Preferred cheap countertop surface?

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Nathan McCorkle

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Feb 23, 2017, 5:28:08 PM2/23/17
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I am building a small workbench to compliment my second-kitchen
countertop that is a bit smaller than I need.

I tried finding some granite or other polished rock surfaces, but they
were asking $20-$50 per square foot. I'm wondering if a finish-grade
plywood with floor polyurethane would be OK for a few months/years of
casual use.

Obviously it sucks for fire prevention (if a bunsen burner fell over,
or an alcohol lamp), as well it seems less resistant to solvents and
strong chemicals, not that I'd care if it got ugly... but it might
change the hardness and be i.e. forever sticky and messy. My main
concern is microabrasions and being harder to sterilize. I think
flooring polyurethane will probably hold up pretty well to most
equipment and labware, except maybe my metal ring-stand. I'd guess I
might see some (micro) scratching even after dragging a dusty
cardboard box across the surface, due to the rocky components of dust
(at least my garage's dust). I'd bet bleach/alcohol/lysol would be
able to combat this for only so long.

I've also considered a few pieces of large/very-large non-porous
tile... but the grout joints concern me, though I imagine I might be
able to seal them somehow and they'd be much more fire-proof, but
still would be prone to scratching since the sealant would probably be
polyurethane or epoxy.

Am I overthinking it? What have other people found
works/doesn't-work/works-for-a-while?

I'm going to scan craigslist again for some cheap granite too.

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-Nathan

Koeng

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Feb 23, 2017, 6:06:08 PM2/23/17
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I use a plastic table with a large piece of plexiglass taped on top of it. The plexiglass is easy to clean and I can write on it with sharpies (and then erase with ethanol I use for sterilization). It works for me, and is pretty cheap, but I would much rather have a nice granite workbench. 

-Koeng

John Griessen

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Feb 23, 2017, 9:08:51 PM2/23/17
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On 02/23/2017 04:27 PM, Nathan McCorkle wrote:
> I'm going to scan craigslist again for some cheap granite too.

That and keep an eye open for construction cast offs.
A $20 cheap harbor freight 4 inch grinder plus a $7 diamond blade will
cut through granite when you spray water on it as you go.
Also the top edges of the cuts can be beveled that way.

Also consider remodeling trash that is "cultured marble" counter tops.
My real lab benches are made of black "cultured marble" that is dense,
fire resistant, acid proof, strong, smooth, cleanable, polishes well.
They are made of some kind of 2 part resin and rock dust in Taylor Texas.

Too bad you can't ship a 130 lb lab bench top with backsplash -- I have extra.

Forrest Flanagan

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Feb 24, 2017, 5:05:59 PM2/24/17
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Keep an eye out for school demolition, I got a truckload of those epoxy counters, plumbing, and sinks from a chem classroom a few years ago. They're all installed at the local hackspace.

Personally, I've got an ikea workbench with a few foot wide sheets of tempered glass laid across it. When they get really messy, I just run them in the dishwasher.



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Patrik D'haeseleer

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Feb 25, 2017, 2:47:41 AM2/25/17
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I'm seeing a good number of glass tabletops and stainless steel tables on Craigslist. With some patience, you can probably find a 2" x 4" stainless table for less than $100. That's not dirt cheap, but a worthwhile investment for something you'll be using daily for the next couple of years. Of course, the main drawback of stainless is that you can't use bleach on it, or it will rust.

We actually bought a glass top table off Craigslist for CCL, just so we can tape some LED strip lights to it and take some CSI style lab pictures ;-)

Patrik

Nathan McCorkle

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Feb 25, 2017, 3:01:14 AM2/25/17
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Thanks everyone!

Glass was recommended by another friend locally, and he also mentioned
looking for demolition sites.

Stainless isn't something I considered but momentarily... it indeed
would be a good choice, and I know I've seen stainless
commercial-kitchen tables with a big shelf underneath, for storage or
e.g. a microwave.


