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Original poster

Wooden worktops, yes or no?

97 replies

TriceratopsRocks · 05/08/2023 23:12

Please tell me about your wooden kitchen worktops!

We are having our kitchen done and originally decided on quartz for practicality, but I so much prefer the look and feel of wood. Can any of you with wooden worktops tell me what the mainenance is actually like? I know we will need to oil it every 3-6 months, which I think means the worktop is out of action for a day.

If it's kept regularly oiled, how susceptible is it to water/sauce damage? We have 3 DC, all of whom can be messy cooks. Ingredients can seem to end up flung all over the place and spills aren't always wiped up for a while.

If any of you with experience can tell me what it's actually like with a wooden worktop, I'd really appreciate it. And although I'd love you all to say that wood is actually not too much bother, I really need to know if your reaction is "don't do it, it's a nightmare"! If it were just DH and I, I wouldn't hesitate. But we aren't the only people here and I just worry that wood will end up burned and stained due to DC. So as long as we keep on top of the maintenance, how easy is it to actually ruin them?

Any words of wisdom really appreciated - thank you!

OP posts:
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caringcarer · 06/08/2023 00:35

DS has 3 granite surfaces and a wooden breakfast bar. It's oiled every 4 months and is still perfect. He uses a chopping board.

blueshoes · 06/08/2023 00:37

No, not practical. Only look good for a short time before they become black and disgusting.

OnaHotTinRoofNow · 06/08/2023 00:40

My friend has them , I stayed with her a couple of months ago, even the tiniest speck of water had to be wiped immediately. Absolute PITA.

Original poster
TriceratopsRocks · 06/08/2023 00:43

Oh blimey! It does sound like I should stick to the practical. I guess wood might have to wait until the kids have moved out (I say kids, but they are all 6th form/uni ag). I just love the feel of wood though - and the sound, the look, the warmth...

@ManyRiversToCross I love your worktops and they are close to what I am after. We would definitely be getting an over mount sink with them. I really wish I could be more confident that I would love mine like some of you clearly do, but I hear the cries of "Don't do it!" loud and clear. My head tells me to stick with quartz. My heart still really wants wood though :)

I could look for a decent laminate that looks like wood, although that apparently means all the measurements have to be redone. Or maybe I can find a quartz pattern I like. I'm just not a fan of the noise/coldness of quartz, but recognise it's the sensible option.

I really appreciate all your responses, both for and against. I'm going to have another look at quartz and ask about laminate before deciding for definite. And if we do still go for wood, I can't say I wasn't warned!

Thank you again everyone for all your help

OP posts:
70isaLimitNotaTarget · 06/08/2023 00:46

I have wooden worktops , yes they do mark . And warp (worse where the kettle is as more spills )

I also have a granite composite sink which is massive but such a git to keep clean.

WasteOfPaint · 06/08/2023 00:57

Once you have the black marks around the sink, is there any easy way of rectifying?

ManyRiversToCross · 06/08/2023 00:59

@TriceratopsRocks
Get them, untreated, and seal them with sadolin.

They are only a problem because for some reason middle class people are brainwashed into thinking that varnish is tacky/orange and that proper wood worktops are oiled.

Ignore that mantra, seal your worktops with hard-wearing varnish and have the look you live without the issues. They really are trouble free. I cannot understand why people persist in using oil because some purist somewhere says it's the proper thing to do.

ManyRiversToCross · 06/08/2023 01:00

Look you love

stevalnamechanger · 06/08/2023 01:14

I just bought a house that's got pretty bad damage at the back of the sink as not maintained but all the rest is in surprisingly good condition without regularly oiling.

I am getting rid of it though as I don't like it !

sunsethorizon · 06/08/2023 07:25

When we bought our first house it had wooden worktops. They looked lovely but were not practical. I’d never choose them I’m afraid!

Peony654 · 06/08/2023 07:30

My mum has them, they have deteriorated so much. She has to cover them with oilcloth or glass covers which defeats the point. I’d never get them

barbarahunter · 06/08/2023 07:34

I had them once and would never have again for all the reasons everyone has already said. Another vote for 'no'.

Sanch1 · 06/08/2023 07:43

Could you have wood on a breakfast bar or island and quartz elsewhere? We have wood on our breakfast bar, it's fine with normal day to day use, splashes and spills. Been in a year and not needing to oil it again yet. But as others have said I wouldn't want it in the main cooking or washing up areas.

