Installiing a maple counter top for a client any suggestions for a food safe finish.
Could use mineral oil however the home owner would prefer not to, as it has a smell and is a petro product.
George
Installiing a maple counter top for a client any suggestions for a food safe finish.
Could use mineral oil however the home owner would prefer not to, as it has a smell and is a petro product.
George
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Replies
Tung oil is approved for some (but apparently not all) applications for some jurisdictions.
Phill Giles
The Unionville Woodwright
Unionville, Ontario
I am here in Toronto and have never used Tung Oil, is it available in an average paint store. Where would I find out if it can be used on a Kitchen counter.
Thank again
Pure tung oil (i.e. not the polymerized kind) is approved for food handling and food storage items (including counter-tops, but not cutting boards) and even wooden implements. Mineral oil and walnut oil are the recomended coatings for cutting boards (commercial inspectors prefer mineral oil). Pure tung is available from Lee Valley, as is "Tried and True"; I think they dropped Behlen's. The last Behlen's I got came from Jacques Coulombe (sp ?) in Montreal (they run a mail-order for tools and turning stuff - you should be able to find them on the internet). There's a turner's supply in Weston (can't remember the name) who have the salad bowl finish too.The Lansing in Kennedy Commons used to carry this sort of stuff; now that it's a Rona, who knows ?edited to change "Tilley" to "Lee Valley" - I was just at Tilley's and had a senior moment.
.
Phill Giles
The Unionville Woodwright
Unionville, Ontario
Edited 10/26/2005 2:52 pm ET by PhillGiles
This is what I use on my own maple butcher block:
http://www.triedandtruewoodfinish.com/
Great stuff, used it for most of my interior wood finishing. If you can't find it locally order it from these folks and they'll UPS it to you:
http://www.homesteadfinishing.com/htdocs/oils_varnish.htm
I believe Shellac is food safe, though not durable enough for a kitchen counter top - maybe a bar.
You could wax over it, right? I imagine that'd be food safe.
I have a smallish movable island with maple butcher block top.
I used mineral oil and did not experience smell of any kind.
Just pour it on, work it in, wipe of excess and repeat. Touch up monthly or whenever I can see dulling.
Seams to be by far the cheapest route
Actually, shellac would be a very poor choice for a bar as alcohol is the solvent for shellac.Knowledge is power, but only if applied in a timely fashion.
True, you'd need the wax top coat I mentioned.
Hmmmmm. Taht might help a tad in the one regard, but I still wouldn't do it myself.Paste wax water-spots/rings pretty easily. I'd prefer to use a maintenance-free finish on a bar myself. (Maintenance free until it literally wears thru.) Knowledge is power, but only if applied in a timely fashion.
Behlen's Salad Bowl Finish is food safe once cured. It's the only finish I know of that is specifically marketed as being food safe. That doesn't mean that other finishes are not food safe, but if you need to show/prove to your client that what you are using is safe, you can show them the label.
http://www.hartvilletool.com/product/11228
Edited 10/26/2005 9:37 am ET by glatt
http://www.popularwoodworking.com/features/finish3.html
http://forums.taunton.com/tp-breaktime/messages?msg=37367.1
There is a product called "Good Stuff" that is specifically intended for maple butcher blocks. Should be able to google it. I think its distributed by Bally Block Company.
I second the reccomendation for Behlen's Salad Bowl Finish. I installed the Ikea butcher block counter tops in my kitchen and sealed them with the salad bowl finish. Its been 3+ years and they still look pretty good except right around the sink where their has been a lot of standing water. If I remember correctly the stuff is pretty thin and we put on like 4 coats of it. I should of put on a couple more. I have been meaning to lightly sand the counters and put on a couple of more coats but something always seems to get in the way.
Here's a before and mostly after pic.
Daniel Neuman
Oakland CA
Crazy Home Owner