Worktop is crushing our cooker

[David]

Dear All

We had a kitchen fitted about five months ago. Nice solid block beech worktops, lovely range-style cooker. So far so good. However, we recently noticed that the worktops are expanding and have seized the cooker in a vice-like grip and are trying to crush it to death. The front of the cooker has buckled a little, and we can see from the sealant between the wall and the worktop that the worktop must have expanded by about 0.5cm on both sides. The cooker was a nice snug fit...

I presume this is due to the worktop expanding owing to moisture from the kitchen rather than the summer heat. Question: What do I do???

Ideas welcomed.

Thanks

David

[Michael Mcneil]

While it is likely that the wood would eventually expand front to back by 1/4" if you had running water condensing on it all the time, it is unlikely to be moving side to side by very much.

How is the thing supported and what are your walls made of?

If the support is collapsing and/or the walls are flexing it would show up like that in a few weeks perhaps, by a few months certainly. If it was expanding the sealant would be being crushed into the wall, no?

[Alex]

If it has actually bent your cooker inwards by 1cm, call back whoever fitted the kitchen and be prepared for some 'negotiations'. Having said this, I've fitted a few beech block tops, and haven't had any expansion problems like you mention.

You should be able to fit a worktop without having to leave a whopping great

1cm gap everywhere to allow for expansion.

Alex