Do you have an older wooden worktop?

[Eggless]

I'm putting a new kitchen into open plan living space, so I really want it to look cosy and warm rather than 'clean' and clinical.

Wood is therefore the obvious choice for worktop, but I'm concerned about the longevity of it. I am really happy for it to look used, like knife marks, dings, etc, but worried about major damage from water.

But I can't find any worktops that look cosy apart from wood. It also needs to not streak or need polishing or anything. And not make loud noises when you put things on it. Clanging in the kitchen is not cool in a shared living space!

Is wood/engineered wood the only option that fulfills my needs?

avoid avoid avoid
seriously

we inherited one and never again

We moved into a house with one. It was dreadful. Anything hot - mark. Anything wet - stain. Completely impractical. Never again.

I love mine. Oak, very overdue oiling (I use Osmo), but comes up like new with a light sand and re-oiling.

I love mine but we only have it one the breakfast bar, not around the sink. If you are desperate for it around the sink could you use a clear acrylic covering on it or similar and seal that?

I've had mine 6 years, it's ash, it looks good but you do have to be careful round the sink. You've reminded me I need to refinish it, thanks 😁

I have oak- love it and would get oak again. It's looking older now and is due a re-sand and oil as has some marks, mostly from water. It's been 2 years since last done. It'll be 6-7yrs old now I think.
Luckily my parter does the sanding and oiling (osmo) but it does come up like new.

Ours has some drainage grooves near the sink which I 100% would never have again if we were to change it.

Oh yes, I had drainage grooves but they're pointless. I added a (Belfast sink style) ceramic draining board which is fab.

We inherited one and it was hideous. Warped and mouldy despite us tying to look after it.
It basically rotted away.

No to wood

Sorry meant to post this!

We inherited on 15 years ago. I took the varnish off as that used to bubble if you put something hot down by accident but we have had no other issues with it. I love it. H puts some kind of wax or something on it a couple of times a year.

We oil ours once a year and it looks great despite years of use. I wouldn’t change it.

We've had ours (bamboo) since 2010. No marks, damage or otherwise. It still looks lovely. I did sand and oil it annually for a few years, but it must be 8 years since it's been done. It does have one tiny ding in it - bizzarely from when I whacked a bag of par-boiled frozen roasties on it, in an attempt to separate them! Who knew a frozen potato could dent a worktop?!

You very quickly get into the habit of using a trivet, or leaving pans on the hob, and water would have to pool on it for a LONG time for it to leave a meaningful mark.

I wanted to change it for a composite top a couple of years ago - but that was more because I fancied a change and was going to get an induction hob so would have done that at the same time. But I clearly didn't care that much about it, as I still haven't done it!

It definitely ticks all your boxes re looks etc (it's the main reason we got it - we have an open plan space). Would I get it again? Possibly not. But there's definitely not been anything wrong with it, and we certainly haven't needed to maintain it like we thought.

Get a sink that goes right to the back of your worktop so no gap that's tricky to sand.

We do have rings from wet cans and red wine but I don't really notice them anymore. It's 12 years old and has never really been oiled again after first being put in. Our sink (which is a bit useless as water rolls from the edges onto the worktop rather than into the sink) is on top of the worktop. Our builder put a clear sealant between the sink and worktop which protected the worktop for a long time.

This is iroko, we had it done 15 years ago, we gave it several coats (I can't remember what of) when it was first put in but nothing since. Looks pretty good considering, I'm sure it would come up like new with a sand and varnish/oil.

We have one on our island and composite around the sink. Looks great but I would never have wood round the sink.

I love my oak worktop. Its warm looking, soft sound wise and in keeping with my old house.
I oiled it well with osmo before it went in. I keep a bar cloth behind the sink to absorb water.
I have seen a clever arrangement with a stone section around the taps, will find a link.

We’ve had our solid oak worktop for about 12 years now and I love it. It’s very thick and I’ve been careful keeping it dry around the taps but it’s weathered well. It has got marks here and there but I find they fade over time. I oil it once a year .

https://www.facebook.com/devol.kitchens/posts/if-youre-going-for-wooden-worktops-in-your-new-kitchen-a-stone-tap-insert-is-an-/3590498487638761/

We've had oak for years and I love it. I’ve got a couple of big chopping boards (which are just offcuts from when they put the worktops in) and I put anything hot, cold or wet on top of them to avoid damage to the actual worktop. We’ve got a Belfast sink so I keep a clean tea towel and just dry around the taps if there are any splashes.

https://www.tidbits-cami.com/diy-butcher-block-countertops/

Btw, see if you can get reclaimed science lab wooden counters if you want a really lived in look, these are usually hardwood and come in rich colours and can look fantastic.

I love my wood worktops - we've just had them resanded and sealed and they look brand new. Make sure you have a seriously heavy duty final finish then if you are sensible they will last. You will need to redo them every so often but it depends on your tolerance for imperfections. Mine is very very high as they looked disgusting when I finally gave in!

Thank you everyone! It does look like wood is the only cosy looking option then, as I suspected.
A totally mixed bag of wood lovers and haters 😆

Everything marks and gets old. Mine is from ikea. Reseal it every 6-12 months. It’s got rings and marks but you can get rid of them if you sand and reseal several coats. Depends how much yo u care about it being perfect. In my opinion lasts as long as anything unless you are going to go for anything super expensive. Mine form ikea cost £500 ish per side to replace but haven’t needed to in 8 years.

Just make sure you don’t leave it wet and don’t leave tin cans on it

Our wooden worktops have been in a decade and still look good, with no marks. We re oil them every three years or so. We are not particularly house proud, but we do mop up spills and wipe down around the sink area. We also have a clear glass surface saver in the kettle area, so there is never any spillage. Our cooker is a ceramic topped range and we tend to dish up on that. We were told by a kitchen installer that wood is fine unless you have a butler sink, so we chose a normal kitchen sink.

We are about to move house and will be having a new kitchen and we will definitely have wooden surfaces again. My only criticism is the cats adore warming their feet on them when they come in!😡