Worktop questions!

[whensmynexthol1day]

Hi. We're getting our kitchen from diy kitchens and have heard that getting worktops elsewhere is the way to go. We also have an island unit that will be 4m and two cupboard depths wide.
So three questions:

1. Has anyone been able to get a worktop longer than 3m? If not what are the materials that look ok with a join?

1. Can anyone recommend a dealer?

1. How do you choose what you're going for with an online retailer? Do they send out free samples?

Thanks!

What sort of worktop do you want?

I got a 4m laminate from Worktops Direct, but they were quite limited in choice - didn't ry matter to me as I only wanted a cheap on to go along the old units which we put at the back of the garage.

Sorry should have said! We're after quartz/ porcelain/ Corian or equivalent

My advice would be to look for local highly rated suppliers (personal recommendation as well if you can) and contact them and ask for an appointment. We did this and were there for an hour and a half looking through all the gazillions of samples and having everything explained to us about joins and finishes. We got a quartz worktop (island is only 2 metres though so no join but there is on one of the other cabinet runs which is beautifully done). They were brilliant, so helpful and knowledgeable and the installation was/is perfect. It's absolutely the favourite part of my kitchen.

The biggest quartz slab we could find was 3.2m x 1.6m. I didn't want a join in mine so changed the kitchen design. You say yours will be 4m x 1.2m (to cupboards deep). Will there be an additional overhang (30cm) for stools to go under? If not that is a very long thin island.

We used a company called granite4you. Fantastic service and a fraction of the cost of retailers. They have lots of types of worktops, came out to measure and fitted it a week later. Would recommend 100%.

We had quartz. Our island is about 3m x 2m and our side work top is about 5m. There is a join around the hob but barely noticeable.

We got our quartz from Top Granite. They're based in London, but cover all over UK mainland. We were able to view full size slabs of quartz from their wholesaler which was really helpful.

If you go for a solid surface worktop (Corian/HiMacs/Meganite/Durasein etc) you will be able to have pretty much whatever length you want. Once the joints have been glued the lines are polished out making it seamless. You will need a very good joiner or a company who have proven experience working with solid surfaces. Thicknesses vary from 6mm upwards. Always with a timber substrate - we use MDF and clad over.

We use it a lot at work especially in Healthcare/Hospitality/Retail/Education sectors.