Kitchen worktops

A friend who had a lovely new kitchen fitted a couple of years ago has something called Duropal fitted. Didn't like to ask the cost, but have sent for a few samples.

While our house is sorted we're living in rented accommodation and the big-standard laminate fitted here is so easy to clean and looks pretty good

Any I over thinking this?

Very interesting thread. I am in the process of choosing a new kitchen for the property I will be moving into early next year, and am totally baffled by all the various options available. Interesting and helpful to hear your ideas on work tops, I shall bear them in mind.

Watching with interest as we have JUST ordered a new kitchen with wood effect laminate - seems I have chosen well !

The cupboards are all a rich cream shaker style, so the tabby cat colours contrast well.

No idea what corian is! our last house had wood, which marked and needed oiling, I think we have some kind of laminate here ( just been to check) in a tabby cat fur kind of colours, it hasn't marked in the eight years we have been here, and I just wipe it over.Brilliant.

I like the sound of speckled turquoise tanith, I've got very dark grey porcelain floor tiles (and simply hideous green and gold wall tiles inherited not chosen!) so.......
<wanders off to Google new kitchens>

Mines a laminate in a speckled turquoise colour and goes with the tiles its been in probably 10yrs but I have a thick teak breadboard and many cutting boards which I always use , the only tiny mark is by the sink where I stupidly put a hot pan instead of on the draining board. Its worn very well with no cracks or lifting . It looks great when its just wiped down with flash and buffed up with a dry cloth.

That's interesting Cari, no brainer here then !

Terribull I was glad to read your post as after quite a bit of research Quartz seemed be coming out with the best results. I will look further.

Coriander???
Corian thank you autocorrect [grrhh]

DD has got solid wood in her fairly new kitchen. It is so beautiful it is hard not to be envious! She did mark it once with something hot, but it doesn't seem to show now. Son-in-law does the oiling. He does keep it looking lovely.

Mine's grey laminate, very tatty and boring. The kitchen was here when we moved in 19 years ago so I guess it's heading for replacing. The cupboard backs have all warped outwards giving Borrowers, mice (and I hate to think what else) free access.

It's going to be very hard work convincing DH.....I fancy Coriander or granite but £££ is a huge factor.

DH is in the process of fitting a solid oak worktop in our new kitchen. It looks lovely and I know I will have to do all the sanding and oiling but I don't mind that as I love working with wood.

I did think of laminate but there was such a good deal on eBay I couldn't resist wood.

I always use wooden boards and put pans on mats but after 15 years of feeding people mine are starting to lift on the joins and chip a bit. I love my kitchen but that definitely needs doing.

watching too- one day we may be able to replace the kitchen (lol- one day- at the exchange reate as it is could be a long wait)- sil has black granite and says never again- she has broken so many beautiful glasses since her new ktichen was installed, she says she would go back to good quality formica type. No wood either! Ah well, plenty of time at least to decide ;)

I always use wooden boards and never put anything hot directly onto the surfaces so after almost three years our worktops are still in good nick. They cost a lot and the installation was a work of art but when polished up they look fab. I should have known though when the chap installing the kitchen cabinets did that sharp intake of breath/shaking head thing and said he'd had the same surfaces but they drove his wife spare and he had to change them within a year! They never tell you things like that in the brochures, do they!

Another one watching here. We have moved and are planning new kitchen but I am so indecisive.

I think I would hate it too.
Surely cutting onto glass blunts the knives??

I hate cutting onto glass, it makes me go all funny!

I have mottled black laminate and it is looking very tired.In the utility room I have wood block effect laminate and that looks really good but it doesn't get the wear that the kitchen worktops do. They will have to last as I couldn't go through all the hassle of a new kitchen again.

I also have the wood effect laminate. I did use glass cutting boards until a heavy canister fell out of a cabinet and shattered it into a thousand pieces. The other one is now used only as a worktop protector under the kettle and toaster.

We had a new kitchen a couple of years ago, we were advised against granite worktops as apparently they mark easily as far as hot pans are concerned. As an alternative silestone, a quartz, was suggested by the kitchen company. I love it, it's so easy to wipe down, I would recommend it and if I move house and have a new kitchen I would definitely have a quartz surface again.

Like coolgran I also use glass cutting boards.

We changed our kitchen just over a year ago and considered granite or corian worktops until we took the cost into account. It came to a toss up between having four expensive curved end cabinets, or granite worktops, and the cabinets won out. We have wood effect worktops which are very hard wearing, easy to keep clean and look smart. Granite would have looked better, but hey ho. Something had to give. DD has a huge kitchen with solid wood worktops and they look lovely, but are a bit high maintenance.