Galley Benchtop Material replacement

[colemj]

I agree that stainless is great for that. Unfortunately it can also be rather industrial looking, hot if in sunlight and reflective. I think it would be nice in a galley down boat, but not so much in a galley up.

Mark

[Moonos]

Does anyone have any experience with the material gunboats use? They mention honeycomb cored furniture for weight reasons.

While fibre would be out of the price point, since the size isn't huge i'm sure any other material would not be too expensive... now getting it in Australia and getting someone who knows how to use it might be a different matter

[colemj]

I have been on two gunboats (48 and 64) and they had carbon fiber interiors (even the toilet seats!). I don't know if that is standard.

Cored furniture and flooring is not uncommon in catamarans.

Mark

[JRM]

Originally Posted by colemj

I agree that stainless is great for that. Unfortunately it can also be rather industrial looking, hot if in sunlight and reflective. I think it would be nice in a galley down boat, but not so much in a galley up.

Mark

It sounds nuts but I once responded to a boat fire where candy wrappers and a chip bag, left in a stainless sink on a big powerboat's flybridge, caught fire from reflected sunlight. I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it firsthand, being the first one aboard. It was a fully enclosed flybridge, and a passerby saw it filled with smoke. In the end there was no real damage, but the call stuck with me.

Not that it's an ignition hazard, that one had to a "one in several million" chance. But it would seem to be a bit sterile in that environment.

We have a guy here who makes these sweet tables and counters out of reclaimed wood like fences and barns. Cuts them thin and encases them in epoxy. I'm not sure how durable they are, but they look really sweet and probably lighter than stone or Corian.

JRM

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[mrlee]

As for the weight versus thickness issue...I build a lot of cabinets and pieces I need and with the high cost of materials here I am always in the same boat..I just cannot afford thick...so I opt for a little more support below and use thinner laminating pieces..be it plywood for my cabinets or corian for a countertop the concept is still the same. I have even mixed 1 liter of fiberglass resin with 2 ozs. of acetone then catalysed it, painted my wood with it, and let it soak in and dry...it is pretty waterproof before I polyurethane it...and stainless steel screws still penetrate and hold very well...
I hope to hear what you decide on...
Be safe and happy

[sobraon]

I have to say that Stainless wrapped on ply is a great material for Galley wet benches. I have read some of the for and against in this thread, however I can speak from experience.

When I rebuilt my galley 10 years ago I was considering using Corian. After considerable research I decided against it. Whilst it initially looks good it is heavy, expensive and marks very easy. As someone who enjoys a nice red wine occasionally Corian had a serious problem with staining. I was replacing the entire galley so I had an open book.

I was inspired by photos of the galley in Greg Normans boat Aussie Rules (M/Y Floridian now M/Y Nomad) The benches were Brushed Stainless with mirror polished Edges.

What will surprise many is that stainless is much cheaper, Lighter and harder wearing than any other surface and the big plus, absolutely waterproof. It is easy to maintain and I don't believe it is industrial looking at all.

We don't have a reflective problem as some have suggested. Whilst it is down inside the boat we do have a large Lemar Hatch that when open allows direct sunlight on the surface and I have never experienced a major issue.

The best thing is the sink is welded in and there is absolutely no were for water to ingress.

Maintenance of the top surface is easy with a 3M scotchbrite pad and in 10 years the edges have lost none of there reflective shine.

So far as the industrial look comment we regularly have guest comment on how wonderful the galley looks. Never had a derogatory remark. Quite the opposite.

We mixed the top with formica and timber edges above the Refrigerator and freezer where there was not an issue with water. I think the combination works great.



The other thing we did was to use M8 mirror stainless as the splashback. It gives a feeling of openness to the galley.

I used the same bench top on the electrical cupboard to match the galley. It's hard wearing surface and give me a great little work bench.




I hope this helps in your decision. I will look for a better photo of the galley bench.

Garry
Spirit of Sobraon
Home Page | Spirit of Sobraon's Travel Log

[Sam Plan B]

Since your sinks are stainless steel you might consider a stainless steel galley top. I had one made up at Stainless Steel Fabricators in Raleigh NC. Stainless Steel Fabricators I made a simple drawing in Autocad and emailed it to them. They use the drawing to run their laser cutter. It came back a perfect fit. I glued it down with Dow 5200. My old galley top was plastic laminate over rotted plywood. I pulled up the P-lam and filled in the rotted plywood with epoxy filler. It worked out fine.

[Terra Nova]

so--lovely interior.

[Stonefloat]

We decided to change from Formica to corian last year. Located enough material at a re-cycler place( corian ) apparently is not available to the public without custom installer . If you are handy with a router other than a Mountian of plastic shavings it was relatively easy to work with using carbide wood tools. After spending one season with new counters earned many bonus points from Admiral. You can get matching epoxy from solid surface.com
Cheers, Stonefloat

[belizesailor]

Originally Posted by sobraon

I have to say that Stainless wrapped on ply is a great material for Galley wet benches. I have read some of the for and against in this thread, however I can speak from experience.

When I rebuilt my galley 10 years ago I was considering using Corian. After considerable research I decided against it. Whilst it initially looks good it is heavy, expensive and marks very easy. As someone who enjoys a nice red wine occasionally Corian had a serious problem with staining. I was replacing the entire galley so I had an open book.

