Reefs.org Forums

[The Escaped Ape]

As I mentioned in my Bali thread, I bought a piece of hand carved wood while we were there. I liked the look of it and it wasn't too expensive once I'd haggled the price down. However, I suspect it's been carved from unseasoned wood, as the receipt said it was made from teak and it's quite pale in color, though I know teak is supposed to be quite dark. I assume it will darken as it ages (hopefully without warping/splitting).

Anyone have any advice on how to treat it, if at all? I wondered about applying some oil to it, but have since read that teak naturally produces its own oil and adding it could damage the wood.

Here it is. I'm probably going to hang it on the wall somewhere.

[Shade of Knucklehead]

Can you post a close up of the back so I can see the grain?

[tangirl]

That's gorgeous, Tom.

[_Andy]

It looks pretty dry to me - you don't have to put anything on it to protect it. If you want to keep the natural light color you can use a Teak sealer - if you are going to keep it in the house I wouldn't even do that unless you don't like the color.

[The Escaped Ape]

Can you post a close up of the back so I can see the grain?

I was hoping you'd chime in Knuck, as I guess teak is used quite a bit in boat building. Is this close enough? I can take a macro shot if need be.

[The Escaped Ape]

That's gorgeous, Tom.

Thanks Tan. I'm not really sure whether it's that Balinese in style or not, but I really liked it. Plus, as something to hang on the wall, it wasn't too expensive, compared to a framed print or whatever. There's depth to it and I think it will suit a lot of rooms.

[tangirl]

How big is it?

[minime]

Very nice.

It looks dry to me too, but maybe that is just the lighting etc.

[The Escaped Ape]

It looks pretty dry to me - you don't have to put anything on it to protect it. If you want to keep the natural light color you can use a Teak sealer - if you are going to keep it in the house I wouldn't even do that unless you don't like the color.

Thanks Andy - was also hoping you'd drop by. I quite like the color, so might leave it as it is. You can see a bit more clearly with the shot of the rear, but it's actually got a bit of a gradation to the color between the center and the edges, which makes it more attractive in my eyes.

Actually, I just noticed a bit of black mold when I took it down to take a photo for Knuck. I was able to wipe it off fairly easily with a piece of kitchen paper, but is there something I could do to prevent it coming back? Maybe wiping with a dilute bleach solution? Or would that affect the wood adversely?

[The Escaped Ape]

How big is it?

About 16" square and 3" deep.

[The Escaped Ape]

Very nice.

It looks dry to me too, but maybe that is just the lighting etc.

Now I'm getting worried by the dry comments. Is this a good thing or a bad thing?

[tangirl]

Oh, that's awesome.

[Flabello Meandroid]

Very nice.

It looks dry to me too, but maybe that is just the lighting etc.

Now I'm getting worried by the dry comments. Is this a good thing or a bad thing?

I think they mean its not unseasoned

[cjdevito]

Thanks Tan. I'm not really sure whether it's that Balinese in style or not, but I really liked it.

The only balinese carvings I'm familar with are garuda masks. While the subject matter is very different, the style elements seem fairly close to your piece.

[_Andy]

It looks pretty dry to me - you don't have to put anything on it to protect it. If you want to keep the natural light color you can use a Teak sealer - if you are going to keep it in the house I wouldn't even do that unless you don't like the color.

Thanks Andy - was also hoping you'd drop by. I quite like the color, so might leave it as it is. You can see a bit more clearly with the shot of the rear, but it's actually got a bit of a gradation to the color between the center and the edges, which makes it more attractive in my eyes.

Actually, I just noticed a bit of black mold when I took it down to take a photo for Knuck. I was able to wipe it off fairly easily with a piece of kitchen paper, but is there something I could do to prevent it coming back? Maybe wiping with a dilute bleach solution? Or would that affect the wood adversely?

If you oil it it will mildew faster if left alone - if you want to keep the color you can seal it with Teak sealer - will stay sort of blonde or you can use a darker color. If you bleach it it will likely lighten the wood - Teak has it's own oil the sun and weather draws out so you don't have to do anything to it if you don't want.

[tangirl]

If you oil it it will mildew faster if left alone

What?

if you want to keep the color you can seal it with Teak sealer - will stay sort of blonde or you can use a darker color. If you bleach it it will likely lighten the wood - Teak has it's own oil the sun and weather draws out so you don't have to do anything to it if you don't want.

Will it turn that nasty grey color like that bench I saw?

[knowse]

Nick was given a hand craved oak bowl that was green in nature....the man told him to place it in news paper in a paper bag to let it dry. It's been there for close to 5-6 yrs now....wonder if it's cured yet?

Very nice piece of art work Tom!

[_Andy]

If you oil it it will mildew faster if left alone

What?

if you want to keep the color you can seal it with Teak sealer - will stay sort of blonde or you can use a darker color. If you bleach it it will likely lighten the wood - Teak has it's own oil the sun and weather draws out so you don't have to do anything to it if you don't want.

Will it turn that nasty grey color like that bench I saw?

Linseed and other oils feed mold and mildew so it encourages it's growth.


The sun is what causes it to turn grey.

[tangirl]

If you oil it it will mildew faster if left alone

What?

if you want to keep the color you can seal it with Teak sealer - will stay sort of blonde or you can use a darker color. If you bleach it it will likely lighten the wood - Teak has it's own oil the sun and weather draws out so you don't have to do anything to it if you don't want.

Will it turn that nasty grey color like that bench I saw?

Linseed and other oils feed mold and mildew so it encourages it's growth.

oh, ok, I think you're missing a word. Unless you fixed it.

The sun is what causes it to turn grey.

[_Andy]

I am very tired so I may not have been clear. If Teak is left 'unfinished' inside it won't turn grey like it does outside. The UV rays and mildew are the cause for the grey color - it doesn't really hurt it it just looks grey.