Are you thinking about renovating your kitchen? Doing research on countertop materials? If so, then our Countertop Spotlight series will help you. Today we look at the beautiful warmth of butcher block countertops.
Material: Wood or Butcher Block
Styles: Edge grain butcher block tops have parallel wood rails that run the length of the piece. End grain butcher block tops are created by fusing together the end pieces of wood rails into a checkerboard pattern. End grain is considered the stronger and more durable style of the two.
Common Woods Used: Hardwoods like walnut, oak, maple, cherry, zebrawood, wenge, bamboo, or a mix of 3+ of these woods together.
Finish types: Drying oils (linseed, tung, diluted varnish); Nondrying oils (vegetable and mineral oils); paraffin or beeswax.
Environmental Impact: Mild to moderate, depending on the type of wood and whether or not it comes from salvaged or reclaimed sources or sustainably managed forests.
Pros: Warm look and feel; naturally anti-bacterial; strong and durable; biodegradable; affordable, particularly compared to granite or quartz countertops.
Cons: Requires bi-annual sanding and oiling to protect the wood; sealed counters should not be cut on.
Care: Maintenance depends on the type of finish you have. In general, wipe clean with damp cloth and mild soap. Avoid harsh detergents, chemicals, and puddles of standing water. Sand out light scratches, dents and dings with a high grit sandpaper. Recondition or oil when wood gets dull or shows signs of cracking or aging. (This protects the wood and helps guard against germs and mold.)
Installation: Make sure the butcher block counter has adequate ventilation as wood can expand and contract with temperature changes.
Cost: Pre-assembled or pre-fabricated sections start around $60.
Kitchn Reader Reviews:
I love my butcher block countertop! My husband made it for me (it's actually economical if you buy the pieces of wood and install it yourself) and it takes me kitchen from ordinary to an extraordinary place to cook and bake, especially the large loaves of sourdough I bake regularly. I try not to use sharp knives on it, as it will damage the finish over time, but it can always be sanded and resealed. It will last forever! - rjgintrepid
I'm on year three with my IKEA butcher block counters and they still look great. And while I treated them several times with Tried & True Danish Oil when I first got them, I think I've only re-treated once since. (Oops.) I priced Ceasarstone, which my mom has an loves, for our small counter. I think it was about $1,800 and a 6 week wait. I got the butcher block for about $300. Just saying... - KateF
I've got butcher block. Love the look, hate the upkeep. It's very persnickety around the sink, under the dishrack. I even had to go get plastic feet to put under the dish drainer, otherwise we'd get mold. It's about time for another sand'n'seal. We also don't use ours for cutting. - kdkaboom
When we moved into our house with a newly renovated kitchen, we had butcher block counters. I loved how they looked, but had all the problems people cited with mold and not being able to cut on them if you're keeping them sealed. (Thankfully, I had a big center island with ample butcher block which I could use for cutting.) So, I ended up removing the butcher block counter tops and replacing them with a "manufactured" quartz (Viatera) surface. - Browse
Related Kitchn Posts:
• Beautiful and Useful: Butcher Block Counters
• How To Sand Your Butcher Block To Look Like New
• All About: Quartz Countertops
• All About: Granite Countertops
• Kitchen Design: A Look at Countertop Edge Profiles
Other Recommended Reading
• How To Install a Butcher Block Countertop | This Old House
Readers, do you have a butcher block countertop? Share your experiences below!
(Images: 1. Flickr member designbuildinhabit licensed for use under Creative Commons; 2. Ashley Ann Photography via The Kitchn; 3. Leela Cyd Ross; 4. Gregory Han; 5. Apartment Therapy)
A Real Dinner, Fast: 5 Favorite Types of Almost-No-Work Meals
How To Cook Tender, Chewy Wheat Berries on the Stovetop
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Red-and-Pink-Stripe...
Must-See Small Cool Homes: Week Two
Beth's Romantic & Retro Residence
Oh, excellent timing! Our contractor just installed maple butcher block countertops that he made for us, and they look beautiful. I swoon just looking at them. But I am concerned about the maintenance. He claims just mineral oil will be enough, but I'm worried they won't be sufficiently protected, esp. from water damage around the sink... (I would never cut on them--who cuts directly on the countertop? I'm sure mine are never clean enough to do so!) Very interested to hear others' experiences. I suggested maybe just giving them a coat of polyeurethane to seal them permanently, but my husband--who has stronger aesthetic/design opinions than I--balked. So we'll see...
