Countertop??

[fireflyinva]

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]

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]

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]

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]

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]

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]

Looks great, love the counter top!

[Swanny]

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

[Foiled Again]

Originally Posted by Sneakinup

I pulled the old laminate off of my countertop, repaired the few cracked and split areas towards the back, and put new laminate on it. The laminate came right off without a problem, and of course the countertop fit back in perfectly, as did the sink and stove. It is worth the try to see if it will come off before building a new one. JMO

Just wanted to say how much I like the look of your kitchen. The clean white looks fab and very up to date, yet it has the best features of the older units too. I'm on the track of a '71 overlander right now. Hope you wouldn't mind if I borrowed SOME of your ideas.

Tin Lizzie

[Maya]

Is the wood edging dimensional wood or just edge banding which is a thin wood veneer?
If it's edge banding and the existing laminate is in good condition, I'd just go over the top with your new laminate and pick up a wider roll of edge band from a plywood supplier.