Wooden worktops look stunning in almost all kitchen styles and colours, offering a warm and stylish finish and timeless appeal. Like all kitchen surfaces, worktops take the brunt of the wear and tear in a busy home so they need to be cared for properly.
Osmo
Over time, water damage and mould can affect wooden worktops, especially around areas like the sink, so prevention is better than cure! To keep wooden worktops at their best, treat with Osmo TopOil. Newly oiled wooden surfaces using TopOil require approximately 2-3 weeks to completely cure and harden properly before normal usage.
The key benefit for worktop use, is that TopOil is extremely water repellent, helping to make surfaces more durable. It is resistant to common liquid spillages such as water, juice, tea and wine making it ideal for the kitchen. It has a microporous, breathable finish which does not crack, peel or flake. Using the product regularly can prolong the life of your worktop so you won’t need to replace it.
Treating your worktop
To get the best performance from TopOil, you need to get an optimal volume of this hard wax oil into the fibres of the wood. To help with performance on worktops, the wood will normally require the surface being sanded to a maximum of a P150 grit grade (depending on the wood species).
To deliver the ideal amount of the finish into the absorbent wood surface, we recommend applying the first coat thinly along the wood grain with an Osmo Microfibre Roller, Flat Brush or Oil Finish Applicator Fleece. Allow to dry for approx. 8-10 hours and ventilate the room well while drying. Then apply the second coat with an Osmo Oil Finish Applicator Fleece or a lint-free cloth.
It is possible to spot sand and repair any water marks. It’s necessary to use the same finish sanding grade to sand back, then re–treat those spot areas using the same application technique originally carried out. Once these areas have been allowed to dry, apply a little more oil to build up some protection. Use an Osmo applicator fleece / pad for this procedure.
Finally, care must be taken with the cleaning and maintenance of the Top Oil. For regular cleaning (perhaps daily or weekly) this should ideally be carried out with products like Osmo Wash and Care or Osmo Spray Cleaner. These products clean the surface without breaking down the natural oils and waxes in Osmo finishes. The soaps within these products contain a tiny amount of natural oil to help nourish the surface over time. Products like washing up liquid are designed to strip away oils and waxes therefore the finish will require topping up if there is high exposure. You could top up thinly with a cloth to the clean dry surface using Osmo TopOil or Osmo Maintenance Oil products. Osmo Maintenance oil is very practical as it is much thinner than Top Oil and there is less risk of building too much wax on surrounding treated areas.
With the right care, Osmo TopOil can enhance the natural beauty of your wooden worktop and keep it looking like new for many years to come!