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Thread: Recommended brand of epoxy glue for teak glue up

  1. #1
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    Recommended brand of epoxy glue for teak glue up

    I'm gluing up some teak 4/4 for a bathroom vaniuty top. I've ben told to wipe the edges with acetone and then use either a 2-part epoxy glue or Gorilla Glue. Anyone with experience working with teak that can suggest a glue that works in a wet area?

    Thanks-
    Scott
    Last edited by scott vroom; 04-05-2010 at 5:49 PM.
    Scott Vroom

    I started with absolutely nothing. Now, thanks to years of hard work, careful planning, and perseverance, I find I still have most of it left.

  2. #2
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    Titebond III works great. Seriously. I did a job with lot of teak panels a few years back, and we did tests prior with titbond III, no problems. The test piece has been sitting outside the shop for 3 years now on a transformer. Rain, snow, summer, direct sun, no issues. Great stuff. Do allow at least a 6 hour clamp time and avoid stress for 24 for best results IME. Not a single failure on 20 teak panels 36"X60", 7 board glue ups. Thats a lot of good joints.

    Don't believe me? If you can spare a bit test it for your self.

    We use west systems for epoxy, system three also works very well, but neither is really necessary for teak. If you plan on going out into the open ocean in this vanity than epoxy may be of some importance, but otherwise not so much. And you can skip that acetone thing too. Joint and go right into glue up on your top, no issues. Acetone buys you about 2 minutes before it brings the oils rushing to the surface with a vengeance. I think that one is more wives tale than science personally. If you have to wait, take a skim pass on the jointer just before glue up...beats breathing acetone any day IMO.

  3. #3
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    +1 for TBIII.

    Again, I'll reference a FWW glue test where TBIII was found to work exceptionally well on oily tropical woods.

    Personally, I would only use Poly glue if I needed the gap-filling foaming characteristic. I would never use it where glue strength was an issue.

    Now, that said, I used West System epoxy on a poolside chaise lounge I made out of Eastern Red Cedar three or four years ago. I half-lapped the legs to the side rails and glued them in place. Not only has the glue joint held up outdoors in all kinds of weather, it was a cross-grain joint.
    Cody


    Logmaster LM-1 sawmill, 30 hp Kioti tractor w/ FEL, Stihl 290 chainsaw, 300 bf cap. Solar Kiln

  4. #4
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    +2 on TBIII I have used it on all kinds of oily "can't be glued" wood with not a single problem.

  5. #5
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    I called tech support at Tite Bond. They told me that TB III works very well with oily wood including teak as long as the edges fit tight with no gaps. They recommend wiping the edges with acetone prior to applying the glue. They also recommend clamping overnight.

    They say that epoxy would be recommended where the edges are uneven and gap filling as required.

    This project is for a customer (teak vainty top with mounted stone vessel sink) and I cannot afford the joint to fail. I'm leaning toward TB III but am apprehensive, primarily due to the daily moisture exposure around the sink.

    Scott
    Scott Vroom

    I started with absolutely nothing. Now, thanks to years of hard work, careful planning, and perseverance, I find I still have most of it left.

  6. #6
    My company does yacht restoration and I have to do many glue ups in teak for exterior work. I Use TB III as well and recommend it and any other glue with some cautions. Just about any glue up in 4/4 wood which is subject to wet dry cycles is a tough nut to crack for glues. If possible I would go with epoxy and seal the entire work piece to prohibit water entering the wood.

    How I would proceed:

    1) Glue up with slow set epoxy thickened with colloidal silica.
    -Clamp up for 24 hours close fit up for appearance though epoxy gaps well.
    -Do not over tighten clamps, just enough to snug up

    2) Sand out/machine edges etc and seal all surfaces with epoxy.
    -If you use West Systems, their hardener #207 is clear.

