Dutchmen in the kitchen

[Mr Ed]

No its not Ruud Van Nistelrooy, Rembrandt or Eddie Van Halen; a dutchman (as you all know) is also a timber patch to cover a defect. In our much used kitchen (installed by the previous owners of the house) the worktop had been varnished, which has trapped moisture and led to some small areas starting to break down;

When the worktop is in regular use for pastry and breadmaking this is a real issue, so with no plans to replace the kitchen at this stage some repair work is the only option.

A template is made to the desired shape, oversized by a certain amount to allow a guide bush to ride around the inside.

The clever bit is that the hole is routed out the worktop following the template with a collar on the guide bush. The collar is then removed to cut out the patch, which compensates for the width of the cutter and makes a patch that perfectly matches the hole previously cut. Simples.

The patches are glued with a foaming polyurethane glue and clamped

Once the glue is cured the whole thing is planed flush

Finally a coat of new varnish to finish the job

I am now coming to the realisation that Sunday teatime may not have been the best time to do this, as the production of roast chicken and vegetables is at risk. Claire is balanced on the only bit of unvarnished worktop peeling carrots as I type!

Ed

 

[Anonymous]

How did you clamp this ?

Koolwabbit

 

[Mr Ed]

How did you clamp this ?

Koolwabbit

A ha, the photo omits this piece of Heath Robinson ingenuity... I used some lengths of 3X2 up to the ceiling and then used the quick grip clamps in 'spreader' mode to jack against the worktop. It was surprisingly effective and something I have called into use many times during the house refurbishment.

Ed

 

[billybuntus]

Excellent work, pray tell where you purchased such a template?

I could really put that too good use repairing old doors that have had yale locks etc fitted

 

[Mr Ed]

Excellent work, pray tell where you purchased such a template?

I could really put that too good use repairing old doors that have had yale locks etc fitted

Well I made this one, but Trend do make a kit where I nicked the idea from, which you can buy here; http://www.dm-tools.co.uk/product.php/s ... TEMPTRKX14

I used the 30mm template guide that came with my DeWalt router and turned a 50mm acetal bush on the lathe, to suit the 10mm cutter I used. Once you have the guide and bush its just a case of making a template the shape you want, oversizing it to allow for the radius of the guide bush.

I was going to buy one, but since the one I made worked so well, I'm glad I saved my £37.

Ed

 

[MikeG.]

er.........did you use enough glue there Ed?

Damn good idea using the clamps in spreader mode.........and just a bit annoying too as I chucked out my cheapo clamps that could have done that job only a few weeks ago!

Note to myself......never, ever, ever throw anything out ever again.

Mike

 

[Mattty]

N1 Ed. Them clamps had me scratching my head for ages. You shouldn't have told us

 

[Karl]

I'd guessed you had the clamps in spreader mode, but thought they were 8' clamps, pressed upto the ceiling.... :lol:

Nice work

Cheers

Karl

 

[Mr Ed]

er.........did you use enough glue there Ed?

Less than you might think, bit it seemed to foam up an awful lot for some reason. I don't know if it foams more if the moisture content of the timber is higher?

Ed

 

[houtslager]

yes it does, and if your wood is bone dry, then its time to get out your other half's plant sprayer :lol:

 

[Dave S]

Nice one.

Did you get your roast chicken?

Er.... eye guards removed for photographic purposes? :shock:

Dave

 

[Mr Ed]

Nice one.

Did you get your roast chicken?

Er.... eye guards removed for photographic purposes? :shock:

Dave

Yes the roast chicken was perfect. I did have glasses on at the start, but somewhere along the way I must have taken them off and forgot to put them back on.

Ed