pez_leon]

The boat looks great! I think Vivier recommends Deks D1, which I thought I'd try for my Seil. I have no personal experience with it. I have read that it's nice stuff and that it benefits from frequent (twice yearly?) reapplication, which is supposedly easy. I hope someone with actual experience can weigh in.

James

[David G]

I agree - don't like film finishes (varnish) on floorboards. For several reasons. What I've settled on for most instances is a few coats of Daly's Seafin Teak Oil. This is a high grade of 'oil/varnish hybrid' finish. Easy to refresh or spot touchup. The resin content hardens, but there is no buildup to get slippery.

[ahp]

Varnished cypress looks nice. I did that for the rails and combings on my Ohio Sharpie. A 50/50 mix of linseed oil and turpentine is good to, a non bright finish.

[TerryLL]

I agree - don't like film finishes (varnish) on floorboards. For several reasons. What I've settled on for most instances is a few coats of Daly's Seafin Teak Oil. This is a high grade of 'oil/varnish hybrid' finish. Easy to refresh or spot touchup. The resin content hardens, but there is no buildup to get slippery.

Hey David, do you have any thoughts about Cetol Light on Sapele floorboards?

[Yeadon]

Teak oil, turps, a touch of varnish or other sealer, a touch of Japan Drier. Stir it up. Wipe on, soak in, wipe off. (You can also scrub it all in with a 3M pad.) Go sailing. Repeat when it looks like you need it.

[nrs5000]

The boat looks great! I think Vivier recommends Deks D1, which I thought I'd try for my Seil. I have no personal experience with it. I have read that it's nice stuff and that it benefits from frequent (twice yearly?) reapplication, which is supposedly easy. I hope someone with actual experience can weigh in.

James

The floorboards in my Biscayne 14 are Alaska Yellow Cedar, which, if I recall correctly, is a type of cypress. I originally put Deks D1 on them and they got rather blotchy and did not wear particularly well. I have sanded them down to bare wood and much prefer them that way. I usually give them a brush down with seawater and a stiff scrub brush after each use. This has been working better for me than the oil did.

[wizbang 13]

Hey David, do you have any thoughts about Cetol Light on Sapele floorboards?

That’s gonna be too thick and not hard enuf

[TerryLL]

That’s gonna be too thick and not hard enuf

That is good to know, because I hate how that stuff smells.

[DeanP]

Thanks for all the suggestions. I leaning towards a penetrating oil solution as I'd like to avoid any future scraping as would be required with poly or varnish. What are the advantages of the "home brews"...better? cheaper? something else?

Thanks again!

[David G]

Teak oil, turps, a touch of varnish or other sealer, a touch of Japan Drier. Stir it up. Wipe on, soak in, wipe off. (You can also scrub it all in with a 3M pad.) Go sailing. Repeat when it looks like you need it.

Yes, a home-brewed oil/varnish hybrid. If I were gonna roll my own, I'd go: tung oil (real); spar varnish; turps or mineral spirits, and japan drier if the weather called for it.

[David G]

That’s gonna be too thick and not hard enuf

Just so. If you use the color coat only... it'll muddy what promised to be some pretty grain. And it won't last. It rubs off all to quickly. If you protect it with 'gloss'... then you're back to a film finish.

[gray duck]

yeadon's rec +1

[Thad]

Nothing!