Countertop (also counter top , countertopping , counter , benchtop , or (British English) worktop ) usually refers to a horizontal worksurface in kitchens or other food preparation areas, bathrooms or lavatories, and workrooms in general. It is frequently installed upon and supported by cabinets. The surface is positioned at an ergonomic height for the user and the particular task for which it is designed. A countertop may be constructed of various materials, both natural and manmade, each with its particular attributes with respect to functionality, durability, and aesthetics and may incorporate or house appliances or accessory items relative to the intended application.
Kitchen countertops
The common fitted Western kitchen, developed in the early 20th century, is typically an arrangement of assembled unit cabinetry covered with a more-or-less continuous countertop work surface. The "unfitted" kitchen design style exemplified by Johnny Grey may also include detached and/or varied countertop surfaces mounted on discrete base support structures. Primary considerations of material choice and conformation are durability, functionality, hygienics, appearance, and cost.
When installed in a kitchen on standard (U.S) wall-mounted base unit cabinets, countertops are typically about 25-26 inches (635-660 mm) from front to back and are designed with a slight overhang on the front (leading) edge. This allows for a convenient reach to objects at the back of the countertop while protecting the base cabinet faces. Finished heights from the floor will vary depending on usage but typically will be 35-36" (889-914 mm), with a material thickness depending on that chosen. They may include an integrated or applied backsplash to prevent spills and objects from falling behind the cabinets. Kitchen countertops may also be installed on freestanding islands, dining areas or bars, desk and table tops, and other specialized task areas; as before, they may incorporate cantilevers, freespans and overhangs depending on application. The horizontal surface and vertical edges of the countertop can be decorated in manners ranging from plain to very elaborate. They are often conformed to accommodate the installation of sinks, stoves (cookers), ranges, and cooktops, or other accessories such as dispensers, integrated drain boards, and cutting boards.
Materials
Countertops can be made from a wide range of materials and the cost of the completed countertop can vary widely depending on the material chosen. The durability and ease of use of the material often rises with the increasing cost of the material but this is not necessarily so; some costly materials are neither particularly durable nor user-friendly, albeit stylish. Some common countertop materials are as follows:
- Natural stones:
- Granite
- Limestone
- Marble
- Soapstone
- Gabbro
- Slate
- Wood
- Bamboo
- Metals:
- Stainless steel
- Copper
- Zinc
- Aluminum
- Crafted glass
- Manufactured materials:
- Concrete
- Cast-in-place
- Precast
- Processed slabs
- Compressed paper or fiber
- Pre- and post-formed high-pressure decorative laminates
- Quartz Surfacing or Engineered Stone is 99.9% solid @ 93% aggregate / 7% polyester resin, colors and binders
- Solid-surface acrylic plastic materials
- Solid-surface Polyester acrylic
- Terrazzo
- Tile
- Cast-in-place materials (resin plus natural stone)
- Epoxy
- Phenolic resin
Natural stone
The natural stone or dimension stone slab (e.g. granite) is shaped using cutting and finishing equipment in the shop of the fabricator. The edges are commonly put on by hand-held routers, grinders, or CNC equipment. If the stone has a highly varigated pattern, the stone is laid out in final position in the shop for the customer's inspection. Then the countertop assembly is installed on the job site by professionals.
Wood
Wooden Countertops can come in a variety of designs ranging from Butcher's Block to Joined Planks to Single Wide Stave. Wood is considered to be the most eco-friendly option when it comes to choosing a kitchen countertop as wood is a renewable resource. Wood countertops must be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected after contact with foods such as raw meat. Although the use of wooden work surfaces is prohibited in commercial food production areas in the EU and the US Department of Agriculture advises against the use of wooden chopping boards, research by the Food Research Institute at the University of Wisconsin has shown that wooden work surfaces are no more dangerous, and in some cases safer than plastic alternatives. They have shown that whilst that bacteria does get absorbed by the wood it does not multiply and eventually dies. Whilst brand new plastic work surfaces are indeed easy to disinfect, once they have become heavily knife scarred they are nearly impossible to completely disinfect. This is not a problem with wooden work surfaces where the number of knife cuts made little difference.
Post-formed plastic laminate
"Postformed" (or literally "formed after being laminated" to the substrate) high pressure laminate countertop, often referred to as "plastic laminate countertop" is a material is more of a wood product, consisting of kraft and decorative papers, and resins, bonded through high heat and pressure. This product is sometimes referred to as "Formica", but that is a trade name of a manufactured high pressure laminate.
The postform countertop is typically a high volume factory-produced product, which accounts for the economy of the product. The material composition consists of a single thin sheet of laminate (typically .030" - .040" in thickness) that gets bonded to a 45# density particle board substrate (or other similar base material such as MDF - medium density fiberboard, or plywood), with a PVA adhesive (poly vinyl acetate - a water-based adhesive).
A typical system consists of the following:
1) An automated infeed system for sequencing the particle board into production. 2) The CorFab Machine, an automated feed-through machine that cuts to size, cuts and bonds build down sticks with a hot melt adhesive to the under side of the substrate, and shapes the edge detail, all in a single motion. 3) An automated laminating system that applies the adhesive to both the substrate and laminate. 4) An indexing unit that aligns the laminate to the substrate with the proper overhang. 5) A Pinch Roller that makes the bond between the laminate and substrate. 6) The Postforming Machine, that not only heats and forms the laminate around the substrate, but also cuts away the backsplash from the main deck, all in a feed-through motion machine. 7) The AutoCove Machine, which heats and forms the backsplash upward 90 degrees, locking it into place with what is referred to as a cove stick, utilizing hot melt adhesive technology to hold it all together. 8) The final stage of the system usually consists of a trim saw that cuts the countertops to rough lengths, typically 8', 10' and 12', ready for distribution.
Once manufactured the tops need only to be cut to length, mitered, fitted for assembly, and end capped (only if it is a visible finished end). A very specific machine for cutting the postform countertop is manufactured by only a few companies, it is commonly called a Cutting Station, Top Saw, or simply Miter Saw. This machine accurately cuts the countertop to field dimensions, making it easy for the installer to make the final scribe cuts on-site to complete the work. Sink cut outs can be made either in the field or at the installers shop.
Self edge or wood edge laminate
Self or wood edge plastic laminate countertops are also very popular for those who chose to have few or no surface seams. In this style, the top shop uses substrate for the countertop out of MDF, or particle board and then glue sheets of laminate to the substrate using Contact Cement. The laminate is then trimmed using a router. This method can't reproduce the curved contours of post-formed countertopping but can be made to easily conform to a much-wider range of floor plans with fewer seams.
Crafted glass
Custom architectural crafted glass, tempered glass, textured glass pieces, and the ancient art of Verre églomisé, or reverse gilded glass, are applied to contemporary uses including countertops, backsplashes, and tabletops. Glass work may be customized to suit by craftsmen in the studio, then installed on site either in small components (such as a kitchen countertop composed of three rectangles of verre églomisé) or as immense, single units (for example, a glass countertop and sink basin formed of one continuous piece of textured glass). The glass is non-porous, relatively stain-proof, extremely hygienic, and "extremely heat resistant (up to 700 degrees)." Much work is being done to "recycle" glass using sources such as post consumer glass or post industrial float glass. The material can be crushed or cut into strips that is heated until the softening point of glass, binding the loose material back into a solid form.
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