    If you wish, spline the joints to index and buy some more glue surface, and independent of what glue used, sealing up the wood thoroughly will buy you a more stable work piece and less stress on the glue joints over time.
    Last edited by Tom Rick; 04-06-2010 at 6:55 PM.

  7. #7
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    Tom, thanks for the post....very useful information. The bathroom remodel is for a customer that doesn't want a "plastic" finish and is insisting we use oil only. I've warned her that this leaves her open to wood movement and possible joint issues if she leaves standing water on the vanity. She seems willing to take the chance so I guess it'll be an oil finish.

    As for the joinery adhesive, I'm thinking if we're only applying oil as the finish we might want to use the expoxy instead of glue, although the Tite Bond tech support guy says their TB III is tested waterproof and will perform as well as expoxy as long as the joint edges are clean (no gaps). I've already run the stock edges over the jointer. It sounds like you've used TB III successfully for wet environment application.
    Scott Vroom

    I started with absolutely nothing. Now, thanks to years of hard work, careful planning, and perseverance, I find I still have most of it left.

  8. #8
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    The panels I made were for out door furniture finished with oil and an out door kitchen, also finished with oil. Several years, no failures. I understand your apprehension, but frankly your client would have to set sail in her vanity to risk any injury to the top at the glue lines.

    All that aside, I have had good luck using Smiths CPES (clear penetrating epoxy sealer) on wood where moisture was a severe issue, like porch parts and window restorations. That stuff is awesome. I imagine you could top coat with an oil based satin top coat for a natural look. My fear with wooden tops that include sinks is not that the titebond III will fail, but that the wood will check at the exposed end grain around the sink penetration, and this will begin its demise. A good epoxy sealer and coat of satin ephanes would certainly curb that possibility.

    I personally would offer no warranty on a wooden top of any species finished with only oil that involves a sink.

  9. #9
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    I would use west system epoxy. Great for applications like this. Listen to Tom and coat the whole thing. That way you limit your seasonal risks.

    Quinn

  10. #10
    Scott,

    It takes a few coats of epoxy to fill up the wood enough to really start to get a plastic look.
    I think as others have said- just about any sealant will work if it keeps the water out.
    Think cutting boards- keep em oiled and they don't crack..

    Peter- sounds like you have some good experience with the TB III.
    West System has cautioned to not use their epoxies on larger pieces if not fully sealed and I follow this in my work. I trust the TB III a bit more for large exterior glue ups.
    I can sit on the fence with the whole issue- epoxies are great but have limits. If oiled finish maybe the TB III is a better bet.

    Just another note on epoxies.
    I have not really used West System products for a number of years.
    I currently use the Mas epoxies for the advantages in their mix.
    A few of them:
    -Slow enough "slow" hardener to allow large batch mixing and layup work without risk of the product kicking off too soon. (still cures hard over night)
    -No amine blush- saves some work and the risk of secondary bond issues if not removed.
    -2 to 1 mix. Really convenient to mix batches by volume in quart mix pots, particularly for large jobs.

  11. #11
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    Quote Originally Posted by scott vroom View Post
    Tom, thanks for the post....very useful information. The bathroom remodel is for a customer that doesn't want a "plastic" finish and is insisting we use oil only. I've warned her that this leaves her open to wood movement and possible joint issues if she leaves standing water on the vanity. She seems willing to take the chance so I guess it'll be an oil finish.

    As for the joinery adhesive, I'm thinking if we're only applying oil as the finish we might want to use the expoxy instead of glue, although the Tite Bond tech support guy says their TB III is tested waterproof and will perform as well as expoxy as long as the joint edges are clean (no gaps). I've already run the stock edges over the jointer. It sounds like you've used TB III successfully for wet environment application.
    If I could not use a film finish I might not go with TBIII as I supported earlier. In this case an epoxy would allow me to sleep better at night, then again if it was in my house I would not even think of not using a film finish but some people see it differently.

