"jbclem" writes:

Before you dive into life at Lumber Liquidators, consider looking at Ikea
countertops. They have an 8 ft (birch or beech) one for about $80-90.
Here in LA they don't have them in stock, you have to order and wait 10
days, but I asked for opinions on the Do it Yourself web site and two
persons who had them were very happy with them. I'm sure for that price
they won't be the highest quality, but they don't look bad in photos.
They apparently are raw wood so you can coat them with mineral oil.

I bought one of the IKEA wood countertops for less than $100 for a work
surface in my shop. I got the 25" x 96" x 1 1/8" thick version. I
decided not to pay almost double for the thicker one.

The quality is reasonable, but I'm not sure if I would put it in a kitchen
or not. It comes with a single coat of oil. You will need to pujt on
more oil for a good finish.

If I was doing a workbench top, I would get the thicker one.

Brian Elfert