I own and maintain duplexes, rental units. What is the best way to makeover the countertop? In my own house, I have ceramic tiled over it with good results. I have never delved into cabinet or countertop replacement though. I see the sheets and preformed laminate at Menards. Any opinions, experience on these two would be much appreciated. With the sheets, do you just eliminate the backsplash?

Thanks in advance,

Lance

 

Lance, building a sheet laminate countertop is at best tedious, and the end result, after you make you back splash, you will always have a crack at the bottom where they join. You will need fairly good skills with a router and purchase special bits for the edging. Since it is a rental, a preformed countertop will tend to keep things a little more tidy, even with some of the most discriminating renters

 

I agree with Chandler. Making them yourself seems like a big hassel to me.

For my rentals, I put on new tops from Menards. If it's a pretty simple kitchen, they have ready made pieces from 4' to at least 12', maybe longer. The also have left and right miters for corners. I think there are only 4 or five laminate choices. You may need to cut down a stock sized piece and apply the laminate endcap, but thats very easy. The stock pieces can usually be had for around $5/foot.

For more complicated kitchens, I've custom ordered the tops. You get many more laminate choices, but as I recall the price ran to around $10/foot for basics.

Removing and installing the tops is a breeze. Check for screws from underneath. Often people have simply siliconed them down, so you can just pop it loose.

S