  12. #12
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    I have laminated Teak wood and glass railings that have been outside in our terrible Northern Michigan weather for over 15 years now with not even a sign of failure. I used West System and called and asked their tech line the best method/product.

    West System is not the cheapest, but I frequently use their tech line, so I feel I will keep using their products. I have never had a failure yet, and I make a lot of commercial doors that recieve extreme service. Thier tech line is always available if I am doing anything different, and if they don't have an answer they will do some testing and call you back. Great company.

  13. #13
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    I do quite a bit of boat work and use pretty much nothing but epoxy or Titebond III.
    When using epoxy, I only West Systems epoxy. They have time charts that tell which epoxy will kick-over in how many minutes at a given temperature. You can set your watch by it. It is that accurate. Their customer tech servive is excellent. And yes, whether epoxy or Titebond, always wipe down the glue surface with acetone or lacquer thinner first.

    If a customer wants an oil only finish, I wouldn't argue with them about it. I would just write on the receipt that this is at the customers request although you recommended XXXXXX. That will cover you for when they make the inevitable call " Your finish is deteriorating and the wood is looking bad, you need to come fix it at your expense".
    Retired, living and cruising full-time on my boat.
    Currently on the Little Tennessee River near Knoxville

  14. #14
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    FWIW : I have ornate Teak edges on my own kitchen countertops with Formica on the flat, no finish at all and after 5 years they still look as good as new. Not sure how a flat surface that can hold water/detergents would hold up but the edges I have are fine even in front of the sink where it is often wet.

    Larry

    I think that leaving room at the front for movement would be the key, sliding dovetails at the front, attached at the splash perhaps.

    I wipe with acetone, but "Just" before glueup. The oil will migrate back fairly fast so it is important not to do it until just before glueup.

    Forget Gorilla glue in my opinion. I have never been impressed.
    Last edited by Larry Edgerton; 04-08-2010 at 6:39 AM.

  15. #15
    Haven't posted here in a while, but I was googling teak glue issues and saw this thread figured I'd bump it back up with my problem, and also ask about how that vanity top worked out and what you used. My particular problem is a teak patio st, specifically the table. Its all solid teak and has a cutout for the proverbial umbrella. Inevitably, we sometimes forget how windy it is outside and the 9' umbrella topples the table because it isn't anchored to any kind of weight. The table base is a sort of 4-poster with a cruciform connecting all four legs. So there's no easy way to either fix the umbrella to the table base or add a weighted base without some major surgery LOL. The table top consists of a eight-section round perimeter with 1/2" X 3" teak planks that are sort of floating in a mortised joint on their ends. There is some 5/8" reinforcements underneath that keep everything located so the boards have about 1/4" in-between each. So the latest tumbling episode caused some cracking in the center plank around the umbrella hole, and the center slat is about 6" wide as opposed to the others. Down an dirty fix of that would be a 2X12 fastened from below that tags the center and one board on each side. You don't see the bottom so I'm not worried about the quality of the wood, just the strength. Also, I will cut an accurate new center hole once its fixed. The current center hole is about 3" and we have a 2-1/4" umbrella pole so there has also been some rocking around. About the cracks... all I can do is slop some glue in there and pray, because with 1/4" openings, I cannot get a conventional clamp in there. I was thinking I could use some wooden wedges to possibly push the center a little tighter when I glue it up.

    One other problem is that one of the eight outer pieces has a huge "chip" about 3/8" thick, maybe 3" wide and 2" deep right on a joint. The problem here is that the break is uneven so I can't file or sand it dead flat. This piece has been glued last year, and it survived a year in the weather with gorilla glue... but its separated again. I've scraped it pretty clean and it fits decently.

    Aside from the West products, has anyone used the Teak & Oak 2-part epoxy? Supposedly it was created for oily woods like these. I'm thinking that it might be better than TB3 but that's just a guess, and probably a hopeful one at that. So thanks in advance for any advice.

    Mike

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