Four Advantages and Everything Else You Wanted to Know About Concrete Benchtops

Concrete has become a much popular choice these days for kitchen benchtops. It can be manufactured and finished in a plethora of ways for offering the classic appearance of marble or stone-type granites.

The use of concrete is especially common in modern minimalist homes and kitchens, where the form factor and its looks are selected over other less hardy materials and unnecessary decorations. It is no surprise that concrete benchtops are widely acknowledged as design statements in the present era and provide the end users with both impeccability and aesthetics in a single package.

      ·         Advantages

•       Very hard wearing
•       Comparatively inexpensive
•       Ages well
•       Comes in a myriad of designs

      ·         Properties

Being extremely sturdy and robust, concrete benchtops can bear a substantial amount of abuse in the kitchen without any risk of damage.

It is also remarkably heavy, and if you happen to have a stump subfloor then you might require specially engineered supports for sustaining its weight. They are known to incorporate concrete end supports as well at times for complementing their appearance and ensuring stability.

Similar to stone countertops, concrete benchtops are porous and are prone to scratches and as well as etches and stains of oils and acids. The resiliency of such benchtops is typically decided by three factors, namely, the sealants that were used, how frequently your bench is maintained, and how fast you clean up any liquid and food spills. It is worth noting that a number of sealants might alter their color too when exposed to ultraviolet light.

Though a few sealants do offer heat resistivity up to some level, you should always remember never to put very cold or hot objects on your benchtop. Similar to most engineered and natural stones, concrete benchtops are always vulnerable to thermal shock.

    ·         Maintenance

The maintenance of your concrete benchtop mostly depends on the sealants that you have used. Wax is pretty much a popular choice and looks great, though requires to be reapplied quite periodically. Other sealants are likely to need less attention though at the cost of differing property-wise and in their appearances.

Concrete benchtops can also be wiped off with special Ph-neutral cleaners that are designed for engineered and natural stone surfaces. Make a point to avoid acidic cleaners at any cost as they could etch the surface of your benchtop.