5 tips to keep your worktops in top condition

In just a few short days I am moving to a bigger and better house. My landlord has done a lot of fixing up to the kitchen and bathroom. I have to admit it looks pretty nice!! I was doing some research about taking care of worktops. I found some pretty useful tips and suggestions that I didn’t know especially for all my UK readers. So, you’ve gone to the effort and expense of installing gorgeous new wooden worktops in your kitchen. The last thing you want to do is destroy them. Luckily, by bearing these five simple aftercare tips in mind, you can help ensure your timber worktops stay in mint condition.

1) Clean up spillages

In family homes, things get spilled. Children have an amazing ability to turn otherwise peaceful rooms into scenes of utter chaos. Thankfully, wooden worktops are more than capable of withstanding plenty of spillages. The trick is to make sure you mop up liquids as quickly as possible with a clean, dry cloth. It’s only if you leave liquids to stand on your surfaces that problems arise.

2) Always use a chopping board

When you’re in a rush preparing meals for your family, you might be tempted to grab a knife and start chopping ingredients straight on your worktops. OK, this approach will save you a few seconds. However, it could cost you in the long run. After all, there’s a risk that you’ll cut through the food and damage the surface beneath.Instead, it pays off to always use a chopping board or butcher’s block. If you buy your worktop from firms such as Worktop Express®, you can pick up attractive end grain butcher’s blocks at the same time.

3) Use heat protection

In the middle of meal preparations, it can be tempting to leave hot pans lying around on work surfaces. However, this is a mistake as it can quickly lead to stains. With this in mind, always make sure that your worktops are protected from hot, wet or dirty metal vessels. To avoid damage, simply use a protective board or mat to separate your surface from the bottom of pans. Even better, you can invest in some steel hotrods. These can be placed in grooves in a convenient spot on your work surface. As well as being practical, these items look great.

4) Clean regularly

Sorry to bring up the C word, but just like everywhere else in your home, your wooden worktops will need to be cleaned. For the best results, do this regularly with a damp, lint-free cloth and use warm water with a small amount of soap. Avoid chemicals where possible because they can cause damage. If you have to use a scouring pad to get rid of stains, you might need to re-oil your worktop afterwards.

5) Oiling

You can tell if your worktop is in good condition if it has a sheen and water forms into droplets on it. This means it is well oiled. If the surface seems dull and droplets don’t form, it’s time to re-oil. New worktops need frequent treatments so that they build up good levels of protection. Over time, you should find you have to reapply oil less often. Eventually, you’ll be able to get away with doing this around every three months. Even if you’re busy, it’s worth finding time to re-oil your worktops. This will help to ensure you get many years of trouble-free use out of the timber.