Worktop Durabilty

[Harbo]

This is a question from a friend who is contemplating having some oak kitchen worktops fitted - how durable are they?

He is concerned about staining, but presumably they are treated with some sort of finish - oil or varnish?

Rod :?

 

[Karl]

Normally they are treated with oil - and they are not pre-finished. The end user/installer applies the finish.

I think it is a bit of a subjective matter.

How often do they clean their work surfaces? It may sound silly, but I know of people who only give their surfaces a proper clean every few days. Oak will not stand up to that without needing regular maintenance - re-sanding and oiling.

They are quite high maintenance - spills cleared up straight away. We contemplated getting them for our kitchen, but with 4 young children and me being quite a messy cook, decided against it. Saving up for granite.....

Cheers

Karl

 

[Harbo]

Thanks karlley, that's what I thought but have no real experience of them.

We have just had a quote for some granite for our kitchen - will probably have to save up a bit longer!!

Rod

 

[CNC Paul]

Hi Rod,

Oak is not a very good wood for kitchen surfaces, because of the grain structure it has tiny open pores that will eventually absorb moisture. It has another problem.... if you leave wet metal objects on the surface it will turn black.

The best results I have had is Rock Maple finished with teak oil.


Paul

 

[Scrit]

I'm with Paul on this one. Personally I don't like installing oak worktops because people don't maintain them and if wet steel/cast-iron pans, knives or utensils are left on them in an area where the finish is thin or absent you can get indellible black stains (ferric oxide, caused by reaction between tannin in the oak and iron). This stain can be removed by judicious use of oxallic acid before refinishing, but nonetheless there are some households where I seem to have to go back regularly to correct this problem. Walnut and mahogany (both species with high tannin content) also suffer from this problem

If your friends are prepared to maintain the worktop and treat it with care by using a drainer, wiping spills immediately and oiling it regularly then it will probably be all right. If they aren't prepared to put the work in to maintain the top then they simply shouldn't be considering a timber worktop at all

Scrit

 

[Harbo]

Thanks everybody - I think all your comments have put him off the idea.

Cheers

Rod

 

[WellsWood]

Yeah, another vote for waht Scrit and Paul said. I find most sensible people will back away from wood w/tops once appraised of the amount of ongoing maintenance that will be required from them (or do I just ave lazy customers :-k ).

One particular kitchen I saw with Oak w/tops looked fantastic when just done but boy did it look shabby fast once they'd started using it in anger. Of course that "well worn - looks like it's been in donkeys years" look is what some want - Oak will probably get you there faster if so :wink: