Countertop?? - Page 2

ajjohnsons · 06-03-2005, 08:52 PM

Hi, Just a tip for future projects.If you need to remove old laminate, start on a loose seam with a putty knife or very carefully with a sharp chisel. Pry a small amount up. Fill a small spray bottle with lacqer thinner and begin spraying between the laminate and the substrate. It is possible to get the entire top of in one shot with no damage to subtrate. Be careful with your hands and sharp tools......Good Luck

fireflyinva · 06-04-2005, 04:53 AM

Sneakinup, great looking galley! I see you went with the matte and not shiny laminate--and it looks great!

This is one project I do feel comfortable with. Laminate is so nice and easy--though I have to admit, I never bothered to try to peel off the old stuff. It's just so easy to just cut a new piece of plywood, though I suppose if it's just for a limited space, peeling might be a little easier to get the height match.

Some other random thoughts...I have never had much luck trimming with a dremel (use a router) but I do understand there's a special tool for dremels that may make it work better. Oh, BTW--try using 3M 90 Adhesive--it's awesome stuff! Great for this and you can also use it to glue foam (insulation, cushions) together, too.

I still have to order our laminates. We've decided to go with one of the new retro ones--Virr Varr Blue. However, we don't want everything with a busy patterned laminate, so we are still picking out a coordinate laminate.

Mary

PWRSTRK · 06-04-2005, 08:48 PM

Has anyone ever taken out their original counters and had corian counters made?

fireflyinva · 06-06-2005, 10:22 AM

Its been done, but generally it's avoided, since corian adds considerable weight to your trailer. Also, depending on how vintage you want to go, it may not be desireable. Finally, there's the issue of cost--laminate is pretty darn inexpensive.

Mary

stinkytwinky · 06-08-2005, 01:38 PM

I would like to introduce our countertop here (I started a thread about it). We did our countertop in tiles. You can see a picture in this thread http://www.airforums.com/forum...ad.php?t=16900. We understand this might not work, but wife had already bought the tiles and grout. I hope it lasts because she did a good job of putting the tile in over the new piece of OSB (cheap and so full of glue water has a darn hard time of penetrating).

Rent a wet saw it is much faster and easier. Rent a wet saw it is much easier, and by the way rent the #@!$#@ saw.

Astrodokk · 06-13-2005, 08:36 AM

After reading these posts, and deciding that I don't want to spend alot of time fixing this, I'm thinking of just trying to remove the burned areas and fill with a bondo type stuff like in body shops. Has anyone just repaired these counters rather than torn them out and rebuilt? I suppose whatever the result, it will look better than it does presently. If not, then I may decide to resurface.

fireflyinva · 06-13-2005, 10:22 AM

Astro,

Having done a bit of epoxy work, I would wonder why bother. I think doing all the work--cutting out the bad part, adding epoxy, sanding it down, priming the whole surface, repainting the whole deal--would take a whole lot of time, plus you'd alway have a surface texture issue.

You could make brand new ones in a few hours. White laminate is readily available, even in small sizes, and exceptionally cheap. Trace out the old board, cut the laminate to the same size, glue it down onto a piece of wood smaller than your sinkhole. All it would take is a jigsaw and a couple of clamps.

I suppose it's a question of how you want to spend your time...

Mary

Swanny · 06-14-2005, 08:38 PM

We pulled out our countertop, had a new one created with Wilsonart Laminate for a total cost of $172. I figure my labor and lack of wood working tools made this a fair deal and now I don't have to worry about potential rot issues.

One key point is after inspecting the old countertop, there were areas of weakening in the plywood, so this was a great move on our part. Good luck.

Mitch

Swanny · 06-14-2005, 08:40 PM

We searched for a local dealer on the Formica website. I took the old counter top in as a template and had a new one built for $172. Hey...I figure since I'm not a carpenter and don't have a router, etc, this was money well spent.

Upon inspection of the old counter, this was definitely the best way to go, since the it had several weak points in it.

Mitch

Bob Thompson · 06-14-2005, 10:42 PM

Steve, the old plastic laminate is pretty easy to get up. The contact cement gets brittle and it turns loose fairly easy. Best tool is an old heavy duty butcher knife. With the counter top off, insert the tip of the knife between the plastic laminate and the plywood. Tap the knife butt sharply driving the tip between the laminate and plywood. The Pl. Lam. should pop loose and come right up, but will likely crack and split. Continue until all is removed. Use a palm sander to remove the contact cement around the edge, and gently use a belt sander in the field. You can use lacquer thinner, but I would only use it to do final cleanup.

Enjoy!

smily · 06-15-2005, 05:57 AM

You can always buy a pre-fabbed countertop from Lowes or HD. You can buy enough to do your whole kitchen and some for under 100 dollars. It comes with rolled edges, and backsplash. Simply cut opening for range and sink and screw into place. No glue, no sharp edges, no edge fitting........

As for Corian being undesireable, it has taken me five Airstream purchases to finally get the OEM Corian countertops that were installed by none other than......Airstream!

Corian has been done by several on this forum and I have even seen marble countertops (very sharp!). Do not shy away from any countertop material you desire. Anything is possible.

you can see install of prefab countertop here: http://www.airforums.com/forum...ht=countertops

Swanny · 11-07-2005, 08:40 PM

Hey everyone....I finally got our film developed. Here are the before and after shots of our ugly old formica counter that had been painted white. The photo also had the original stove.

We pulled out the stove, sink, and counter top and had a new formica counter made. I also replaced the stove/range with a 2005 model. Enjoy!

Mitch

balrgn · 11-08-2005, 04:06 AM

Looks great, love the counter top!

Swanny · 11-08-2005, 10:59 AM

Again I take my 'hat-off' to all of the great folks on this forum. This whole aluminum thing is becoming addictive. More photos to follow!

Mitch