Laminate counter tops.

[C Scott McDonald]

Need some help on some plain jane formica kitchen counter tops.

Here is my plan.

Use 3/4 particle board for the top.

Rip some 2" strips of particle board to go around the edges on the bottom of the top.

I ordered sheets of laminate big enough to not have to splice the laminate together.

I will have to connect a couple of sheets together as i can't find anything other then 8' particle board. My plan is to use some biscuts and lue and clamp the boards together.l

I am going to use bevel or ogee edge from bevel-edge.com at the edge treament.

What is the best way to clean up the laminate on inside corners? File it down? The a contact cement that is the best for this?

Am i missing any thing important?

Thanks,
Scott

[Jerome Stanek]

At the seams we use a plywood splice on the bottom

[Jeff Duncan]

If you have laminate long enough to not use a splice you may want to make a few more phone calls and find longer substrate to go with it. It's out there, just may need a little persistence to find it;)

I'm not sure about the edges your talking about? Are you using a hardwood edge or something else applied?

Generally speaking anywhere you have laminate to laminate edges your going to want to file a bit. It's tricky to get it just right without burning though so I recommend making up a test piece to play with first. Also remember that with laminate you only have one shot to get it right. Whenever I do something tricky I'll wait until the glue sets up, then lay down sticks on the top of the substrate, put your laminate on top of the sticks, and start removing one stick at a time and pushing the laminate down. Then use your J-roller to roll it out completely.

good luck,
JeffD

[Kevin Presutti]

Check with a quality lumber yard or building supply, you should be able to get core board as opposed to particle board for your substrate. It is much denser and should be cut to the lengh you require eliminating the hassle of jointing the top together. You should be able to get it cut over sized so you can rip it down for the front edge and ends. The same goes for the laminate, have it cut to the length and width you need so you can rip and edgeband with no seams. Saving you build time. You could even order the board long enough so as to have enough cut off left for the bridging underneath. This will make the counter top much sturdier and better a quaility job.

Best of luck!

Kevin

[Jim Andrew]

A cabinet supplier should have the 12' sheets. Get mine from Liberty Hardwoods in KC. And go with a wider strip around the edges, so you have enough to screw through your corner blocks in your cabinets to anchor the top on.

[C Scott McDonald]

Thanks for the input.

The problem is the cabinet run is 10'3". I don't have any method of transporting 12' sheets of Particle board.

This is the edge I was going to use.

http://www.bevel-edge.com/home/bev/smartlist_1354/ogee_laminate_countertop_trim.html

Scott

[cecil rolfe]

That edge requires a heat forming machine. Not possible in home shop.

[Tom Ewell]

That edge requires a heat forming machine. Not possible in home shop.
Yer right but if you actually went to the link and read you'd found out that the company does the heat forming and supplies the "nosing" in strips to be applied to the squared edge of a counter top during fabrication.... which is possible in the home shop.

[Jim Andrew]

The shop I used to work used kune bevel edge. spelling? I refused to put it on cause I just can't see well enough any more. But it makes a cool edge, no laminate edges show. And we would miter the corners, even on laminate edges. Younger guy, not me. When I could see, I could make joints that were air tight, but no more.

[Peter Kelly]

You might look into the Wilsonart decorative edge system (http://www.countertop.com/edges/). PDF fabrication manual: http://goo.gl/837ps
Their integrated sinks for laminate tops are pretty nice too: http://goo.gl/cVTPB

[Jeff Duncan]

That's an interesting edge but not sure how the seam is going to clean up? Also will it hold up over time?

JeffD

[Peter Kelly]

It does take a bit of practice to get good at installing the bevel edge system. If you follow the instructions in that Wilsonart guide it'll come out looking decent. I've imade lots of them and never had a problem.

Then again laminate tops are a lot trickier to pull off well then you'd think, especially on a complex one. Particleboard and HPL can be absolutely unforgiving.

[Jeff Duncan]

Yeah I thought tops were tricky....until I had to build and laminate a bar in the shape of a spade! Let me tell you laminate tops are a piece of cake compared to laying down 40" x 12' long sheets of wood grain on a curved form, and especially the part where you have to butt the next sheet into it:eek:

Yeah I don't mind avoiding laminate whenever possible;)

JeffD

[J. Ed taylor]

I am in the process of rebuilding my kitchen counter tops. I read a book by Herrick Kimball "Making Plastic-Laminate Countertops" before tackling the job. I opted to build in place with 3/4" MDF. The sheets were 49" wide so I could rip and get two runs out of each sheet (using 1x2 pine edging).

