Anyone with solid wood worktops - do you love or hate them??

[MadameGazelle]

That's it really am in the process of installing a new kitchen and can't make a decision on worktops. Have decided (finally ) on white high gloss units and a wooden or wood effect worktop, was going to go for laminate as more hardwearing but am being swayed towards real wood as I know it will look far nicer; I don't mind the sanding down but don't want it to look manky in 6 months. We have no room for a dishwasher so will be doing a lot of washing up. TIA

I have oiled oak and its been in nearly 18 months and still looks great.I haven't fully sanded it at all yet I do give it the once over with wire wool every few months and oil it again but find it therapeutic.It looks fab laminate just not the same.

hate them as we are lazy and don't do the oiling/sanding

Ours is two and half years old and still looks good, except around the sink where it's a bit marked. Don't really notice the sink area though as it's tucked away to the side. We've sanded it down and oiled it a couple of times now but I hate doing it as it takes all afternoon.

I've been wondering the same thing for our new kitchen - think will go for laminate or something composite. Have you got small sticky children MadameGazelle?! If so I'd say a big NO to high gloss units - this is one of the reasons I'm replacing our kitchen as the bluddy things never look clean!

I'm with Eldon - hate them with a passion,every little mark shows up and it's such a faf sanding and oiling them. Can't wait to get rid of them!

I think it depends a lot on personality - we have real wood in our rented flat, and it does last better than I would have thought, so long as you expect it to have a 'vintage' look rather than a pristine look! However, in our house, DH does all the washing up in a very splashy way, and so we have stuck firmly with laminate.

Hate them. Wish I went for granite or marble.

They stain so easily, and find myself get all agitated if DP turns on the water too high as it splashes, which is normal, I know! I get all nervous about people putting things down on the counters.

I have had mine for 6 months now and it is not at all manky looking. There is one tiny chip which I could repair with woodfiller, but it really isn't that bad. I am hopeless at keeping things nice, but even I have been impressed with its resistance to water and stains etc.

Im in same situ madam and keep debating it too but as im all for low maintenance i think im going to go laminate as realistically i will never get round to nursing the worktop - we have little people and our white high gloss in the bathroom seems easy to rub marks out so im not swayed in the kitchen so am also going for it - the high gloss we getting is slab so im thinking v easy to just wipe.

In retrospect I wouldn't have got them (ours are 3 yrs old). We need something more low maintenance as we are lazy fuckers, and the sanding/oiling thing is a headache.

I've got solid oak surfaces with white high gloss units. Got 2 messy DSs and a baby DD but the white gloss looks great and although it does show up marks it wipes clean really easily.

You do have to oil the wood surface regularly but we don't do ours as often as we should and it still looks good. Looks great just after it is oiled so should do it more often really...

Had granite in our previous house and hated it. Shows up every little splash and takes loads of effort to keep it looking glossy. Never again!

solid walnut worktops and love them! big bonus being you can sand out scratches and have perfect tops again, drawbacks being a bit of work oiling etc and that twitchy feeling when someone goes to put a mug of hot coffee on them...I just make it quite obvious that I'm putting their drink on a mat and hope that they won't burn my tops!

I love ours, real wood all the way! Personally I wouldn't go for a "wood effect" as it won't really look like wood and would imo make your kitchen look cheap (which I'm sure it isn't )- imo better to go with something completely different if you're not going for the real thing rather than an imitation. Yes you have to oil/sand real wood but the benefit of that is that if there is a deep scratch/burn mark etc you CAN get rid of it without having to replace the whole thing.

Love em.

Had them for years without any problems. Just keep them well oiled.

have solid beech, they have worn really well considering how little care they get - would not cross my mind to put hot drinks on a mat, for example

do they go soggy round the sink area?

if you keep on top of drips and puddles no they don;t . We are terribly lax in keeping ours in good condition with oiling (ie we do NONE) but they still look good. Dont go laminate, its so cheap looking

We always have this debate ourselves - solid wood looks nicer and more expensive, but laminate is more hard wearing. Our kitchen is a mess at the moment (saving up to get a new one fitted) and the laminate worktops must be at least 20 years old, but no matter how much food, dirt/bike oil gets smeared on them, they always come up clean with a quick spray of lemon flash! And I know I can put a hot pan or baking tray down on it without worrying about marks. So as much as I love the look of wood, I know we'd never look after it properly and it would be a waste of money.

Suprisingly, one of the nicest wood-effect worktops I've seen is a cheapy from Ikea. We were in there last year and when I saw a gorgeous walnut worktop, I presumed it was one of their expensive made-to-order ones. It wasn't very thick had a square edge so didn't look so obviously laminate (in fact until I inspected it closely, I was convinced it was real wood), and it had a lovely warm, silky finish - not plasticky or cold to the touch like some can be. So I was very suprised to find out it was their cheapest of the cheap Pragel worktop! It's dirt cheap, comes in different lengths so there's less wasteage, and it comes with a 25 year guarantee. Can't complain at that

There's a picture of it on page 10 of their kitchen brochure and I think it looks very realistic.

mine is not exactly in showroom condition around the sink but it has been neglected for about 11 years

anyway would look out of place if it had stayed too perfect for long

I have cheapy Ikea ones (beech I think) they're abused, haven't oiled in over a year, and whilst they are 'lived in' they're fine.

When I had a laminated top, I found it much worse as one little knick and the wood swelled up, and when I forgot what I was doing and put the coffee pot down I got a big, flaky blister (ruined the top) vs. the slightly burned ring on my wood top from the same mistake (which I could sand out, but haven't bothered with)

For some reason I can cope with scratched/stained wood as it looks rustic, but the scratches on granite/marble tops completely wind me up.

Whatever you do, don't go for tile - it's awful.

Matt cupboards much more stylish and elegant imho.I viewed 30 houses and 27 had white hi gloss!They are the avocado bathroom of the future

I've always had matt units (just avant-garde, me ) and am craving some gloss, to refect light....aaargh...

But, hello Noddy anyway

Hate them with a passion.