Quartz or Wood Kitchen Worktop/Upstands???

[Martylaa]

Has anyone got any pro's/con's for fitting either a 20mm quartz worktop or a solid oak worktop with up stands in their kitchens?

I've seen some quartz and its quite expensive (the solid oak is half the price) and I was all set for it but then I have seen a stained grey solid oak worktop which looks very nice as well.

Appreciate Quartz will probably be less maintenance, wood I'm guessing will involve more oiling and maintenance but there's only me in the house (except when my daughter stays) and I'm quite tidy and wouldn't let any water linger on it.

[Coronet king]

Looks like you’ve considered most things. I have fitted oak in my past 3 homes but gone for quartz this time. The kitchen we have chosen is a Matt graphite colour and true handless, so went for a light 20mm quartz.
We struggled to agree on a worktop as there are so many to chose from at varying price levels.

Pro’s I don’t have to fit the worktops for once. Cons, they have probably cost £1500 more than oak.

We should know in 11 days whether I chose well, if not I will never hear the end of it. :(

[Martylaa]

Looks like you’ve considered most things. I have fitted oak in my past 3 homes but gone for quartz this time. The kitchen we have chosen is a Matt graphite colour and true handless, so went for a light 20mm quartz.
We struggled to agree on a worktop as there are so many to chose from at varying price levels.

Pro’s I don’t have to fit the worktops for once. Cons, they have probably cost £1500 more than oak.

We should know in 11 days whether I chose well, if not I will never hear the end of it. :(

How did you find the oak when you had it previously?


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[Coronet king]

How did you find the oak when you had it previously?


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Treat it with care and you will be fine. We have 2 glass chopping boards on the tops so always stand cups etc on those otherwise you could end up with ring marks we also have a ceramic inset sink and drainer so no problems with that. The new kitchen has an undermount sink so oak wouldn’t be practical. Leaving water sitting on the oak tops would result in black staining and very hard to get out.
If you like the look of oak and you aren’t going to abuse it then go for it. I fitted oak tops to our previous house and also did a friends at the same time. A couple of years down the road ours looked fine his looked a mess as they use to pile the cups up of the side ready for washing up.

[lewie]

I’ve oak in my (old) house
Loved it - I treated it to several coats of top oil before fitting (both sides) and maybe once a year a light hand sand back and a quick coat of Osmo top oil
We had an inset sink as above and a couple of glass chopping boards- sink and hob cut outs will give u some nice chopping boards too
I got mine from eBay -
I can always be fully sanded back and retreated if something happens

[Hooshabak]

I have quartz and I love it, doesn’t stain, doesn’t scratch easy but most importantly it wipes down easy as pie

[mart broad]

Had both and unless you have a traditional house/ kitchen would go quartz just for ease.

[oldoakknives]

Never had oak to be honest but had bamboo worktops fitted at the previous house. They looked stunning but were a royal pain to maintain! Wouldn't have wood again.

[lenlec]

We have an oak top on our island. Looks good but marks really easily. And I’ve oiled it a lot. Need Maintenace quite a bit
Our granite kitchen tops are brilliant though

[Chris_in_the_UK]

Had this debate twice over the years.

We went for American Black Walnut this time and love them, they are not maintenance free though.

[Martylaa]

Starting to think quartz it is lol...



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[mrsammyp]

Quartz for me, no maintenance and I think it looks great.

We had the kitchen window sill in quartz too and it looked really nice, only £100.

[L8_M8]

We have oak in our kitchen. We do have to look after it by oiling about every 6 months or so. Sounds like you are similar to us and we make sure we wipe any spills as soon as they happen. If you do get one it can be sanded down. I honestly would like a set and forget worktop but by all accounts granite can just as easily get marked but without the option of sanding and refreshing.

We got our tops from Ikea and are £130 a length which is an unbeatable price in my opinion. They are 28mm thick which whilst not butchers block thick as some is plenty good enough for the look. Worst case scenario we can replace them and still come under what most work tops cost.