Woodworking on Alhambra

On of the treats of owning the boat is that i like the idea of spending my time maintaining it. No small task. Built of fibreglass and Teak, there’s a load of woodwork that needs to be maintained and looked after.
So far my focuses have been the Bow decking. At 70 feet long there’s a load of bow decking and it all needs sanded back to nicely prepared wooden floorboards before being treated with a Teak sealant.
First job was to test the sanding and sealing process with a the bow hatch.

Sanding down to a smooth surface – no problem. Eric from Sun Hing Sing Shipyard, the people who built Alhambra, suggested staining / sealing using the Starbrite Tropical Teak Oil Sealer. I did and all’s good.
The result was great. Motivating one towards dealing with the rest of the deck.

As you can see above i have dealt with the deck in sections.
The initial centre bow strip, including hatch took a full day to sand & seal. The Starboard Bow section took 3 half days.
The lower right side has been sanded down (today), taking most of the day. Yes, now my arm aches…
I’ve concentrated on ensuring each floorboard section is sanded carefully and that it’s rubber seal is also OK (not rotting & chapped) ensuring water tightness.
Where the rubber sealant presented wear, I have dug it out and resealed with what ‘s like liquid tar – MESSY…
My Skil Palm sander & Makita Random Orbital sander are getting a load of work. The sand paper I’m using ranges across gradients 60, 100, 180, 240. Rough to Smooth.
Due to the amount of work that lies ahead, I’m hoping to get myself a Makita 4″ Belt Sander to speed up the process. As is said “the right tool makes the job much easier”. I agree.
Doing this well is going to take time. But worth the effort as it’ll help keep the boat in good condition.
Kinda keeps me fit too and outside in the sun 🙂
… the bathroom floor grids and stern platform… hmm
More later.