My counters at the long side are 91" to first corner 152" to next corner then a 91" bar. By building in place I used cleats and glue underneath to join the pieces and screwed everything down with drywall screws as I went.

To get clean edges for joining formica I clamped it between boards and used the router w/trim bit. I was able to seam the formica under the cooktop for one seam and about an inch in from the bar for the other. Kimball recommends 3/8" radius for inside corners so I left the radius of my router trim bit.

I am using the BevelEdge OG edging and it's a bit tricky to keep the top edge aligned.I am trying C-clamps with a spacer at the bottom to clear the bottom of the OG. I let the pad of the clamp overhang the countertop just enough to serve as a stop for the knife edge of the OG. For the inside corners I have to gently relieve the knife edge of the OG to fit under that 3/8" radius.

[Lloyd McKinlay]

for edge treatment is a product called Gem Lock. It uses your laminate pattern combined with solid surface edges. Now available in 12' lengths, relatively easy to install and looks great.

[J. Ed taylor]

I used Formica 180FX in 3466 Antique Mascarello and it doesn't show in the Gem Lock stock list. However, Gem Lock looks like great product, any idea of cost per stick?

[Lloyd McKinlay]

I used Formica 180FX in 3466 Antique Mascarello and it doesn't show in the Gem Lock stock list. However, Gem Lock looks like great product, any idea of cost per stick?

One of the benefits of the contrasting color of the solid surface will tend to conceal any minor imperfection when you flush cut the counter top edge, especially if the solid surface is a dark variety. They were suppliers when I was in business so I only vaguely remember wholesale prices, which I'm certain have increased. Not cheap, but it really does look good. I still have several sticks (mistake when we ordered) that I will use when I finally redo the laundry room.

Give them a call, they were always very helpful with any questions we had. Let us know what you decide.

[J. Ed taylor]

I went with BevelEdge ogee. Here's the final result:

[Bill White]

I guess it bears asking. Why not just use post-formed tops with an integrated edge of your choice?
Bill

[J. Ed taylor]

I guess it bears asking. Why not just use post-formed tops with an integrated edge of your choice?
BillI don't have those long ugly miters in the corners. I built the substrate in place with glued butt joints and underlying cleats. The formica is butt jointed at inconspicuous places where possible, like under the cooktop. One has to hunt my joints to find them. In addition to the long miters post-formed tops generally have the attached backsplash which makes it a problem if the wall is not straight. I scribed the formica to the wall then used tile backsplash which could follow any wall irregularities.

[Mark W Pugh]

Consider a hardwood edge. Easy to trim after laminate is glued down.

[scott vroom]

Is this counter located in a wet area (i.e., kitchen sink)?

[J. Ed taylor]

Is this counter located in a wet area (i.e., kitchen sink)?My son had one edged in oak (not even laminate over) that held up well (even in sink area). I chose not to use either hardwood or a contrasting edge as that would serve to emphasize that it was laminate.

[keith micinski]

Just to throw this out there,I just finished an investment property and put the same ogee edged counter tops in stock from Lowes. The premade counter top was 10 foot one way and 6 the other with a Pre mitered corner it took a total of 10 minutes to install it and it cost 145 dollars. To by just the sheets of laminate would have cost me more then that. I don't know know how they make those Pre made counters so cheap but it is an incredible value and laminates have come a Long way. I haven't had a single person look at them and think they were anything other then some kind of stone.

[Mel Fulks]

I agree post form is a good value . I have pointedly asked cabinet snobs why a wood top with an up charge for a rounded edge is good,but a laminate top where the rounded edge is less money than a square edge is not good. Never gotten a sensible answer. If you can't admire something because it is reasonably priced, you might run out of money. I have learned from the same guys that they think a 6 foot tv is good and a 2 inch tv is good, but a 19 inch tv is no good.

[J. Ed taylor]

I considered using post-formed tops with some custom cuts, such as cutting off the backsplash so that I could scribe and fit to the wall then adding a tile backsplash. I also considered some special cuts to preserve the edging and use simple 24" butt joints. I think there's some great and economical possibilities there and simple butt joints would be no more noticeable than if in granite. In the end I chose to laminate myself due to my longest run being 152". My wife is more than happy with the near invisible and waterproof joints.