Pros and cons of hardwood worktops?

[AintNobodyHereButUsChickens]

We're finally doing our kitchen and we always said we would have hardwood worktops and a belfast sink. MIL did her kitchen last year and has oak worktops and, quite frankly, they look shit now. They had bleach spilt on them, tea/coffee stains, they're water marked. You get the idea.

DH has found a company that does good quality kitchens for far cheaper than the big retailers like Wren (we had a kitchen priced by them, £6.5k with laminate worktops and stainless steel sink). We priced it up with this other company and can do our kitchen for £5k including hardwood worktops and the belfast sink we always wanted.

I just don't want shitty looking worktops though, MILs have really put me off but DH is insisting it will be fine if we oil them regularly.

WWYD?

I have walnut in my kitchen. I wanted granite but DH wanted wood. He also wanted a wood floor when I wanted tile. I got my tile floor and he got his wood worktop. We were told that oak goes black because of the tannins which walnut has much less of. We used Osmo oil which was originally developed for floors and seals the wood really well to while you have to wipe up spills, nothing will sink in. It looks as good as the day it was put in. The instructions say you don’t even have to sand when you recoat so much less palaver than a natural oil.

Thanks everyone, really helpful! I think DH is set on hardwood, Iroko to be exact. I look forward to this time next year when I can tell him "I told you so"

Iroko is on the IUCN red list of threatened tree species. We are using up the planet too fast and need to start making responsible choices. Not judging , just informing.

I wouldn’t have them again - ours looked absolutely shit, although I did oil then every few months. There were black marks and softening of the wood around the sink. I partly blame DH . He was always dragging the kettle around, causing scrapes, or leaving puddles around the sink. When I would oil the worktops, he also felt it necessary to start making sandwiches and getting crumbs everywhere

I have oak worktops treated with osmo oil. I don’t chop directly on the worktops (shocked that anyone would!) however we aren’t careful - spills/water splashes don’t get wiped up immediately, I put pans straight from the hob on the worktop etc. worktops are perfect, no black marks here.

Tbh I don’t know why anyone uses anything other than osmo oil. We used to use linseed oil and it was awful - we had black marks from water around the sink then which had to be sanded out before using osmo. The linseed oil also made the oak far too orange-y looking.

I have tried another brand of hard wax oil but didn’t find it as good as osmo, although it was still better than linseed oil.

I have oak worktops, which I didn't choose. They are a nightmare. They need oiling very regularly and even though I do this and am very careful with them they still have ugly marks on them, especially near the sink. I wouldn't ever choose to have them again! Avoid avoid avoid!

My parents had iroko worktops put in in 1976. They’re still going strong (no, my parents aren’t big on regular refurbs!) - no visible damage except a bit of wear around the sinks, where splashes are inevitable. My mother oils them every so often, and always uses chopping boards.

Oak worktops - never again. Cannot wait to get rid of them. Absolutely do not recommend.

I have wooden worktops and love them (cherry). Not had a problem with spills or hot drinks or water damage near the sink. I do look after them though as I would any wooden furniture and they get oiled every two years or so.

My friend has them and they're gorgeous. But she's VERY careful.
I have them and I am sloppy. I hate the wood tops, they're hard work and they're SO STAINED! I want stone personally..

We have (fairly dark) oak worktops (our choice) and aren't unhappy; we simply couldn't afford granite at the time (extension project went massively wrong on us). The oak grain looks lovely, especially on our breakfast bar.

We do put linseed oil a couple of times a year (it's an easy enough job) and use chopping boards / trivets as I'd imagine most people do. There is one burn mark from a hot pan and it's looking a bit like it needs sanding/attention behind the sink (4 years in). Both things manageable, neither looks terrible.

I never worry about stains / spills. The oil keeps coloured liquid from getting into the wood - and we cook a lot of curry!

The Osmo oil sounds like a good tip though, thanks!

Mine are around 9 years old and are still looking great. Yeah there's the odd scuff but nothing major. I clean them using detol twice a week and oil them once every couple of months. Yeah you have to be sensible and not use bleach etc but that could be said about a lot of surfaces

Don't have them round the sink!!

We had iroko worktops, they were reclaimed and there is a thinner type of Osmo oil for oily woods. They were bulletproof, no water damage at all.

Oak is more vulnerable to water staining due to tannins. I still think Osmo have the best water proof wood protection oil. It's rare to see a complaint whereas the cheap Danish oil used by worktop suppliers doesn't seem to last long.

Also it makes sense with a timber worktop, to have a sink where the tap is attached to the sink not the worktop, and also has a proper drainer, that reduces the water contact by 90%.

@NotMeNoNo "it makes sense with a timber worktop, to have a sink where the tap is attached to the sink not the worktop, and also has a proper drainer, that reduces the water contact by 90%."

Agreed, these depressed / butler sinks everyone has these days would be terrible with wooden work-tops! Even with granite I don't really understand how people drain their washing up. Old-school stainless steel for me with a proper drainer! #feelingmyageagain

Don't do it. I really regret ours. They need sanding down all the time and recoating.

@footchewer we have an undermounted sink with a granite worktop - the granite is carved to make a draining board. It works really well. No idea how you do it with wood though.

Ooh, I'd love an undermount sink, but think it would be an extremely bad idea with a wood worktop!

Mine look great even after 13 years. I use Osmo oil. I have oak iirc.

I wouldn't chop directly on any type of work surface, that's why you have chopping boards and I have never put saucepans straight into a work top

Don't do it - they don't stay nice for very long. I moved into a house with hard wood worktops and they had corroded around the sink due to water dripping onto them. Also, discovered that red wine stains and does not come off! I have quartz worktops now and they're beautiful, and hard wearing.