Kitchen - oak work surfaces Yay ot nay?

[WetAugust]

They look nice but they seem to need maintenance in contrast to other surfaces are just wipe clean.

If I did plump for oak is it a case of the thicker the better? Because the 27mm thinnish ones do look good to me

Some seem to ne oak stave - is there anything I should look out for?

Thank you

[WetAugust]

LOL

[Jaynebxl]

Ooh yes! Now imagine if any of us turn up at our local pub quiz this week and that comes up as one of the questions. We'd all be looking around for the MN scarf and asking if they stock pom bears!

[WetAugust]

^^ Good quiz question

[Jaynebxl]

Capitola I've found the answer to the question both you and I were asking! A Belfast sink is a butler sink with an overflow in it!

blog.specifinder.com/2011/10/10/whats-the-difference-between-a-belfast-sink-and-a-butler-sink/

[WetAugust]

Thank you all.

[Tizwozliz]

We just oiled under the sink and the cut edges before putting the sink in. The sink is siliconed in place so don't need to oil under it when re-oiling.

(assuming I've understood what you mean by inset sink right)

[MummytoMog]

I put the cheapo beech worktops from Ikea into my last kitchen. Oiled it with the Ikea oil once a year or so (and chucked a bit of olive oil on any bits that looked dry). Was completely fine. Burnt a bit with a hot pan - sanded it back, oiled and it was fine half an hour later. Same with careless knife cuts (although why the heck you would cut on a work surface I don't know). We're going to put the same worksurface into our new kitchen as well, although I had not realised you need to protect near a dishwasher! Good catch Mumsnet.

[primallass]

We have an Ikea Domjso sink.Just use a brush or wrap the cloth round a flat screwdriver to go under the sink edge.

[Capitola]

What is the difference between Belfast and Butler? We have one, don't know which.

[WetAugust]

Those of you who say they are easy to maintain..

what sort of sink do you have?

Because the sort of sink I am planning is not an under the surface level sink/ It's an inset sink and I can imagine having difficulty getting the oil under the stainless steel.

[primallass]

They are not hard to keep looking nice at all. Once a year-ish we give them a sand and a few new coats of oil. It's like having a new kitchen. This is our third kitchen with wooden work tops.

[Jaynebxl]

I started a post recently about this because I was hating our worktops. I discovered from the thread that I was using the wrong oil and am now waiting for a delivery of the hard wax stuff. Hoping that changes my opinion.

On another note I see people on here have referred to a Belfast sink. Is that the same thing as a butler sink?

[RedBushedT]

Oops! Sorry, I didn't even notice the fish/dish typo! That is rather confusing..

[georgedawes]

Redbush I was really confused about your fish draining for a minute til I realised it was a typo! Doh. That rack looks great, I will buy something similar.

Thanks also for the tip about the dishwasher and offcuts, wouldn't have thought of those!

[Tizwozliz]

Yes, dishwasher gives off a bit of heat/damp so an extra layer of protection. We bought a sheet of stuff from B & Q.

[Pannacotta]

Where would I get a barrier for my dishwasher?
I forgot I needed that, presume it prevents warping?

[Tizwozliz]

If the worktop is treated properly splashes of water etc are no problem, they just bead on the surface to be wiped away.

We sealed both sides of our worktops and all cut edges and then have an additional foil barrier on the underside over the dishwasher.

We turned our worktop offcuts into large chopping boards. I'm surprised at people stating they want a surface they can cut straight onto, I'd never do this no matter what type of surface and have always considered myself fairly slatternly.

[Billwoody]

We have oak worktops as desks in our office. We used Osmo Polyx oil to seal them. Put on two coats and we need do nothing again.

[RedBushedT]

I have oak worktops and love them. They are beautiful and actually pretty low maintenance. I oil them once a year and they look good as new. I also have a Belfast sink. For fish draining I use similar to this from Lakeland
Which works great for me. It catches the drips and then I just to it down the sink and wipe the drainer down.

[CinnabarRed]

Thanks!

[fossil971]

AG Woodcare supply the Osmo hardwax oil (buy Top Oil which is a worktop version of the one for floors Polyx oil). If you have a lot to do you could buy the special brush. You can get all these things from ebay too.

[Chocotrekkie]

We get the oil from ikea - its like a milk and it goes on really well. It's ikea oak work top as well - been in 8 years now, it still perfect. We are quite careful with hot pans, water etc.
Kids scratched it quite badly with knives (I told them to get their own dinner cause I wasn't making anything else!) but a bit of sanding, couple of coats of oil and good as new.

We now only treat it every few months or when mil is coming to visit as she told us it was a stupid thing to buy

[myron]

AlwaysOneMissing

Granite is definitely more functional than marble. The latter is more porous and not suitable for worktops. I would always choose a non porous worktop which is the reason I chose quartz rather than granite in my own home. If budget was an issue, I would consider stainless steel or laminate. At the end of the day, it's personal choice - I wouldn't want to expend daily energy/vigilance maintaining a less practical worktop material.

However, I do acknowledge that wooden worktops look good and are cheap but personally, I think it's a false economy, you'll be changing the worktop 5yrs down the line - unless, you never use/splash the worktops with water, oil, cooking sauces, etc. I would consider a wooden worktop if I was refurbishing a property to sell on immediately but not for my own home. I am always amazed that people are prepared to spend quite a lot of money on their kitchen units and then seemingly run out when it comes to the worktops and their appliances. imho, it should be the other way round.

[CinnabarRed]

Where can I buy hardwax oil from? Would a B&Q type place stock it?