Oiling kitchen worktop - advice please

[Curlybrunette]

Hello,

We have kitchen worktops which I am going to oil, I just wanted to check the best way to do this.

From reading previous posts on here I've read about sanding them first, I'm afraid to sand in case it scratches them. Do I need to or can I clean the worktop thoroughly and oil on top?

I have read that Danish oil is best?

Any advice is much appreciated, I am totally rubbish at DIY tasks like these!

I've attached a couple of pics to show the type and condition. The worktops are quite shiny (not sure if that is even relevant!).

Thank you

I don’t have wooden worktops but a fairly large wooden worktop saver. I just wash it carefully and then oil it with olive or coconut oil/

Clear your worktops, then lightly sand with fine sandpaper. This will not scratch the worktop but will remove small imperfections. Then wipe all the dust off with damp cloth and dry with lint free cloth (old t shirt material is perfect). Apply Danish oil using another lint free cloth. Allow to dry (well , the wood absorb the oil )overnight. Will come up beautiful. We have walnut and a bit of a pain but actually only takes about 20 mins and they look beautiful after.

Question for those who have used Danish oil, does it set quite hard? Our worktops have a pretty solid finish but, 3 years after moving in. They're looking a bit worn in places, particularly around the sink (and where we've scrubbed off the print from bread wrappers and stuff that have stuck!)

Yours look very like ours, which are beech. My husband sands them every few months with a fine grade sandpaper and brushes all the dust away and wipes it down with a well wrung cloth. Then when it's dry, with a lint-free cloth he applies Tung Oil, leaves it to soak in the wipes up the excess, waits 24 hours then repeats.

@PickAChew we use Danish oil and it is a soft finish; not hard or varnish like. The wood absorbs it.

Used osmo oil on mine

Osmo oil. It is far better than normal danish oil. Mine only just now need doing in a couple of areas after 8 years.

Thanks @mapletreelane.

Come to think of it, there was a dried out tin of osmo in the garage when we moved in so I wonder if that's what the finish is.

@PickAChew

It's a little bit of effort to but they come up so well. I've never heard of Osmo oil but going to look that up! Good luck and let us know how you get on!

A hard wax oil is the way forward in my experience

I have oak worktops and use osmo oil. I start with coarse grit sandpaper, and work my way to P120 to clear the scratches. Osmo don't recommend going finer than that. Then I remove the dust with tack cloth and mineral oil, let it dry and apply the osmo with a brush. I'm sure there are loads of tutorials on YouTube. I do it as an evening task, and it's then all dry by morning.

Would also recommend Osmo, haven't done my oak ones for about 5 years and they only now need re-oiling.

I oil but only sand when i need to get rid of a stain or similar

Just done mine and used osmo top oil. Sanded with electric sander first. Make sure you use finest one (after coarser sandpaper to get rid of marks) as needs very smooth finish. 3 thin coats of oil applied with a brush. They look amazing.

big tip. Apply the oil thinly and let it soak in. If there is any lying on the surface after 20 minutes, wipe it off with a clean cotton rag.

If you let the oil pool, it will go sticky, then gummy, then wrinkly varnish, and you won't be able to clean it off. Too soft for sandpaper and too hard for white spirit. To see what I mean, feel round the top of the cooking-oil bottle you opened a while ago.

Second tip:
The rag that is contaminated with oil, wet it with water and WUL, tie it in a plastic bag so it can't dry out, and bin it. Oily rags can spontaneously combust. I have actually seen this happen, when I smelled burning and opened a painters' cupboard to find it full of smoke, and the bundle of rags was smouldering red in the middle. I have heards of fires in the laundry bins of restaurants.