I found a piece of granite today for $5 per sq ft... there was an ad
on craigslist for free scrap pieces, I searched their free pile and
came up empty, so sent them an email asking if they had any larger
remnants or scrap, and voila!
http://imgur.com/lLjgREq

I still have to add some cross-bracing on the legs, and a shelf
underneath (I haven't decided if I want to try adding doors to the
lower area... but maybe some sliding plexiglass to keep dust out)

Thanks all!
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Patrik D'haeseleer

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Feb 25, 2017, 3:19:01 AM2/25/17
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For a completely off-the-wall idea, copper surfaces are strongly antibacterial. You can get a 2" x 4" sheet of 24ga copper for less than $150. Get yourself a free second hand table and some copper rivets and go to town.

Not terribly acid resistant obviously, but very bio-safe, and would make for a great steampunk lab. :-)

Patrik

PS: Make sure to accessorize with some cheapass DIY pipette holders made from copper pipe...

Cory Tobin

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Feb 25, 2017, 4:47:51 AM2/25/17
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I'm a big fan of plywood workbench tops.  I usually use 3/4 inch thick plywood with a smooth surface (the cheap stuff will look terrible and you'll wish you'd spent the extra $20).  Sometimes it's called "cabinet grade" plywood.  I cover the edges with iron-on wood veneer tape so the sides are smooth.

For an ultra smooth mirror finish I put 2 coats of Varathane Ebony which makes the wood jet black. Then two coats of gloss polyurethane.  This looks really sharp and is fairly durable for general lab use.  But it *will* scratch easily with sharp objects.  I'm not sure how resistant it is to acids and bases.

For super durable workbenches I start with a single coat of an oil-based wood primer like Kilz, then two coats of black spray-on appliance epoxy.  This stuff is really really nasty (the solvent is a mixture of acetone, petroleum, xylene, and butyl acetate). You'll want to do it outside and with a respirator + organic vapor filter, goggles, gloves, disposable clothes etc.  If you do it inside you'll end up with a black residue on everything that will never come off.  But this surface is incredibly durable.  It doesn't scratch, ever.  You can hit it with a hammer and it won't leave any sort of impression.  I cut stuff with razor blades on it frequently and it doesn't leave any marks. Resistant to direct flames for a short period of time.  Also, its resistant to acids and bases.  I've tested it with glacial acetic, sulfuric, 12M HCl, 10M NaOH, and 10M KOH.  The only things I've found that will eat through it are Piranha solution and cesium hydroxide solutions (don't try this without a fume hood and chem lab training/experience).

Not quite as durable as a phenolic surface but for my purposes it's sufficient.  Plus it far less dense than phenolic so you can carry it yourself.


Patrik D'haeseleer

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Feb 26, 2017, 2:52:50 AM2/26/17
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On Saturday, February 25, 2017 at 1:47:51 AM UTC-8, cory....@gmail.com wrote:

For super durable workbenches I start with a single coat of an oil-based wood primer like Kilz, then two coats of black spray-on appliance epoxy.  This stuff is really really nasty (the solvent is a mixture of acetone, petroleum, xylene, and butyl acetate). You'll want to do it outside and with a respirator + organic vapor filter, goggles, gloves, disposable clothes etc.  If you do it inside you'll end up with a black residue on everything that will never come off.  But this surface is incredibly durable.  It doesn't scratch, ever.  You can hit it with a hammer and it won't leave any sort of impression.  I cut stuff with razor blades on it frequently and it doesn't leave any marks. Resistant to direct flames for a short period of time.  Also, its resistant to acids and bases.  I've tested it with glacial acetic, sulfuric, 12M HCl, 10M NaOH, and 10M KOH.  The only things I've found that will eat through it are Piranha solution and cesium hydroxide solutions (don't try this without a fume hood and chem lab training/experience).

Ooh - that seems like a great find! I know we did a lot of soul searching for how to outfit CCL way back when as well. We wound up getting lucky with a donation of three very large lab benches, but we were initially looking for granite countertops, glass tables, stainless tables, etc - pretty much the story of this thread. If we had known about appliance Epoxy, I think we would likely have gone with that.

