Jointing Methods For Solid Wood Worktops
Monday, March 1st, 2010Most people, when they think of a wood worktop, think of a huge, flat piece of wood that is brought into the kitchen and laid on the cabinets. This is really not the case at all. In order to be effective a worktop needs to be fairly thin, usually about 1 ½ to 3 inches thick. If a piece of wood is cut this thin but two feet wide it will not have the support necessary to stay in one piece. As the wood dries it will tend to warp and also crack. For this reason, solid wood worktops are actually constructed of many smaller pieces or strips of wood glued together.
There are actually three different methods for the placement and size of these pieces of wood when constructing a work top. They are continuous strips, randomly jointed strips, and strips jointed in a pattern. Each of these can be very beautiful so it really is just a matter of which one you like personally.
The continuous strip method is constructed by gluing full length boards together side by side. This method is the cheapest to construct because it takes the least time. It gives a clean and neat appearance.
The second method, using randomly jointed strips, is most popular with woods that generally can not be cut into long strips. With this technique shorter lengths of wood of differing lengths are glued and jointed end to end and then these long pieces are glued together side by side. Many people choose this method because it shows so many different grain patterns and color variations in the same worktop.
The last possibility also contains smaller lengths of wood but these are arranged in a set pattern. Think of a checker board or maybe a trim of one variety of wood with the center section another variety.
Choosing wood for your worktop is one of the many possibilities available when you are renovating or remodeling your kitchen. For more tips, visit us at the Granite Worktops Guide.