Idea for kitchen worktop, will it work?

[Jarveye]

As i am not a professional joiner and dont have some of the tools i thought needed like a biscuit jointer etc, i was keen to use these tongue and groove planks, and also as they are the perfect dimensions and wouldnt take much finishing, so i think scaffolding boards might not be as easy for me to use.

Im a bit dissapointed that everyone seems to think using these boards would be so dangerous, I really thought that having them sanded, stained and oiled or varnished, would make them fairly safe - like i said no food should be prepared directly on the surface anyway and certaianly no chopping, and if the chemicals are as dangerous as you make out it makes me worried about anyone with wooden floors who have children or pets...

If i forget oil and use a couple of coats of matte varnish maybe even yacht varnish or something fairly robust, would this sway anyone into thinking im not going to poison everyone by using these as a worktop?

I have to respect your expertise and take your advice and avoid this now, unless anyone wants to step up and put my mind at ease?

 

[geraldthehamster]

Can we rewind, and establish what these "old style treated floorboards" are?

Are they:

Old reclaimed boards (would most likely have nail holes)
New boards, resawn from old beams
Completely new boards

?

I'm far from an expert, but wouldn't expect to see woodworm treatment on completely new boards. You use woodworm treatment where you have woodworm.

Cheers
Richard

 

[ladylola]

I've seen and used protomised t&g and reclaimed boards retro treated with both water and oil based products . Treating for both woodworm and for fire retardant is less common in my experience but that's not to say it can't or isn't done.
I'd agree with Richard , have a word with the suppliers to see what has been done with the boards. They should by law have a product data sheet for anything used.
Perhaps "so dangerous" is a bit of an over statement. It's more of a case of erring on the side of caution and reducing the admittedly small risk. You won't actually poison anyone as such it's more the accumulative effect of some chemicals that could have the possibility of causing harm over a longer term. Hope you don't think I was trying to be deliberately awkward .
I'm not an expert on this but if you were to go ahead then maybe a lacquer might be an option. It can be layered and in my experience can be much harder wearing than varnishes with I think a better finish .

 

[Jarveye]

Ok sorry for the confusion regarding the type of boards, by old style i simply mean the old size.. they are brand new floorboards from the lumber yard.

i went back and asked for more details about the treatment, as i already did this but got no helpful details or specifics last time, this time the guy was more helpful, they are indoor floorboards and are treated with a 'protomiser' for indoor use, this guy i spoke to didnt seem to think it would bemuch of a problem if they were coated with something to create a barrier

edit: just searched online for protomiser but cant find anything, did i mis-heard him? any idea what he meant buy this?

 

[ladylola]

I would think he is referring to protomised timber which has gone through a pressure vessel to force the preservative into the timber commonly called protim .As has been said it seems odd that they don't have untreated t&g as that is more common to find internally , treated stuff is usually used in more structural situations . I'm lead to believe sarking boards are common in Scotland so it's possible they are stocked for that.

http://217.199.187.59/glenavontimbe...-guide-to-Protim-E406-preserved-wood-0813.pdf

http://www.ptgtreatments.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Low-Pressure-Treated-Timber-User-Guide.pdf
This link refers to not using the timber where it may come into direct or indirect contact with drinking water although what exactly is indirect contact and the level of risk involved isn't made clear.
I do hope you get your kitchen sorted to your satisfaction and I apologise if I've caused undue concern , I was simply voicing my worries.

 

[Jarveye]

thats it yeah thanks, and no need to appologise, the reason i asked was for your opinions, and you gave good advice, especially given i didnt give good details of the chemicals etc, still not 100% how safe it is, but yes 2 of lumber yards we have here seem to have only the treated ones, the one i was at today had 3 lengths of untreated ones, but thats not much use to me as i need more than that, and they didnt seem to indicate they were getting more in anytime soon.


theres one more place ill try tomorrow and if they dont have the untreated ones im going to take a chance and go for the treated ones i think.

thanks for all your help folks!