How can I replace this kitchen counter molding?
October 3, 2023 8:53 AM Subscribe
My kitchen counter has a ceramic tile finish with a wood molding border. I had to remove one of the pieces of molding in order to install a new dishwasher, and destroyed it in the process. I'd like to replace it, but I have questions....
This is a picture of my kitchen. Notice that there's a piece of molding missing by the kitchen sink and dishwasher. I'd like to replace this, but I have questions!
The actual replacing seems simple enough. I've installed floor molding before, and I'm familiar with the general process.
My question is more about making sure that whatever I install matches what's already there. To my mind, this involves matching:
1. Finish
2. Stain
3. The actual wood I choose to you, right? Because if you start with the wrong kind of wood with its own natural finish out of the gate, you're not going to get the right results, right?
Do I have this right? Based on the picture, can you help me figure out how to match the above values?
This is a picture of my kitchen. Notice that there's a piece of molding missing by the kitchen sink and dishwasher. I'd like to replace this, but I have questions!
The actual replacing seems simple enough. I've installed floor molding before, and I'm familiar with the general process.
My question is more about making sure that whatever I install matches what's already there. To my mind, this involves matching:
1. Finish
2. Stain
3. The actual wood I choose to you, right? Because if you start with the wrong kind of wood with its own natural finish out of the gate, you're not going to get the right results, right?
Do I have this right? Based on the picture, can you help me figure out how to match the above values?
I think you're on the right path.
All of them are going to be a bit of a challenge, but the place to start is #3, wood. You're lucky, it's "plain sawn", which means it might be easier to find. Can you stick a fingernail into the old wood? Is it relatively soft? If so, from the picture it's probably (Douglas) fir, and the hard part there is getting a board that's "kiln dried" and letting it actually dry enough to be usable, because most of that ends up in construction.
If you were coming by my (hobby) shop, based mostly on what I have on my wood rack, I would take a look at eastern hard maple, and alder. It doesn't look like any of the oaks to me, and it's definitely a lighter wood, so not walnut or cherry or whatnot.
Alder used to be the US's cheap hardwood. It's gotten more expensive of late, but it should still be fairly available.
Maple tends to start very white and age to a nice golden, but that makes your color match a little harder.
Your top coat, #1, is almost certainly going to be a polyurethane, and in modern days the low VOC ones are pretty clear. I like the wipe-on polys, though you have to do a sh*load of coats. For something that's in as hard-use and wet a place as counter-trim, you might try a flooring polyurethane, though they do add a little haze.
Which then leaves you with #2, stain. One option would be, depending on how much you care about the match and how much edging you have, replace all of it. This also helps solve the color shift as it ages problem, and would let you get close enough to the cabinets that nobody will notice, but let all the trim be the same.
After that, I'd head down to your local hardware store where they have the stain samples, try to figure out the closest two or so, take 'em home and stain a piece of scrap, see how close it got. At my hardware store, they've got the stain samples on pine and I think maple, but the saw direction and all sorts of other things impact color, so you need to try it out. Maybe try mixing if you have a color that's in-between, but that way also lies madness.
posted by straw at 2:34 PM on October 3, 2023
All of them are going to be a bit of a challenge, but the place to start is #3, wood. You're lucky, it's "plain sawn", which means it might be easier to find. Can you stick a fingernail into the old wood? Is it relatively soft? If so, from the picture it's probably (Douglas) fir, and the hard part there is getting a board that's "kiln dried" and letting it actually dry enough to be usable, because most of that ends up in construction.
If you were coming by my (hobby) shop, based mostly on what I have on my wood rack, I would take a look at eastern hard maple, and alder. It doesn't look like any of the oaks to me, and it's definitely a lighter wood, so not walnut or cherry or whatnot.
Alder used to be the US's cheap hardwood. It's gotten more expensive of late, but it should still be fairly available.
Maple tends to start very white and age to a nice golden, but that makes your color match a little harder.
Your top coat, #1, is almost certainly going to be a polyurethane, and in modern days the low VOC ones are pretty clear. I like the wipe-on polys, though you have to do a sh*load of coats. For something that's in as hard-use and wet a place as counter-trim, you might try a flooring polyurethane, though they do add a little haze.
Which then leaves you with #2, stain. One option would be, depending on how much you care about the match and how much edging you have, replace all of it. This also helps solve the color shift as it ages problem, and would let you get close enough to the cabinets that nobody will notice, but let all the trim be the same.
After that, I'd head down to your local hardware store where they have the stain samples, try to figure out the closest two or so, take 'em home and stain a piece of scrap, see how close it got. At my hardware store, they've got the stain samples on pine and I think maple, but the saw direction and all sorts of other things impact color, so you need to try it out. Maybe try mixing if you have a color that's in-between, but that way also lies madness.
posted by straw at 2:34 PM on October 3, 2023
« Older Should I get a Google Pixel 7 or a Google Pixel 7... | Interesting things around Nantes? Newer »
This thread is closed to new comments.
Another option is to replace all the molding. Not quite as critical that you get a match.
posted by H21 at 9:58 AM on October 3, 2023 [2 favorites]