Kitchen Worktop Opening. Help!

[attractivebrunette]

My kitchen worktop is 'opening' up. Why is it doing this? I oiled it about one and a half years ago. Does it need to be done every 6 months or something? What can I do to close them up again? Re-oil it?

Also, there appears to be water damage in places where water collects near the tap. Are these black marks water damage? Anyone know what I can do to stop this happening?

Also, I want to change the sink and put a new one in. What do I need to glue it down into the hole. No nails glue? And what should I seal it with..ordinary silicon sealant? Any tips how I can do it so its nice?

Untitled

• attractivebrunette
• 4 Jul 2008
• 1

Untitled

• attractivebrunette
• 4 Jul 2008
• 1

Untitled

• attractivebrunette
• 4 Jul 2008
• 1

 

[andy2306]

yeah you should have oiled it more often, every month for first 6 months then every 3 months........... your solution is go and but a new one as you wont be able to get the gaps to close!!!!

laminate or granite next time i feel!

 

[attractivebrunette]

Every month!? Arse. That's a lot of oiling. So if I carry on oiling regularly will the gaps stop opening any more? Or will they continue to open because they've already started? And what is it that makes them open in the first place? Water?

 

[Symptoms]

ab - the reason the timber is splitting along the glue lines is because the water swells the timber and the resulting tension causes the glue to fail; properly oiled w/tops minimise this as the water can't soak in. The black marks are also caused by water 'sitting' on the surface.

There might be a fix but it does depend on how long the splits are. If they are short (local to the sink) replace the round sink with a bigger, rectangular one instead of a round replacement thus covering the damage. If you want to keep to a round shape it might (but only might)be possible, working with the sink removed, to draw the slats together with clamps and fix with stainless steel screws (remember you're working inside the sink cut-out so won't see the screws). For ease I'd do this with the w/t removed but it might be possible in situ. The black marks could be scraped out with a cabinet scraper and the whole w/t sanded. Re-oil really regularly; it's no big deal to do this - keep a small bottle of the oil in a kitchen cupboard and give it a quick 'once over' (a couple of minutes).