Justin wrote in message ...
My 4 month old new 40mm solid beech worktops have started to split in a
couple of locations all in the same general area.

It is close to a 90 degree joint in the woktop (they only ovelap 100mm),
and
what appears to have happened is the 90 degree section has shrunk along its
length (above dishwasher, so gets warm), and dragged the other worktop
withit, until it wouldn't move anyfurther, and then started to split.

The splits are along the joints of the staves, the worst is 5" long approx
1mm wide at worst. The other 2 are quite fine but noticeable.

I have a choice, remove the dishwasher and slacken off the worktop bolt
which joints the 2 worktops at 90 degrees, and see if they go back
naturally. The problem here is the joint is also glued so releasing the
bolt
may have no affect.

The other choice is to monitor the splits to make sure they dont get any
worse (I am assuming most of the shrinkage has now been taken up) and then
fill them, resand and then oil.

I was thinking about mixing pva with sanding dust from an off cut, filling
the splits, sanding then re oiling, or mixing the dust with the worktop oil
(good cour match?) allowing to set slightly then filling etc. Last choice
would be propiertary filling kit but I'm dubious about getting a good
colour
match.

Any ideas/experiences?

thanks

Justin
Wood generally shrinks across the width, with the length staying the same.
Also, it's unlikely to have been affected by a local hot spot. It tends to
acclimatise to the average conditions in the room assuming a normal
circulation of air.
Sounds like the wood wasn't sufficiently dry, which is always a risk. Large
batches are dried to an average moisture content, and nobody can predict
which bits will play up.
All you can say is that it has probably settled down now and if you fill the
cracks it won't move any further. That said, winter is coming and those
cold, crisp days create the driest indoor conditions of the year.
I find plastic wood the easiest to colour match.