Worktop Mitre Problem

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July 11, 2005 at 12:40 pm #5973
jimhcooper	Hi, can I have some advice please. We had a kitchen fitted using a “friend” of a friend last year. The workmanship was generaly very good. We have, however, started to notice warping/bubbling on a mitre near (20cm) the sink. The fitter claims that we have left pooled water on the joint (i.e. not immediately wiped excess water away) and therefore, it’s out liability. He may be right that this happened as we have 3 small children and this thing could occur: however, I’m confused because kitchens are “wet” [I've typed in w-e-t but as I reviewed the post its being replaced by warm - lol, curious] places, particularly near the sink and I would have expected that the joins will have been made “waterproofed” not “water resistant” – Is it realistic to expect the kitchen joints to last longer than a year under these circumstances? I am having the work re- done and dont want to have to repeat this in another years time. It would appear from some of your instructions on this site that my assumption is correct (Very usefull btw), however, it would be good to be told, either way, directly. Thanks
July 11, 2005 at 2:24 pm #5974
timfoley	Jim, Welcome to our forum. I had to laugh at your attempts to type in the word “wet”. All forums are open to abuse of all kinds and as the administrator I have the ability to replace words that may cause offence, with a milder alternative. I’m not suggesting for a minute that “wet” is an offensive word but used in conjunction with other words in some of the posts we’ve received, it can become so, if you catch my drift. Why the hell I chose “warm” as the alternative I don’t know but I’m deleting the rule so you can now use it. Perhaps my over zealousness ran away with me when deleting an abusive post. Any way back to your “warm” worktop joint. 20cm away from a sink is not the best location and an alternative if it were possible would have been to locate the joint at a right angle to the sink side as opposed to paralell it. It’s true what your installer stated that would be more vulnerable to water spillages and it would be good to discover what he used to make the joint. Silicone, wood adhesive or an acrylic jointing compound. If a suitable and sufficient amount of waterproof jointing product was used then providing spillages are wiped away regularly there should not be a problem. Still I would always advise against making a joint to run parallel and close to a sink top. Tim.
July 13, 2005 at 11:34 am #5978
jimhcooper	Tim, thanks for very prompt reply; much appreciated. The position of mitre is unfortunate, but necessary due to shape and size of kitchen.. I will ask the person what kind of bonding agent they used, Jim.
August 30, 2005 at 7:14 am #6014
steve30	I have a similar problem, having had a Wicks kitchen fitted just before Christmas. It is a U-shaped installation with 2 mitre joints on the work surface. Unfortunately one of the joints has swollen and the work surface facing has ‘bubbled’. The joint is nowhere near the sink so doesn’t get splashed and has only been subject to the usual damp cloth when cleaning, so what seems to be water penetration is a bit surprising. It would be helpful to know if the joint should be sealed in some way (as this does not appear to have been done) and an idea of the cost of replacing the work surface (about 6 metres in total, 2 mitre joints, one sink, one ceramic hob).
August 30, 2005 at 1:12 pm #6015
timfoley	Welcome to the forum Steve, The joint should be sealed using silicone sealant. There are sealants that are acylic based but these will not be up to the task of sealing a worktop joint. I suggest you ask the installation company to return and offer their opinion on what has occurred. Tim.
August 31, 2005 at 12:11 pm #6016
lkj	Tim, do you see any difficulties in using edging strip to seal W/T cuts at mitres and cut outs? Would it perhaps give too clear a definition at the mitre joint? Failing the above, what about lathering the raw edge with epoxy/contact cement and when the first coat has dried apply another coat of epoxy. Allowing both to dry, surely it would provide a watertight join?
August 31, 2005 at 4:52 pm #6017
timfoley	Lkj, I understand the logic of what you say but in practice the joint would be too apparent and if sealed correctly there should not be a problem. The user has a part to play thereafter and should always clean up spillages immediately. Water has a fantastic ability to find a way through the smallest pinhole of a laminated joint so an even and consistent amount of silicone should be applied to the whole of the joint. Many people are now choosing to install solid surfaces for this reason and the number of enquiries we receive via the website has increased dramatically of late. Cost difference is always going to be a factor but the difference is reflected in the far greater durability, resistance to stains and resilience that a granite, or quartz surface in particular, has over a laminate surface. Add to this the waterproof qualities and you have the reason why these surfaces are becoming more popular as a long term investment for the kitchen buyer.