Best Kitchen Worktop: Just how to Select the Right Material for Your Kitchen
The best kitchen worktop is one which will be practical, functional and use the general look and theme of one's kitchen so it's worth considering what'll look good in your kitchen design early on.
Along with the functional aspect, budget will needless to say enter into play when choosing the best kitchen worktop for your space. And with lots of kitchen worktop materials on the market it can be a bit of a minefield picking the proper one. Kitchen worktops can be a real focal point, plus you'll be taking a look at it every single day so you'll want to get it right!
From pocket-friendly laminate to warm, rich wood; from industrial steel to top quality marble, we've pulled together the professionals and cons of the finest kitchen overlay worktops available.
When finding the best kitchen worktop for your room it's a good idea to begin by wondering a couple of questions about how exactly you employ your kitchen. It'll assist you to gauge which type of worktop materials to consider which will complement both how you employ your kitchen and the style of it.
How often would you cook and prepare food?
Do you utilize plenty of pans when cooking and desire a worktop that'll cope with hot pans?
Who uses the kitchen? Can it be a household space? Would you entertain a lot?
Do you want easy to completely clean materials, with little upkeep?
Wooden kitchen worktops do need a lot more looking after (particularly after installation), for example, so make maintenance an integral consideration.
And, if you like to pop your hot pans straight on your kitchen worktops rather than the hob or perhaps a trivet then you definitely might choose a temperature resistant, natural material like granite for your kitchen worktop (although care should still be studied to avoid thermal shock).
Glossy materials will highlight grubby marks so if you've little hands making their mark throughout the house remember that you could be wiping the surface down a good bit.
What are the different types of worktop material?
While we haven't listed every single form of worktop material below, we've highlighted the most typical you'll find in modern kitchens, so you may make an educated decision on the very best ones to take into account for the kitchen.
Hardwood – Hardwood is really a beautiful kitchen worktop material that's less costly to purchase than natural stone and some acrylic. You will find wood worktops in a myriad of striking colours and grain styles, and no two pieces are ever the same. The largest downside is that natural wood stains and scratches easily. It also requires maintenance at the very least twice per year to help keep it in a good condition.
Laminate – That is the absolute most versatile worktop material, as it can certainly be produced to look like other materials but doesn't cost as much. Laminate is also easy to maintain and clean and is antibacterial, provided that it's not badly damaged. The key downside is that the buying price of laminate can vary. The less spent, the less natural your worktop will look. Moreover, laminate never quite feels just like an all-natural or composite worktop.
Composite/quartz/acrylic – Man-made composite materials are crafted from natural ground minerals that are blended with resin or acrylic for a tough, non-porous finish. The most effective composite and acrylic worktops offer most of the charm and unique appearance of natural material with no maintenance. Acrylic worktops, sometimes called by the manufacturer Fenix or Corian, may not necessarily be as expensive as quartz blends, so might be a better choice if you're looking to invest less.