Hi

I recently had solid cherry work tops fitted in my kitchen.They looked
lovely for about one day. I suspect they never had the right seal on
them as they now look really sad and marked. Despite our builders
assurances that with the proper care cherry tops are fine in a kitchen,
we have found almost anything, including water, marks them. I know they
were treated with several layers of oil, but I do not think they ever
had a seal put on them.

We know we will have to completely re-sand them and start again to
remove the marks. But what oil should we use to treat them and most
importantly, is there a tough seal we can use to make them more
durable?

I am aware wooden benches will never be the most durable option but is
there anything we can do to make these expensive benches stop marking
when in contact with water, salt, mild heat etc.
Please help...

Kind regards
Suzie
London

On 21 Mar 2006 04:24:18 -0800, "suzie"
wrote:

Hi

I recently had solid cherry work tops fitted in my kitchen.They looked
lovely for about one day. I suspect they never had the right seal on
them as they now look really sad and marked. Despite our builders
assurances that with the proper care cherry tops are fine in a kitchen,
we have found almost anything, including water, marks them. I know they
were treated with several layers of oil, but I do not think they ever
had a seal put on them.

We know we will have to completely re-sand them and start again to
remove the marks. But what oil should we use to treat them and most
importantly, is there a tough seal we can use to make them more
durable?

I am aware wooden benches will never be the most durable option but is
there anything we can do to make these expensive benches stop marking
when in contact with water, salt, mild heat etc.
Please help...

Kind regards
Suzie
London

It's a big temptation when such things are new, to keep sanding them
back to virgin purity but it's such a lot of hard work and mess. What
I'd do is give them a soapy scrub once in a while, dry them, then give
them a coat of oil (preferably of a type that's safe to eat). What
will happen is that the sort of marks that look so pronounced now will
gradually cover and blend into the whole surface in a pleasingly
intricate pattern of shades and tones. See it as the development of a
beautiful and unique wood surface. Once these things escape from the
magazine page they develop a life of their own :-)
--
Regards,
Mike Halmarack

Drop the EGG to email me.