On Tue, 25 Nov 2008 09:46:22 -0500, "Dee Randall"
> wrote:
>
>"The Cook" > wrote in message
.. .
>> On Tue, 25 Nov 2008 00:17:09 -0500, "Dee Randall"
>> > wrote:
>>
>>>
>>>I am purchasing a 32W x 48L table for my not-so-large kitchen, that is 8"
>>>wider than the 24" stainless steel work table that I use constantly and
>>>love, and use it as a moveable kitchen island, but the width of 24" is
>>>just
>>>too narrow for me in bread-making.
>>>
>>>The new table top is a solid piece of oak and I notice that John Boos' oil
>>> http://www.amazon.com/John-Boos-Myst..._product_topis
>>> made not only of mineral oil, but linseed and tung, and recommendsregular
>>> oiling every 4-6 weeks with their product.It seems to me that a mineral
>>> oil-only is used more often; say, once aweek. I've read a bit about
>>> tung. I have little experience with oilingwood, I believe it was linseed
>>> oil, which was most common in the 70's &80's, but what I've done left me
>>> totally unsatisfied. I was very happy whenthey started making cutting
>>> boards plastic ;-)) DH will be a help to meapplying whatever I
>>> choose.I'm going to have a problem, I'm sure, because I use the ss for
>>> just aboutevery sloppy job imaginable, and it will be hard to not use it
>>> for thingslike this, as an example, things I can remember in the last day
>>> or so:Separating milk and cream into jars; prepping cilantro and putting
>>> them intoice cubes, peeling apples, oranges, preparing any number of
>>> vegetables forcooking; wrapping cooked meat
>>>for the freezer; setting the garbage bowl on;making yogurt, setting dishes
>>>on to fill to take to the dining room .....I will purchase a couple of
>>>matching bar-type proper heigth seats for it, soI can do a couple of these
>>>chores, while I'm sitting, or even watching a DVDor TV; It has two small
>>>stainless steel shelves below the top on one side,and the chairs go on the
>>>other side.I'm not sure exactly how to handle this furniture piece insofar
>>>as keepingit relatively clean enough when I decide to put the working
>>>machines on it(electrolux mixer, kitchenaid food processor), or drag out
>>>any innumerablepieces of wood for shaping and rising; cleaning off the
>>>excess flour andcleaning up the water that is spilled on it. It will be
>>>getting a lot ofhard use. I don't cook timidly ;-))Thankful for any
>>>comments.Dee Dee
>>
>>
>> It depends on what you consider your kitchen to be. Is it a workshop
>> or a display room? Workshop tools tend to look like they are used.
>> That said, a wood table is always going to be harder to keep clean and
>> show the effects of use much more than metal or stone.
>>
>> Is the table top finished in any way or is it raw wood? If it has a
>> finish you will have to treat the finish, not the wood.
>>
>> My choice for my wood cutting boards is plain mineral oil. I have
>> been using plain mineral oil on my end grain cherry board for about 10
>> years and it still looks great, especially after I clean it well and
>> re-oil it. It also tends to repel liquids. I have started on the
>> process of getting a good oil finish on a new John Boos board I
>> recently purchased.
>>
>> Have fun with the new table.
>
>
>Thanks for the information. Sorry about the OP not having any paragraphs -
>I put them in, don't know what happened.
>
>My kitchen is for me, totally a workshop.
>The table when it arrives is raw wood, so I will be treating the wood,
>correct? not a finish. So mineral oil will do it? In your opinion,of
>course.
>
>Are you using plain mineral oil on your John Boos board?
>
In my opinion you need nothing more than mineral oil. It is safe and
cheap. Unless you use something to really seal the wood grain, it
will take a while to develop good water resistance. I put oil on my
new one after I use and rinse it off. It is already starting to bead
water some. Sort of like it takes some use to get a cast iron skillet
to be non-stick.