Kitchen Bench tops

Hi there

I see a lot of kitchens in my travels :D but the least favourite are the polished laminate tops, which may be what you're referring to here- basically laminate with a high sheen finish. Unfortunately, they're not low maintenance and any fine scratches tend to show up very easily which does spoil the look. I'd pick normal laminate or a man-made stone product over this type of finish.
 
what is the in style now? corian/caesar stone or granites? watching those UK home shows on foxtel suggests they think granite is old hat over there.
 
I am 99% sure this is what we have in our ppor bathroom. We were told it was quite tough against scratches however we picked up 2 scratches on it before the bathroom reno was even finished. 14 months later and there is already a few more and thats without even being particularly tough on it.
 
I love the full stainless benchtops. My rental has one but it is an old style. Think of your standard 2 bowl stainless sink with 1 meter extentions either end.great for durability on a rental but a bit old fashioned. The ones i like have an almost brushed aluminium look and about 3inch thick on counter edge and smooth all over.:cool:
 
Hot right now are glass benchtops!
They can come in any colour as you paint underneath.
I'm going to do my kitchen with this.... I think it's a bit more expensive than man-made stone, though.
 
Hot right now are glass benchtops!
They can come in any colour as you paint underneath.
I'm going to do my kitchen with this.... I think it's a bit more expensive than man-made stone, though.

Bunnings have this product that you can use as back-splashes I wonder if you could use it on benchtops - its acrylic not glass so probably more durable
 
An update: I visited the showroom today and was quite pleased with the look of the Laminex Diamondgloss products but am now investigating using Laminex Freestyle. A stone look-a-like,,much more durable but also more expensive..looks great though, Has anyone used it?

Thanks.
 
We have shiny laminex benchtops in a brown granite pattern and they are great, haven't picked up any damage at all. Very easy to clean too. We have a matt finish on the cupboard fronts and the slight rough finish makes them a pain to clean. They always end up with chocolate on them at about 2 foot off the ground ...

Before anyone screams about matt doors, our cupboard fronts are grooved like matchboard and look like wood, very country. Would look a bit dumb having that effect in a shiny finish.
 
Anybody have any experience with Laminex Diamond Gloss for a kitchen bench top in a PPOR?

Thanks for any advice.

You will find that the laminate products (whether they be Laminex or the other brands) will be rated as suitable or otherwise for benchtops. This may be a good starting point - if the manufacturer doesn't think it's a good idea it may be wise advice.
 
"Diamond Gloss" is a new-ish finish and is supposedly quite hard wearing. It is not the same as the old gloss finish laminex, which does scratch like a ba$tard.
I think that the Freestyle product is resin-based like a Corian type product & thus would be considered better wearing. I think I heard that it's even more expensive than Corian, though. :eek:

As for what is currently cutting edge, I'm guessing zinc counters or concrete. If it suits the style of property, a custom made concrete top looks great and is usually cheaper to have made than either real stone or composite stone. Composite stone, IMHO, is to the noughties what laminate was to the 1960s. Everything that's "in" will date.
 
Don't know if you're planning on replacing the benchtop but if you are, and if you're on a tight budget, why not check out polished porcelain floor tiles. I just finished a granny flat and put them on the benchtop.

Benchtops are normally 600mm deep so by using 600mm tiles you avoid having any horizontal joints, only vertical (i.e. no side to side joints, only front to back). They come in a good range of colours, mine is black, waterproof when installed correctly, easy to clean, very tough (Hey they get used on floors right) and looks sensational.

Almost as good as a real stone top for the cost of laminex. Long thin pieces (about 25mm x 600mm) can be used to trim the front (get a high pressure water jet cutter to slice a tile or two into 25mm pieces for about $40 - the same people who sell you the marble or granite). When its all installed and grouted, sharp edges on the front can be easily polished round with wet & dry paper to prevent cuts etc.

Cheers

Pedro
 
Back
Top