Hello to all;
I am resurfacing my kitchen counter with a Formica type laminate. Can I belt sand the surface and put the new counter surface over the old one? I have been told both yes and no. If you have any sage advice on what to look out for – I sure would be interested.
Jim
Replies
Jim
I don't see any problem with putting new laminate over old if the old is adhered to the substrate securely.
Wayne
Not really enough info to answer accurately. What are you going over, what's the backsplash like (square vs molded), how is the front profiled (ditto) etc. Some basic assumptions: generic square with formica is what's there. If that's the case, your answer is yes, if the surface you are applying to is still solid, i.e. not popping loose or suffering from severe divots. If it's still solid, then sanding the surface is good to give the glue more area to bite. You don't need to get crazy. If you're using a belt sander, put 80 grit in and set it on low and just scratch the surface up. If you have divots where a chunk has chipped out, fill them in. There's probably a zillion things you could use for this. Your primary concern is that it's going to dry, stick, and sand level. Durhams comes to mind. Epoxy would work too. Clean the surface well after sanding, and proceed as usual. Your life may be greatly simplified if you are able to remove the counters from the base cabinets first. Often I find that the things were built in place in older homes and screwed from the top down, and the formica covers the screw heads. But if not, putting it in a garage on sawhorses makes getting around it a lot easier.
Jim
I did it successfully about 5 years ago.
BUT, my old countertop was solid with the old formica firmly adhered all over. I pulled off the old backsplash which was color matched formica joined by a metal spline and pulled out the spline. Thoroughly sanded off the gloss on the old finish and vacuumed up ALL the dust. Put tiles on for new backsplash. Fortunately the plumbing for the sink was easily lengthened the extra 1/8 inch or so.
Take your time and be thorough in your preparation. Good luck.
Griff
Jim
I concur with the above, however in my (profesional) opinion by the time the laminate has had its day the substrate isn't far behind, generally evidenced by breakdown due to moisture. If you do this sort of stuff for a living then making the top suitable to take the adhesive won't be far off the material cost of new substrate. Check around the sink cutout, at any joins & under the front & back edges for breakdown & only go down the new top/old sub if they are sound.
My sage advise would be to rip up the old top (probably particle board?) and start from scratch. Don't use water based contact cement when applying the new laminate. Use the good stuff (lacquer based). A paint roller works well for applying it. Set up a fan to push air out a window though or you might get high on the fumes. Have lacquer thinner available to clean up drips and also to keep router bits clean. I always used Weldwood contact cement.
Good luck!
PlaneWood by Mike_in_Katy
PlaneWood
Like Planewood (Mike) suggested, have *PLENTY* of ventilation. Turn off *all* sources of ignition, unplug the fridge, don't turn on and turn off lights until you're absolutely sure there is no more smell/fumes from the contact cement if you use solvent based material (I've used the waterbased stuff with good results, though).
Needless to say, the No-Smoking light is lit as well.
If the old stuff was installed well and there has been not water migration over the years through it to the substrate, just take the gloss off with a sander to give the contact cement something to bite to and you should be OK. Don't rush the job. Fit everything dry as you probably already know. Rip several 1/8" x 1-1/2" sticks to elevate the sheet from the deck as you start to do the final layup after all the tack is gone from the contact cement. Start from the middle and work both ways.
Dennis in Bellevue WA
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