Any suggestions on finishing a teak bench??? I built 2 of them 10 years ago and my wife did not like the silvery patina, so just spent 10 hours sanding on each bench. Would like to not darken wood or leave a “plastic” surface on the wood. Would prefer a wax type feel, but don’t want to sand every year?
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Hi Rocky.
I apologize for the delay getting to your question. This question has come up several times in the past few months, so here's my standard advice. Your choice will depend on the level of effort you want to invest in the finishing process, and how often you want to refinish the piece.
EASY: Leave it unfinished and let it weather to a silvery grey patina.
MODERATE: Finish the bench with an oil-based outdoor finish available at any home center or hardware store. We recently published a project article for an Ipe outdoor table and the author used a penetrating oil finish from a company called Penofin. Any oil-based finish will require maintenance every year or two.
HARD: Apply a heavy-duty epoxy-based wooden boat finish, like the one detailed in this article. It will last as long as 10 years and offer excellent durability. It just requires more effort to apply than the other methods
I hope that helps,
Matt Berger
Fine Woodworking
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