The original lab benches at BioCurious were DIY ones made from construction pipe with a top of this paneling with a whiteboard coating. Which was great in the beginning, because you could just write right on the bench with a dry-erase marker. But the whiteboard material wasn't terribly scratch resistant, so over time the benches developed scratches and holes through the top whiteboard layer, allowing liquids to seep in the fiberboard underneath - Not Good!

Patrik

Dennis Oleksyuk

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Mar 3, 2017, 4:53:44 PM3/3/17
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Cory, thank you for publishing the receipt. I was just looking for something like that.

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Patrik D'haeseleer

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Mar 4, 2017, 1:31:51 AM3/4/17
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Any experience with other types of appliance epoxy, by the way? White vs black, different brands, spray vs brush-on?

I think I'd prefer a white countertop personally. Might have to do some experimentation - if it wasn't for the fact that we already have a bunch of lab benches.

Hm - I do need to put in an insert in one of the benches where it had a small built-in sink. Maybe I'll try some of the brush-on appliance epoxy to coat the seams.

Patrik

Cory Tobin

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Mar 4, 2017, 5:35:44 PM3/4/17
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I've only ever used the black spray-on version from RustOleum for workbenches.  I've used the white version on kitchen appliances but I've never tested its durability.

I *think* I've seen a brush-on version of the RustOleum product at HomeDepot but I've never used it.

There are also 2-part epoxy products meant for marine use which would probably work better than appliance paint but are more expensive
https://www.jamestowndistributors.com/userportal/show_product.do?pid=3842

-Cory


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Patrik D'haeseleer

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Mar 5, 2017, 1:49:40 AM3/5/17
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On Saturday, March 4, 2017 at 2:35:44 PM UTC-8, cory....@gmail.com wrote:

There are also 2-part epoxy products meant for marine use which would probably work better than appliance paint but are more expensive
https://www.jamestowndistributors.com/userportal/show_product.do?pid=3842

I bet the marine epoxy won't be nearly as scratch resistant though. If anything, I expect a bit of flexibility would be more useful in marine applications. Plus water and UV resistance, of course.

Patrik

Nathan McCorkle

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Mar 5, 2017, 9:42:44 PM3/5/17
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Well I decided to take a hybrid approach to test out that RustOleum Appliance Epoxy. All of the wood was primered with Kilz Interior/Exterior oil-based paint, then sprayed with the RustOleum product (well except the very bottom, and very top where I would just silicone the granite on). I cordoned off a garage bay with clear plastic, and painted with the door open, closing it after a few minutes of finishing spraying. I had a small utility heater in the area on low, but it must have only kept the temperature in the high 50s or low 60s Fahrenheit. After a day or two, I sanded with one pass of 220 grit. Then I coated it again with most of second can, and let dry for another 2 or 3 days before bringing into my house and attaching the top granite with silicone.

I am not convinced it is fully dry yet, as I pulled a house-key across it gently and could see a mark. Hopefully it will harden up, otherwise I can only guess it might have been too cold while it cured. The label does say to wait either an hour or a week to recoat, and I did it after a day or two. Anyway, time will tell. It isn't the main surface, so it isn't a huge deal.

Thanks for the tips, everyone!

IMAG0041.jpg

Cory Tobin

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Mar 6, 2017, 2:01:26 AM3/6/17
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Oh right, I forgot about the cure time - it takes quite a while to fully harden.  But I'm not sure if waiting a week between coats is actually critical.  I put down the second coat within an hour or two of the first coat.

Jeff Backstrom

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Mar 11, 2017, 9:30:53 PM3/11/17
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Scrounge up some scrap Corian on Craigslist. Corian is alumina-filled acrylic, so it has the same solvent susceptibilities as acrylic. But it makes a very nice workbench, particularly if you can find a scrap piece the right size.


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