I have an Ikea work table with a butcher block top. It's not near the sink so I don't have to worry about water damage, and I also don't cut on them. I didn't seal them but every couple of months I give them a good scrub with lemon halves and coarse salt, then scrape it off with a bench scraper and wipe them clean.
We just put ours in! After millions of hours of research, we decided to use waterlox to seal them. My husband wanted to use Tung Oil only (since we've used it before), but I went with Waterlox. I wish we had used Tung Oil though, because the waterlox is SO toxic smelling. It is supposed to be food safe once dry (after 30 days) and maybe it will be...but I don't quite trust it after how long the smell lingered.
I DO love the countertops.
We did get a little dent in them when a bottle fell from on top of the fridge, but I'm okay with it.
They were a temporary solution and the great thing is that they were so cheap so if we need to re-do them in a couple years, the cost won't be so bad.
http://www.twobedroomsandababy.com/2012/02/kitchen-updates-and-other-random.html
I cooked in an Italian/French fusion restaurant that had butcher block counters that were decades old. They were certainly not maintained on a bi-annual basis. We cut directly on them regularly too. It was pretty much the worst care you could give. Yet, they were amazing. They looked very cool, and homey. They were absolutely resistant to hot pans, knives, and whatever else we tossed at them. We scrubbed them down with bleach at the end of every night, and they just kept on. I think the head chef told me they tried to get the counters done every five years or so.
I have been planning on putting butcher block counters in my kitchen because of my experiences with that restaurant kitchen.
I love butcher block counters, but I have never seen one around a sink that didn't eventually get black. I would love to have wood on a big empty island, where I would cut on it every day and oil it periodically but everywhere--never--because water will get in unless you watch it all the time and become fanatical about wiping up every drop of water. Of course you can soak it in something so the water won't get in but it won't look natural.
my husband and i installed miles of the cheapest ikea butcher block countertops (pronomen maybe?) in our first apartment. they were the best. so warm and natural. we spent hours upon hours sanding them the first time we finished them. after tons of research, we decided to use food safe tung oil. i only needed to touch up the oil about once a year. the tung oil cures to a hard finish. i cut on them and put hot pans on them (they only left rings when pots were well over 400 degrees.) i really liked the character that the knife and occasional burn marks added, like an antique french butcher block countertop. i would install them again in a second in a future home, but not as the only work surface. my favorite part about them was working dough on them. flour sticks to that natural surface perfectly. if anyone has any questions about butcher block, don't hesitate to ask me!
If you are looking at butcher block counters I have one word for you. Waterlox. It is pretty much impervious to water, and can even repair some mild water damage. I originally was just oiling my counters with mineral oil and over time they developed a black ring where I set down my soap bottle and the wood was really dark by the faucet for the sink. Within a week or so of putting on the Waterlox the black ring and darkness around the sink was gone, and the wood was restored to its beautiful glowing self!
Perfect timing! We're just about to renovate our kitchen and have decided to go for wood block counters.
A great tip I was given is to keep any off-cuts to use as chopping boards and shelves.
I think they look great in photos, but unless you take really good care of them, they really look pretty rough in just a short period of time. Also, water can easily make the area around the sink turn either white or black, even with relatively good care and oiling. I also really don't like the idea of there not being a way to disinfect them if raw meat drips on the counter. Knowing I can effortlessly spray a surface with a vinegar or rubbing alcohol solution is a must have for me, personally. But I do appreciate the look.
The first photo seems to have the best solution to the water-from-sink issues - if you look closely you'll see that it's rimmed all the way around with stainless steel (no butcher block on the front or back edge) and it has a stainless steel drain board.
I'd personally love butcher block counters with an enameled cast iron farm sink with a big drain board like we had in our first apartment (which also had no counter space). Butcher block would just make me want to bake bread all the time.
We installed Ikea butcher block (beech) that was stained and then sealed with Bioshield Hard Oil. The finish soaks into the wood instead of leaving a shiny plastic layer on the surface. It's very durable and the only thing that has stained it so far is turmeric, which faded after a few days. My husband is a very messy cook and so far it stands up to oil, puddles, and the bench scraper just fine. We were so happy with the Hard Oil that we have used it to re-finish a step stool and it is holding up to use much better than the previous polyurethane finish.
You forgot two of the pros that sold me on butcher block: it's quiet, no crashing and clanking when you set dishes on it, and it's warm in the winter, my hands don't get so cold working around it. I also love the fact that dropped dishes sort of bounce instead of breaking (unless they bounce over the edge and hit the floor.)