Wooden Worktops

[TMC]

Hi All

My son who needs the above for his kitchen has found a site called

prices look very good and the samples sent to him look fine as one would expect

Me being of the school of 'If I can't see it touch it and select my own I won't buy it' am suspicious of all on line sites

Anyone had dealings with this company or can recommend another budget supplier

Likely choices are beech or bamboo or maybe a walnut if swmbo decides thus

I know to avoid oak due to the iron/steel staining

They do not want to go with laminate

any input appreciated

Regards

[Al, Cambridge, UK]

I recently bought 3m + 4m of American black walnut worktop from

and quality and service were both good. I chose them because they were close enough to deliver in their own van with 2 blokes to carry in, supplied 650mm width to allow a bit of leeway with non-square walls, and because the lady (eastern European accent) who answered the phone sounded businesslike and turned out so. Apart from forgetting to make the 1-hour-ahead courtesy call from the van, all went smoothly and our carpenter did a great job with it. I've read that beech may shift, and I've seen some beech marked almost photographically by wet iron; couldn't find iroko in stock anywhere (perhaps because it isn't farmed sustainably yet); walnut was more expensive but the difference works out as a fraction of the total cost. Hope this helps. Al

[Tim W]

In europe beech has always been the wood for food preparation surfaces and utensils. Partly because it's cheap, knot free and available in wide boards but also because it has no taste or smell and has a 'closed grain' meaning no pores in the surface. It is also strong across the grain so used for end grain chopping boards. It is not particularly pretty, tends to grey with water and has quite a high degree of movement when drying (or getting wet ). It is not resistant to rot (yes this can be an issue if a tap leaks for a few months). Maple has similar properties to beech but is prettier and moves less. They will both stain blue from iron/steel but not as much as oak.

Tim W

[GMM]

We've had an oak worktop for 3 -4 years now and I haven't seen any marking at all: Maybe it's prevented by oiling it thoroughly? I used danish oil (after many applications of 'worktop oil', which never seemed to saturate the wood) and re-apply every 6 months or so, when it starts to look like it needs it.

Ours was bought unseen online (can't remember who it was but the price was good) and the whole thing turned out absolutely fine, with two lads delivering it straight through to where I could work on it.

At 40mm though, it was *very* heavy to move into place with very little leeway to get through the door etc, but cutting and jointing were easy, using a circular saw and a router, then jointing using a biscuit cutter in the router and clamps. Cutters all came from Transtools and have lasted fine for other jobs since.

The only thing I would consider in doing it again (and I might be soon) would be to think about profiling the front edge: A square edge, as supplied makes joints easy, but is prone to damage. It's hard to put a profile on once the whole thing is fitted, as you can't get the router all the way to walls etc. but, of course, any profiling has to be done after the joints. So it seems the best way is to make joints but not to fix, then profile the edge while it can still be manoeuvred to a suitable position to reach the ends of runs.

Overall, IMO, hardwood gives a good look and is a fraction of the cost of some of the 'stone' worktops you can get. It just takes a little bit of looking after, but does have the advantage that you can re- finish it easily with a sander if necessary.

[Martin Bonner]

I can't remember who we bought our rubberwood top from about three years ago, but it was fine when it arrived (and very reasonably priced).

[mark]

The best wood is Iroko that's if your happy with the laboratory bench look.

mark