I was inspired by photos of the galley in Greg Normans boat Aussie Rules (M/Y Floridian now M/Y Nomad) The benches were Brushed Stainless with mirror polished Edges.
...

Cool. Do you have a better detail shot of the galley surface itself?

I think with a bit of trim work an SS galley could be made to look less industrial.

Sure does appeal to me.

(Ironically, as Mark (colemj) knows, I've got literally a ton of corian on my boat...lost that battle with the late Admiral when we were just living aboard)

[northwestsailor]

OK. I think I am sold on stainless. Neither excessive reflection nor Heat are problems. The expansive feeling for the sink backsplash would be nice. Now to get the tile off........


Sent from my iPhone using Cruisers Sailing Forum

[SailRedemption]

Originally Posted by sobraon

I have to say that Stainless wrapped on ply is a great material for Galley wet benches. I have read some of the for and against in this thread, however I can speak from experience.

When I rebuilt my galley 10 years ago I was considering using Corian. After considerable research I decided against it. Whilst it initially looks good it is heavy, expensive and marks very easy. As someone who enjoys a nice red wine occasionally Corian had a serious problem with staining. I was replacing the entire galley so I had an open book.

I was inspired by photos of the galley in Greg Normans boat Aussie Rules (M/Y Floridian now M/Y Nomad) The benches were Brushed Stainless with mirror polished Edges.

What will surprise many is that stainless is much cheaper, Lighter and harder wearing than any other surface and the big plus, absolutely waterproof. It is easy to maintain and I don't believe it is industrial looking at all.

We don't have a reflective problem as some have suggested. Whilst it is down inside the boat we do have a large Lemar Hatch that when open allows direct sunlight on the surface and I have never experienced a major issue.

The best thing is the sink is welded in and there is absolutely no were for water to ingress.

Maintenance of the top surface is easy with a 3M scotchbrite pad and in 10 years the edges have lost none of there reflective shine.

So far as the industrial look comment we regularly have guest comment on how wonderful the galley looks. Never had a derogatory remark. Quite the opposite.

We mixed the top with formica and timber edges above the Refrigerator and freezer where there was not an issue with water. I think the combination works great.



The other thing we did was to use M8 mirror stainless as the splashback. It gives a feeling of openness to the galley.

I used the same bench top on the electrical cupboard to match the galley. It's hard wearing surface and give me a great little work bench.




I hope this helps in your decision. I will look for a better photo of the galley bench.

Garry
Spirit of Sobraon
Home Page | Spirit of Sobraon's Travel Log

Where did you get the custom ss counters made? Did you just go to a kitchen/bathroom top maker or did you search online for a ss counter top place?

Looks great, I was going to do the same half and half like you. Sink area would be all one sheet ss and the area where the reefers are would be the original teak and holly with a durable clear over it like Bar top or similar.

[northwestsailor]

Originally Posted by northwestsailor

OK. I think I am sold on stainless. Neither excessive reflection nor heat are problems. The expansive feeling from the sink backsplash would be nice. Now to get the tile off........



Sent from my iPhone using Cruisers Sailing Forum

Sent from my iPhone using Cruisers Sailing Forum

[sobraon]

Thanks for the favourable comments. I will take a couple of shots of the galley this morning and post them later today. We are 12 hours out of sync with the US here in Borneo.

The bench tops were done by a stainless fabricator in Brisbane, Concept Stainless. I had used him to do work for my Race Team. He since sold the business and the Company have become Marine Specialists. I think I showed them a whole new a lucrative market. At the time he was neither a bench top or marine specialist.

The short answer is that any fabricator with a folder can do the work. I find it is preferable to not use 'Marine Specialists'.

Garry
sv Spirit of Sobraon
Home Page | Spirit of Sobraon's Travel Log

[sobraon]

I took these photos this morning. I hope this provides the detail you wanted.

The bench top is 1mm Brushed stainless wrapped on 1/2" ply. The top was plasma cut for the stove top, sink and taps. The sink was welded and blended. The edges are 30mm with a 6mm returns. They were double folded with a pencil round bend then mirror polished.

I supplied the ply counter tops and the sink and the fabricator did the rest.

As the corners of the benches are exposed They were an extra expense. They needed to be fabricated, welded, blended and polished.

The splash back was plasma cut to conform with the cabin sides from a sheet of M8 mirror stainless. M8 is absolute mirror. It was the most expensive part of the whole process. I provided a 3mm mdf template for the cut. After jack hammering the tiles off the bulkhead of the old galley.. ( Jackhammer was the only way to remove them) I sealed a sheet of 3mm white poly coated ply with epoxy then epoxy glued it to the bulkhead. It is needed as the bulkhead has to be absolutely smooth otherwise imperfections will telegraph trough the stainless. The splash back was glued to the new bulkhead surface with construction adhesive. The bench top was then fitted up to the splash back and sealed with a silicone specifically designed for stainless. In 10 years it has never leaked and with proper care the splash back has not scratched or tarnished.

In all the stainless bench tops for the galley, the electrical cupboard and the splash back cost around $800.

I did the kitchen bench top in our house renovation the same and it was a lot cheaper because it fitted between 2 bulkheads and didn't require the corner details.











I hope this helps.

Garry
sv Spirit of Sobraon
Home Page | Spirit of Sobraon's Travel Log