Care of wooden kitchen worktops

Saver-upper

I wonder if anyone can advise me.
We are having a new kitchen installed soon,and am trying to decide on what type of worktops to get.
I always assumed we would get laminate worktops,mostly due to expense of real wood.Now that we have started looking (in Wickes,where we have ordered kitchen from),I can't actually find a worktop that I like in laminate.One I did like the look of (Cherry block effect),does not come in wide enough slabs for the island,apparently,so that is out.
So,now I might have to start looking at real wood worktops,and I have a few questions:
-are they worth it?
-is there too much work in maintaining the "new" look.From what I have seen,wood worktops seem to be easily spoilt with water-mark,heat-marks,etc
-is there a product you can buy to protect against these types of marks-do you need to re-apply regularly
Any advise would be greatly appreciated,thank you

andyhop

Use osmo top oil , 4-5 coats . Seal all cuts and edges inc the underside and you will end up with a characterful durable surface

When I see wooden tops that have marked its usually down to poor fitting/ sealing . Most of what I see is where only the top has been oiled !

Saver-upper

Thank you andyhop,that is very helpful.

paddyrg

I actually like wood to look 'lived in', it's a natural material and so marks that you accrue over the years are kind of like the scars of living - you don't replace the husband for getting a scar, dent, bruise after all ;-)

LittleJohn

I have had wooden worktops for about three months now. Well oiled on the top, and a few coats underneath. So far all is looking as good as when first installed.

I think just as long any water is wiped off fairly quickly and oil is reapplied a few times a year you will get no problems with wooden tops.

and any marks can be sanded out if you have too

leveller2911

The advantage/beauty of wooden worktops is they can re-finished when they start to look a bit tatty. The downside is if you want them to look good for a good few years then you need to look after them and use trivets,chopping boards etc . The harder the timber the better it will put up with knocks so Oak,Beech,Maple are better than Ash,Iroko,American Black Walnut.

I would never recommend Beech worktops with Butler/Belfast sinks because when water penetrates the end grain around the sink it will start to rot the timber and you will get black stains that cannot be removed.

leveller2911

LittleJohn wrote: »

I have had wooden worktops for about three months now. Well oiled on the top, and a few coats underneath. So far all is looking as good as when first installed.

The underside only needs a single coat.

Its done to seal the grain and "balance" the top and bottom surfaces.When people don't seal the underside the worktops can bow quite badly and they can crack along the grain ("shakes"). When people buy a laminate worktop the underside has a very thin paper/melamine facing and this balances the top and bottom of the worktops. Bit like if you only painted one side of a door and left the otherside untreated ,it would warp very quickly.

and any marks can be sanded out if you have too

Thats the one big advantage over other surfaces , 15 yrs down the line they can still look like new worktops.

Gloomendoom

We have wooden worktops. They are probably 40 years old and have a distinctly "lived in" look. I like it. A kitchen refit is in the offing and the old wooden worktops will be replaced by new ones.

DigForVictory

We've a big wooden table. It's oiled, and every now & again a child will leave a wet tin or something on it leaving a nasty black ring & then we have to get the sander out & re-oil the table, but it can be restored to it's original glory (if a few millimetres thinner) pretty easily.

You don't have to get any fancy end bits that can bend or catch or rip - you have a smooth face of wood. And if a sharp corner worries you, you can have it sanded into a curve.

Even big volumes of drinks/other fluids spilled are not ruinous - you throw tea towels, laundry etc at the spill to absorb as much as possible, and hope the oil wins. (It usually does.)

mollymunchkin

leveller2911 wrote: »

I would never recommend Beech worktops with Butler/Belfast sinks because when water penetrates the end grain around the sink it will start to rot the timber and you will get black stains that cannot be removed.

What would you recommend?

LisaLou1982

I have solid oak worktops in our kitchen and love them!! I oil them once every 18 months or so and they still look like new.

We are about to move and I would definitely consider them again