One of our callers managed to create a bad stain in a plastic laminate counter top by leaving a strong cleaner in place while answering the telephone. I checked with the laminate manufacturers and they said that there was no way to get something like that out. Moral, don't answer the telephone ...
One way to minimize chipping when cutting melamine with a circular saw is to turn it over so that the good side is down, as that side will chip the least. On the top side, where the saw blade comes up through the panel, score your cut line deeply with a knife first and then cut just barely away ...
A viewer asked the question, can I replace the plastic surface on my kitchen counter?If there are curves and bends, like a round front edge or a continuous splashback, either forget it, or cut off the curves. With home workshop equipment you won't manage to mold the new plastic laminate to th...
For years we have had pre-glued edging tape (both plastic and real wood.) With large veneers you added your own glue. Now you can find large sheets of pre-glued heat-activated real wood veneers called CEDAN Tenderized Wood Veneer Sheets. Do they work? Yes, but not as easily as you might li...
There is really no way to repair a bad burn in a plastic laminate countertop, but you can still save the counter. In this segment I used a plunging router to cut out a very flat hole in the counter, just the right size to put a cutting board right where the burn was. Don't forget to careful...
Air-change ventilation systems exist that take stale air out and bring fresh air in so as to not rely on cold air drafts for the entry of fresh air to the house. They are simply a box with two fans. In a few of the warm spots of Canada these are legitimate systems on their own. In most of Canada ...
It may surprise you to hear that despite silicone sealants and the like, neither the grout between ceramic tiles nor the tiles themselves are actually moisture or vapour proof. Wherever water can sit on a tiled surface, or steam can soak into grout, the wood below can be destroyed by moisture see...
Peter in Selkirk, Manitoba is trying to fit his countertop flush to a wall that is not perfectly flat.
If you look closely at the back splash part of formed countertops you will notice that they have an "L" shaped lip right up on top. This gives a bit of a hollow space behind the back splash. Yo...
Butcher blocks are either not finished at all, or are finished with oil.
There exist special 'Salad Bowl' oils that work well for butcher blocks, in that they are totally non-toxic, but they can be difficult to locate.
Probably the easiest finish is mineral oil from the drug store. The key is t...
Epoxy is the most water resistant of all grouts and is probably one of the most durable, making it a good grout for a ceramic tile kitchen counter top where you will be scrubbing it clean all the time. But there are some tips for working with it.
It comes as a kit with three pouches: the A and B...
