Kitchen counter

[D'Olier]

We have one of those kitchen counters with what looks like a laminate top stuck onto some wood. Part of it was damaged a few months ago and I went to HD and Lowes to ask about getting a replacement 'patch'. They said I can only buy it with the wood attached and I'd have to replace the whole counter - or at least a good section of it. The damage is only about 3"x3". There must be a way to buy just the surface part and stick it on without having to replace the whole wooden piece.

Anybody know where I can buy the piece I need?

Thanks.

Paul

[Kevin O']

Hi,

Here's my .02 worth...

The material used to support the laminate is very cheap (10' x 25" costs about $15.00 at my local lumber yard), the laminate itself is the cheapest countertop material - so why not remove the damaged section and replace it?a "patch" will look like hell, and probably cost as much in time/labor...

Good Luck,

Kevin O'

[John W. Wells]

Some 15 years ago I had an electric coffee maker go south and burn a 3 inch patch in the Formica laminate of my kitchen counter--the intense heat caused the laminate to bubble up and crack.

I managed to find a scrap of the very same pattern (whatta surprise--the counter was 20 years old by that time) at a store. I think it was the sort of store that sold resilient floor covering--don't remember for sure.

So I cut out a 3" disk from the scrap, laid it on the burned area, traced around it with a pen, and then carefully routed out the bad stuff with my rarely-used-but-at-times-indispensible Dremel tool (I don't own a real router). I used epoxy to glue in the patch.

Of course it's noticeable, but hardly so. Just a thin gray line around the periphery of the patch. And completely water-tight. It was holding just fine when I sold the house a year ago.

--John W. Wells

[Carpenter Ant]

------------------------------------------------------- Repairing laminate is nearly impossible why not route out a removable cutting board or hot plate area where the

3"x3" patch is needed.

-------------------------------------------------------

[D'Olier]

Now this is what I want to do. I could live with a barely noticeable line around the patch. The thing is, where do I get the laminate. The house is only three years old so it should be available but as I've mentioned the big two (Lowes and HD) have said das ist verboten.