Wooden tabletop in the bathroom: a description of the types, tips for choosing and care

The appearance of the bathroom will noticeably change if you introduce a wooden worktop into the interior. Wood is organic with any facing material and for some styles is a necessary element.

You do not often find wooden countertops in bathrooms; many consider this material to be incompatible with high humidity conditions. But nobody is surprised by a bathhouse or a sauna in the form of a log house, although the conditions in them are much more destructive for wood. With proper handling and care, a wooden worktop can serve several generations. In addition to durability, it has other advantages.

• Environmentally friendly. The natural combination of water and wood is so organic that you can feel their positive energy.
• Original. Deciding to install a wooden countertop, we get a unique piece of furniture for the bathroom that is unlikely to be found among friends and acquaintances.
• Beautiful and stylish. The splendor of natural wood is hard to doubt. It suits all styles, but it is especially important for the village direction (country, chalet, Provence, rustic), for classicism, historical, ethnic and ecological styles.
• Easy to handle. Wood is a malleable material and is easy to work with. If there are certain carpentry skills, the countertop can be prepared and installed independently.
• Diverse. The pattern of each tree is never repeated. The color palette of wood products has many shades.
• Compatible. The tree will not only suit stone, tile, glass and other materials as a companion, it will ennoble them with its expensive, presentable appearance. The greater the thickness of the wood, the more expensive and delightful the countertop looks.

But the tree also has flaws.

• The most famous is hydrophobicity. The soft and porous structure easily absorbs moisture, which destroys the material and exposes it to rot. Over time, the countertop becomes a haven for fungi and bacteria. For the same reason, traces of creams, shampoos, hair colors remain on the surface.
• Moisture and high temperatures deform poorly processed products.
• Wood can be scratched, chipped and other destructive actions.
• You will have to take care of the countertop regularly. For too busy people, such material is not suitable.
• The cost of wood is quite high. This is especially true of the whole array and exotic varieties.

The size of the countertop depends on the parameters of the place chosen for it, the products can be of different lengths, depths and thicknesses, can have standard and unusual shapes, but they are structurally divided into only three types.

This design is a tabletop canvas with a cutout corresponding to the plumbing, a sink is installed in it. The sink, located below the tabletop, is less noticeable, and it does not need to be expensive and effective, in this case the emphasis is on the beauty of wood.

In this embodiment, a small hole is made in the countertop, only for draining, and the sink itself is installed on the surface. Dear snow-white plumbing, with smooth geometric lines contrasts well with dark tree species.

This is the most unusual and expensive option when the countertop itself acts as a sink. A monolithic structure can be made from a solid and very solid piece of wood. Inside it, a wash bowl and a drain hole are cut out, and communications are connected to it. Dense and well-prepared wood does not decay for many years in contact with water. After antimicrobial and antifungal treatment, it is coated with a special varnish with the addition of nacre.

Wood acquires an expressive appearance, the pattern of structural fibers plays beautifully in any kind of lighting. A monolithic countertop will need constant care, and if carried out, it will last an amazingly long time.

For a countertop, sometimes not a solid wood is used, but several large bars that are glued under pressure on special presses.

Wooden worktops include not only products from furniture panels or solid wood, they also use wood-shaving material. Description of the characteristics of each product will allow them to study and make the right choice.

The most expensive and beautiful option for creating countertops is made from a solid array. For the bathroom, it is better to choose dense types of wood. Our ancestors built their ships from durable low-porous varieties of trees, and they have been in contact with water for decades without difficulty. A tabletop made from solid larch or oak will do its job perfectly.

The most inappropriate material for bathrooms, but accessible to the majority of the population. Sawdust and coarse chips are glued together with resins and pressed using pressure. The toxicity of the adhesive base is enhanced by the effects of hot fumes characteristic of the bathroom.The surface of the countertop is laminated to protect it from moisture, but if the layer is broken, the moisture quickly deforms and destroys the chipboard. The service life of such a product is not more than five years.

In terms of price and quality, this is the most popular material. It is somewhat more expensive than chipboard, but much more reliable in operation. It is made from fine chips, impregnated with paraffin and pressed. The product is durable, non-toxic, environmentally friendly. The material is cramped, which allows you to decorate the surface of furniture. The countertop is laminated to protect against contact with water. With good care, the product will last up to 10 years.

If you make a cut of a large tree (longitudinal or transverse) at the level of the thickness of the countertop - this will be a slab. For products from slab, valuable varieties of trees with a unique pattern and color are chosen. To preserve the natural beauty, the edges are left untreated. Further, the wood is protected from fungi with special impregnations and covered with layers of varnish.

Natural polished boards are glued and pressed, thus obtaining a furniture board, which is subsequently used in the manufacture of products. To create the material, hard and medium grades of wood are used - ash, beech, oak, less often - pine.

A tree of unequal density has a different cost. Before making a choice, you should know that dense varieties have a small porosity, so they hardly pass moisture and do not swell, as is usually the case with softer wood. The choice depends on the budgetary possibilities of each particular family. You can divide tree species into the following categories:

• dense - ebony, jatoba, sucupira, walnut, merabu, oak, larch, olive, maple, cedar, wenge;
• medium density - bamboo, ash, teak, pear, hornbeam, elm, beech;
• low density - birch, alder, chestnut.

Among domestic varieties, oak is especially popular. There are two methods that help achieve oak waterproof properties.

• Stained, that is, by prolonged soaking, when tannins begin to work and give the product special strength.
• Burntwhen the strength of wood is obtained using fire. This technique was invented by the Japanese, but Dutch shipbuilders improved it. After firing, the burned layer is removed with hard brushes, exposing a beautiful and durable material.

Beech has an average fiber density. To make them waterproof, the surface of the wood is waxed.

The dense texture of larch is well suited for countertops in the bathroom. It can be embossed, brushed and other interesting technologies.

Walnut has a beautiful texture and several varieties of rich shades. It refers to the dense materials that are used for luxury countertops.

Despite the fact that teak is considered medium-dense wood, it has rubber compounds in its composition, which best affects the presence of water-repellent properties. A teak worktop has a beautiful honey hue.

In addition to the breed, when choosing a material for a countertop, you need to pay attention to its primary processing. The wood should be dry, even, without traces of knots and cracking. If the product is made from raw material, it may become deformed during drying.

It is possible to preserve the performance of wood longer if it is correctly selected, mounted, and taken care of.

1. In order for the damp atmosphere in the bathroom to become familiar to the countertop, it needs to lie down in these conditions before installation for several weeks.
2. Any moisture on a wooden surface should be removed immediately.
3. Do not use abrasive wood care products.
4. So that as much as possible the surface of the countertop remains untouched, it is better to choose a surface-mounted sink, since only a small drain hole is required to install it.
5. The varnished model lasts 10-15 years, then it should be updated.
6. A product coated with an oil layer requires more thorough care. Four times a year, it must be soaked with fresh oil formulations to maintain a pleasant appearance.

See how to make a hidden installation of a wooden countertop in the next video.