Kitchen Refurb

[Wendyf]

Is it Rustin's Plastic Coating Sue? LINK
By the way, your wall tiles look wonderful!

[Big Kev]

Kev I am not sure. You may be able to pre treat .

We sanded the surface and then a light sant between coats. You can re apply at any time again with a light sand. The hardest part was to get a smooth surface with no ripples. It works brilliantly, even round the sink, which in fact is where this bit of work top us. I suggest you contact the manufacturers. The underside was treated as well so that no damp would seep into the bottom side.

Thanks Sue, it's the bit around the sink that needs frequently oiling. I'll ask the question on their website.

[Sue]

Yes, my daughter had oiled wood surfaces and round the sink has to be frequently treated, it also marks if really wet hot things are put down on it

[Stanley]

I know that heavy Formica type work surfaces are losing favour these days but the best grades were (and still are) very resistant to wear. No problems round a properly fitted sink either..... I remember the old wooden draining boards and the butler's sink..... They were definitely not hygienic! My sink is part of the complete kitchen I took out of Susan's house when it was going to be repossessed. It was an expensive one and the sink is German made by Franke. It's over 30 years old and is as good as the day it was made. Much heavier gauge metal than some of the modern ones. I looked on the Web and they are still high end providers.

[Wendyf]

We won't need the handle template after all Ian, Col has made one up. Thanks anyway!

[Sue]

When we fitted the kitchen and conservatory in January we had a mock wood worktop in the conservatory as wood would bleach in there. My washer and drier are underneath and I have numerous plants on top. The Formica one we took out of the kitchen was badly marked. This resin treated wood surface seems to show few marks. I much prefer its appearance, indeed, no comparison to the one in the conservatory.

[Wendyf]

I was raised on Formica & Warerite as my Dad's job from 1954 till he retired involved selling it and manufacturing worktops, kitchen units and anything else that could possibly be made using it! I played with samples strung on chains as a young child and got to know at an early age how to file a nice smooth edge on a place mat....in fact the names of the early patterns are burned into my brain! Our house had rooms lined with it and anything that stayed still long enough had a Formica top put on it. As a teenager and later as a student I worked in the factory during school holidays finishing table tops and worktops or bashing in that plastic edging strip. Loved every minute of it, and it gave my family a good life but now I want to be laminate free.....

[Sue]

Ha ha Wendy, love it. I used to play with those Formica pieces on chains as well as Dad brought them home when he was planning the new decor of the pubs he managed in the North East

[Wendyf]

I wonder if he bought it from Arnold Lavers? They had customers all over the north of England. Our family holidays were always half work as Dad visited the shipyards in the north east and Scotland.

[Stanley]

One funny bit of information I picked up in my travels was that smooth black formi9ca was a more hygienic surface than the white. Johnsons insisted that all packing table surfaces should be covered using black.

[Sue]

I wonder Wendy. He worked for Vaux breweries and thus was based in Sunderland. We lived in Chester le Street.
That's interesting about the black surfaces Stanley. I never came across that when I was a working bacteriologist.

[Wendyf]

Ian, if only Colin had listened to me when I told him about your drawer trouble.....

[PanBiker]

Don't tell me he has fallen into the same trap Wendy.

[Wendyf]

Very similar! The wide pan drawers.....it was all pre drilled but he got them upside down....I left him tearing his hair out and talking about having to dismantle the unit etc etc. By the time I returned to the scene he had decided to leave it alone and drill new holes. All is well now.

[PanBiker]

That's the one, the only units where the left and right actually matters. how wide is it Wendy? I have two a 500 x 3 drawer and an 800 x 2 drawer in the island, we love them, pans and plastics sorted and easy access, made a huge difference to the kitchen.

[Stanley]

Sue, I can't say whether it is true or not but the man I did the job for was subcontracting work from Johnsons and he told me they insisted on the black Formica tops for all surfaces the dressings touched. You'd think they had a reason......

[Sue]

I love our big drawers too, they are under the hob. Concealed in the top one is a huge cutlery tray where we have all our knives and all those little gadget things that you can't do without. Anyway, back to the drawers. In the top one I keep all manner of pasta, rice, cheese biscuits. The second one has all my baking stuff , bowls and jugs. In fact I gave a little plastic basket in there which contains pastry cutters, baking beads, pastry brushes and other small bits and pieces.So useful. My plastics wouldn't fit in because of the concealed cutlery drawer, which meant I could not stack them. I have a lovely pan rack from Argos for my pans. It was only £14 and stores them neatly and handily

I can honestly say I like my big drawers !

[Sue]

Stanley, I wonder if it was because they could be seen easily.

[Wendyf]

I wonder if black Formica came with a high gloss finish, while other colours had a more matt finish?

They are the 800mm pan drawers Ian, I'm looking forward to testing them out.
We chose fancy painted wood doors which sit inside a frame to give the impression of a solid wood kitchen. The time the packs spent stored in the barn has had an effect and despite them having been inside for the last few months a lot of the framing has gone slightly out of true. We have no alternative but to use them, but Colin may try to tidy them up at a later date...we just need to press on and get it finished now. i think it gives it an even more rustic, hand built look!! Photos later.

[Stanley]

Col will prevail! Tell him I have complete confidence in him! I don't think the surface finish came into it Wendy, it was the colour.

[Big Kev]

I wonder if black Formica came with a high gloss finish, while other colours had a more matt finish?

They are the 800mm pan drawers Ian, I'm looking forward to testing them out.
We chose fancy painted wood doors which sit inside a frame to give the impression of a solid wood kitchen. The time the packs spent stored in the barn has had an effect and despite them having been inside for the last few months a lot of the framing has gone slightly out of true. We have no alternative but to use them, but Colin may try to tidy them up at a later date...we just need to press on and get it finished now. i think it gives it an even more rustic, hand built look!! Photos later.

I like the idea of rustic, looking forward to pictures.

[Stanley]

Yes we need pics.... How are the lads?

[Wendyf]

Pictures soon...too much work in progress at the moment.
Thanks for asking about the boys Stanley, you may have gathered from my silence that I'm not too optimistic about Dennis's chance of recovery. His feet are still sore despite taking painkillers, so he is still confined to his stable. We have been building up the medication to treat his Cushings and he is now on the full dose, so there is hope that once that starts to take effect the laminitis will ease off. One problem is that he has started to sniff out the painkillers in his food and is refusing to eat it. He seems quite alert, interested and cheerful though.

[Wendyf]

I've taken a picture anyway...
The cupboards are nearly finished, just a side panel to fit to the wall unit on the left and twiddly bits to go on top and round the open shelves. We have tiled behind the hob, but the rest is going to be painted mdf panels...all painted and ready to fit, they have been drying overnight propped up against the wall. The worktop is covered with cardboard at the moment.

[PanBiker]

Coming together nicely Wendy.