MotherOfCrocodiles · 06/08/2023 08:00

We have had ours for 10 years and they still look as new. I do occasionally (every couple of years) re oil them, it takes less than an hour. I use Osmo Raw.

Don't mount the sink under the worktop though, those always seem to go black (ours has a lip over the worktop).

If you put a tin can in a pool of water it makes a black ring that you would have to sand off. This happens rarely in our house but we don't have teens.

RampantIvy · 06/08/2023 08:43

We have compact laminate worktops and I am extremely pleased with them. They are solid laminate all the way through the worktop and are very durable. I wouldn't put a hot pan on it, but I wouldn't put a hot pan on any worktop. The compact laminate is very water resistant and scratch and stain resistant and cheaper than quartz or granite, which is why we went for it.

If you have a thicker worktop you can get drainer grooves cut into the surface.

Disclaimer: I don't work for a compact laminate manufacturer Grin

GellerYeller · 06/08/2023 10:33

We have quartz now and the kitchen fitter was trying to persuade us that we should ‘warm things up’ by adding a wooden topped island or breakfast bar. Which of course would be one of the most used areas.

We did have drainer grooves next to the sink in our previous wood worktops. All black. Hopeless with kids because who has time to wipe under the draining rack if you’re just rinsing a mug and dashing off to school?!

Like PPs we had all the appliances sitting on pieces of glass and trivets everywhere.

I agree with PP that the stains go deep; you can’t just sand an isolated curry stain or black area. You’ll end up doing the lot.

TLDR: influencer with access to tradespeople and a fan of very shabby chic? Go for it. Busy family who will actually cook and eat off them and want them to look great?Hell no.

Margrethe · 06/08/2023 10:36

If you love the look of wood, do a mix of wood and quartz/granite/Corian/etc.

Just keep the wood away from the kitchen sink and hob. Particularly the sink.

mondaytosunday · 06/08/2023 11:44

Don't. Even my meticulous friend has had issues around the sink and it stains - yes you could sand them out but would you?

TheBeesKnee · 06/08/2023 11:55

I have walnut (and forest green crackle tiles) and I am in love. We used Danish oil originally but I was not a fan so we got osmo oil instead which works much better.

We wipe up water and use chopping boards. The black damage around sinks always confuses me because people must splash water, see it and then just... leave it?!

There is some damage on ours: one from a wet cast iron lid that someone put on the side for whatever reason, and a couple of scratches where someone decided to break open a tin with a pocket knife and exerted a lot of pressure on the surface. That one made me quite angry but I'm just accepting these imperfections as part of the character of the wood in the way that old floorboards are not immaculate.

Wooden worktops, yes or no?
Greenwood8 · 08/08/2023 07:52

WasteOfPaint · 06/08/2023 00:57

Once you have the black marks around the sink, is there any easy way of rectifying?

I have used oxalic acid on a small black area successfully. Not sure if it would work on extensive damage

Dacadactyl · 08/08/2023 07:53

Wooden worktops are a nightmare to maintain. Dont do it!

rougechaotic · 08/08/2023 07:56

100% no. We had them once in a rented flat and they are awful to maintain

averylongtimeago · 08/08/2023 08:05

We have wooden worktops (rustic oak from Worktop express). They have been in for 5 years- we let the house as a gite during the summer so they get a lot of use!

The most important thing is how you finish them- we put a lot of effort into the preparation, sanding and cleaning before multiple coats of Rustin's Danish Oil. There are other brands but we have found this to be the best.

The surface is pretty much impervious to everything except neat bleach left to soak in and oven cleaner- these will leave black marks.
This happened once (bloody holiday makers cleaned their bike with oven cleaner in the kitchen!😡) and the marks came off with the sander and re-oiling the damaged patch.

Always use a chopping board, clean with soapy water and a normal kitchen spray. We maintain it with a light sand, by hand with a sanding block, and a coat of oil once a year. We do this in the evening and it's dry by morning.

Wooden worktops, yes or no?
Bearpawk · 08/08/2023 08:14

I've had both (currently got quartz) and wouldn't go back to wood.
If you use the sink, have kids, cook a lot use hot pans etc. it's just such a bloody faff.
The only way I'd recommend it is if you're a neat freak who barely cooks and only ever uses a dishwasher.

Bearpawk · 08/08/2023 08:15

However I do like wood so next kitchen I'd have quartz worktops and some kind of vintage wooden workbench as an island in the middle

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