A blister near her Pfister!

[Dale Thompson]

My daughter has about a 1 1/2" (dia.) blister in the formica right next to her kitchen sink. It is probably due to water sneaking past the sink caulking. My best suggestion was to replace the house but, since it is only two years old, my son-in-law sort of ignored my genius. :rolleyes: Any thoughts? ;)

Dale T.

[Joe Mioux]

I bet Einstein's son-in-law probably ignored some of ol' Albert's "better" ideas as well......so Dale, don't feel bad.

[Tom LaRussa]

My best suggestion was to replace the house but ... my son-in-law sort of ignored my genius. :rolleyes: Any thoughts? ;) Dale T.
Dale,

Obviously, you're SIL is too intimidated by your superior knowledge and wisdom to go along with anything you suggest. :rolleyes:

For the sake of family peace I think you should just back off and let the "kids" handle it on their own. ;)

Sooner or later the puppy will come to the alpha male for help. When he does, try to be magnanimous. We were all young once, after all. :cool:

HTH,

Tom

[Bruce Shiverdecker]

You might want to double check with your local DIY, but I believe that if you take an iron on medium heat, place a towel between the iron and the counter, move the iron around , pressing down very hard, then put a very heavy weight on the spot. That should reactivate the cement and soften the top enough to pull back down.

BTW, I am NOT available to be the heavy weight!

Good luck,

Bruce

[Dale Thompson]

I bet Einstein's son-in-law probably ignored some of ol' Albert's "better" ideas as well......so Dale, don't feel bad.

Joe,
I don't feel bad. I'm too old to have feelings. :o I just assume the position and get the gruesome assignments of finishing up the stuff overlooked by the carpenters, plumbers, electricians and drywallers. I'm further humiliated by having to finish their basement with a bedroom, a scrapbooking room, a playroom, an office and a rec room. This is sandwiched between making toys for the 14+ month old grandson and the soon-to-be-born grand?.

Did Sinatra say something like, "It ain't a good life - but it's my life". Life ain't easy for a boy named Dale! ;) :)

Dale T.

[Dale Thompson]

Dale,

Obviously, you're SIL is too intimidated by your superior knowledge and wisdom to go along with anything you suggest. :rolleyes:

For the sake of family peace I think you should just back off and let the "kids" handle it on their own. ;)

Sooner or later the puppy will come to the alpha male for help. When he does, try to be magnanimous. We were all young once, after all. :cool:

HTH,

Tom

Tom,
MAGNANIMOUS? Does that mean that I have to buy a GUN? Like in the movies where they use those .357 MAGNANIMOUS guns to get the SILs? :cool:

What happens if I am an Omega male? :o Don't answer that - PLEASE!

Dale T.

[Dale Thompson]

You might want to double check with your local DIY, but I believe that if you take an iron on medium heat, place a towel between the iron and the counter, move the iron around , pressing down very hard, then put a very heavy weight on the spot. That should reactivate the cement and soften the top enough to pull back down.

BTW, I am NOT available to be the heavy weight!

Good luck,

Bruce

Bruce,
Thanks for the idea. I'll check it out. Don't worry about being the heavyweight. I also serve in that capacity! :(

Dale T.

[Gary Max]

You might even consider-----stopping the water leak first-------give it some time to dry before you try anything-----heating to glue will work best if it takes the first try.

[Wes Bischel]

Gary is on the right track - stop the leaking first - then fix the counter. Naturally this requires removing the sink. :( Hopefully the builder used plumbers putty and not caulk. (easier to remove and to fix)

Good luck,
Wes

PS - did the house come with a warranty? Many do come with one these days. Just a thought.

[Steve Clardy]

Hey Dale. How close is this blister? Right next to the rim?

Steve

[Chris Padilla]

Hey Peshy,

Are you sure the blister is bad?? Perhaps the rest of the house sunk and the "blister" is the only thing left of what once what a nice, level house. I think replacing the whole house is too much effort...the blister is fine...just replace everything around it. :)

[Dale Thompson]

Gary and Wes,
The leak is fixed. It was a seal leak on one of those pull-out faucet heads. The head was replaced under warranty. It sounds like the warranty on the house was only one year.

Steve,
The blister starts right about at the sink/counter interface.

Chris,
Great Idea! It should be a real money saver also. I'll just have to rent a sky-hook to suspend the "blister" until the other minor details are dealt with. :)
I TOLD them not be build on quicksand!!

