Dumb Question-Can you no longer purchase formica counter-tops? - CatAdjuster.org - An Adjuster to Adjuster Community - Catastrophe Central, The Adjuster's Forum - Catastrophe Claim Handling

Dumb Question-Can you no longer purchase formica counter-tops?

Last Post 30 Jul 2008 06:28 AM by Rick Hansen. 5 Replies.

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David Parks User is Offline

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11 May 2008 03:26 PM
Havent had a Kitchen counter-top loss in a long time. Contracotr reports the insured Formica counter-tops are no longer made and LKQ is plastic laminate. Is this true? Is the plastic laminate LKQ? Thanks,

Rocke Baker User is Offline

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11 May 2008 05:11 PM
Formica Corp http://www.formica.com/publish/site/na/us/en/index/laminate/new.html shows everything they produce. They still show laminates in their web pages. I have always heard it as "plastic laminate" or Formica. Just like using the Xerox machine instead of copier. Very possible the style is no longer made.

Bob Harvey User is Offline

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11 May 2008 05:17 PM
Exactly. You will find "Wilsonart" and other mfgr, but it is the same thing. When a formica counter has to be replaced, you pretty much are doing all the counters, it's cheap, and you just replace all of it to match and call it a day. If you are using Xactimate, don't forget the added fee for mitered corners, and you measure those runs to the tip of the corners.

Tom Toll

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11 May 2008 05:24 PM
Formica has and will probably always be plastic laminate. They just improve on the laminates ability to prevent scratching , marring pattern and color change. Formica was so strong in the cabinet top market, that everyone just refers to Formica as the top, when in acutualiy it is a plastic laminate product like most others. Yes, it should be LKQ. Of course, patterns and colors only last a few years, purposefully, so if one is damaged the whole piece must be replaced. Good marketing net much more profit.

Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.

R .D. Hood User is Offline

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11 May 2008 08:48 PM
If it was just a pot burn on the top surface, we used to cut out the burned area and insert a wood cutting board, if the insured agreed to it. Much less expensive and the PH liked the idea of a built in wood cutting board. We did them as large as 36" X 24" and fortunately made a lot of good inroads with the carriers, by lessening the cost. Now this was 25-30 years ago, so im not sure what to expect today. You can also recover the plastic laminate with another material, as this has been done personally, and no one can tell.

"Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new... Albert Einstein"

Rick Hansen User is Offline

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30 Jul 2008 06:28 AM
You are exactly right about an overlay. As a contractor, I have overlayed a lot of plastic laminate counter tops with another layer of laminate, with ceramic tile, and 12x12 granite tiles. If using tile, you have to rip the leading edge off with a circular saw first. Although I have not had this happen yet, If I were to adjust a countertop where just the laminate was damaged (you can't overlay if water has gotten into the particle board) I would write it up as a complete tear out and like kind replacement, but if it is an ACV claim and it leaves them with an insufficient amount after depreciation to actually have the work done, they could use this method and have a contractor do an overlay cheaper. One note, however- any time plastic laminate is overlayed, a belt sander with very a coarse belt needs to be used to rough up the top to eliminate the slick surface.

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