Dale T.

[Steve Clardy]

Dale. IF the iron trick doesn't work, pull the sink. Make sure it's dry under the blister. If not, dig out the hair dryer, and dry away for a while, between the lamanite and substrate, [usually particle board]. Go get you a can of 3M Hi-Strength spray adhesive, #90. About 15.00 per can.
Expensive, but cheaper than a new countertop.:eek:
This can be had at a cabinet supply co. if you can't find it at the borg.
Set the spray on medium, Raise the blister, spray it good under it, leave it up for 2 or 3 minutes, then press it down. Have a SMOOTH block of wood handy to lay on it and use a hammer on it to set the glue.
Hammer mode is on --GENTLE--like driving a small nail.

Steve:)

[Dale Thompson]

Dale. IF the iron trick doesn't work, pull the sink. Make sure it's dry under the blister. If not, dig out the hair dryer, and dry away for a while, between the lamanite and substrate, [usually particle board]. Go get you a can of 3M Hi-Strength spray adhesive, #90. About 15.00 per can.
Expensive, but cheaper than a new countertop.:eek:
This can be had at a cabinet supply co. if you can't find it at the borg.
Set the spray on medium, Raise the blister, spray it good under it, leave it up for 2 or 3 minutes, then press it down. Have a SMOOTH block of wood handy to lay on it and use a hammer on it to set the glue.
Hammer mode is on --GENTLE--like driving a small nail.

Steve:)


Steve,
Thanks much. If the iron doesn't work, I'll sure give it a try. Though expensive, it sounds like that #90 stuff would be handy to have around for the other things that I botch up also. Thanks again! :)

Dale T.

[Steve Clardy]

Steve,
Thanks much. If the iron doesn't work, I'll sure give it a try. Though expensive, it sounds like that #90 stuff would be handy to have around for the other things that I botch up also. Thanks again! :)

Dale T.
One more for the road. If you do have to use the #90, be sure to remove the nozzle and soak it in mineral spirits and blow the hole out. Cause this stuff sets up. If you pull my tricks and forget about cleaning the nozzle, well, just file it under #13 for the rest of the can.:eek:

[Glen Smith]

If pressing the 'mica back down won't work and injecting glue is a bust, there is another possible alternativeYou can rout out a recess in the counter and inlay a square of tile or solid surface material. Tile makes a great hot plate depending on the size of the tile and pot. Inlaid solid surface would give you a surface that would hold up to high heat as well as a place to use a knife.

Seal it well with a good silicon caulk, and now the bubble has become a custom design feature that can add function as well as being decorative. Or you could replace the countertops...

Glen

[Michael Cody]

My daughter has about a 1 1/2" (dia.) blister in the Formica right next to her kitchen sink. It is probably due to water sneaking past the sink caulking. My best suggestion was to replace the house but, since it is only two years old, my son-in-law sort of ignored my genius. :rolleyes: Any thoughts? ;)

Dale T.

Glad I have all boys.. but since the SIL was smart enough to let your daughter trap him, he's got you doing all the finish work on his house and falling all over yourself making/doing things for the grandchildren -- maybe he ain't that mentally challenged after all .. if you get my drift??

The fixes here are all the sames one I thought of on counter top .. me I have had success with the iron method on a couple of occasions, but I had to point out the seeming brilliance of your SIL --- in particular since I am an SIL myself and the best times I had with my in-laws, while they were nearby, was to get them to babysit or work on my house/cars for me ... it's a good life if you can swing it!

You know how it goes, SIL says in a respectful voice:"I am just so busy working to support "insert daughters name" and the grandkids, is there a chance you can give me a hand on this "insert task"" .... :D

[Dale Thompson]

Glenn,
Your idea sounds interesting. maybe I could use "Rudy" Padilla's hand for the hot pad "insert". :D

Michael,
Do I detect a slight indication that you are deflecting the "mentally challenged" designation away from my SIL (you guys must stick together) and toward moi? This is no threat but I do have powerful friends in the much feared RFODPCESEOP. If you spend all of your time at SIL plotting meetings, you may not recognize that as the Royal Fraternal Order of Defenders of Political Correctness and Enhancers of the Self-Esteem of Old People. Sleep well, Michael. :eek: :eek:

Dale T.