In a previous home I had maple butcher block countertops. I oiled them (mineral oil) once a year and used them to roll dough, chop- basically abused them. I never worried about them, even around the sink.

In my recent remodel of my old house, I replaced a laminate island with walnut edge style butcher block from Craft-Art. It is lovely! I followed another GW'ers post about caring for the top, since I plan on using it as a cutting board, to roll dough, and basically, once again, to abuse it! I made my own mix of beeswax and mineral oil that I heated on the stove, just as petestein1 described, and it came out as a semi hard paste that I poured into a wide mouthed canning jar. I just reach in and grab a small handful and rub it all over the counter, then use a rag to rub it in further. It holds up great and feels like silk. I've only had the countertop in for a few weeks, so I can't talk about the longevity of it, but I sure think it's pretty easy.

Others here tend to use waterlox, but I try to reduce the amount of chemicals in my house, and I wanted to cut on it, so that was not an option. Here's that old post I was talking about. HTH!

Here is a link that might be useful: walnut butcherblock used as cutting board

I think the mineral oil finish would be good if you will have food on them all the time. If you like to bake and roll out dough, though, maybe you can have a marble section somewhere. I have both marble and walnut tops in my kitchen, and the marble is much better for rolling out dough, cutting cookies, etc...

Thanks, for the advice, i believe i am leaning toward the mineral oil, doesnt the Waterlok have chemicals that isnt safe for food? I talked to a lady who has them and she out an Epoxy finish in hers, but I dont think i want them shiny like that. Also i though i might just get a small slab of granite or marble just to lay on top of the counter for food prep.

Waterlox is safe for food once it cures, but not for cutting. If you want to use your wood countertop like a regular countertop, it's fine, but none of the curing oils (waterlox, pure tung oil, etc.) are for counters you plan to use like a butcherblock cutting board.

SO rolling dough on waterlox wouldn't be an issue then right? Only if you are cutting. I planned on using waterlox b/c I won't be cutting on it, but I also don't want a shiny look. Do they make a matte finish waterlox? I got a boos cutting board and love the look as it is. I still have to apply the boos cream on it...

Yes, there is a satin finish for Waterlox.
Or, you can break the shine on the shiny Waterlox
by gently sanding with 0000 steel wool.
Works great.

Here, at the link, are more directions for finishing wood with wax for a satin finish.
I do not think the product the video recommends, Johnson's Wax, is probably food safe.

Here is a link that might be useful: final wood finish step -- waxed finish

You might also want to look into Rockler's Salad Bowl finish, which is more matte.

The Salad Bowl Finish is more matte than if I used the Satin Waterlox? How else do they differ? I keep reading all the threads regarding wood countertops and I don't know why I can't decide what I should do! : ) It's only for the island which will not have a sink and we plan to use cutting boards.

My Boos block cutting board has their board cream on it (mix of oil and wax) and I just love the way it looks. But, will that be durable enough for everyday use (with cutting boards)? We will be eating at the island and I wonder if sliding around dishes on it, kids coloring, etc... if that would "work" for us. Or, if we have spills, etc? How things might stain it...

I assume the Waterlox may be more protective of spills and easier to wipe down? How about the Salad Bowl finish? How would you compare the 3 regarding looks AND their ability to protect the wood from any stains/damage?
Would the waterlox (or others) show many scratches? I really want it to look like wood (obviously) and not like furniture or like it has a coat of varnish on it.

So many questions, I know... Thanks!

PS- Above we talked about baking, rolling out dough, and that it's fine with Waterlox. What about if you are using cookie cutters and the like and want to do that right on the island? Would that be an issue with safety and/or with scratching?
We may have a marble baking area but I'd still like to know as I hate to restrict what I'm able to do at the island if I should so desire. : )

2 Little Fishies, I am in the same boat as you,I can't decide what finish either, or if i should even go with wood countertops. I want to recreate an early 1900's kitchen, and the wood countertops are the only counters that appeal to me. I'm having such a hard time deciding this, because my counters will be constantly used and abused, but i so want the worn wood look, i'm just having such a hard time.

I will have like 28' of counter space and I dont want them to look like furniture either or have shiny finish, but i don't think I want to go the oiled route either, because i'm also afraid of stains and spills also.

So I beleive if I do install wood countertops it will be with a matte finish waterlox. I will also have an island/farmtable built out of antique wormy chesnut that is from a buildng on our property and I will probably do the matte waterlox on that as well...Hope to get some more advice, you guys are great, Im so glad I found this site.

2LittleFishies, I've never used the salad bowl finish on anything, but I notice that over at ikeafans some of the installers who post there prefer it to waterlox. It's not tung oil based, for one thing (less natural, but no worry about people with nut allergies). Their page has several linked docs with the tech specs. Just click the More Info tab:

Here is a link that might be useful: general finishes salad bowl/toymakers finish

What about if you are using cookie cutters and the like and want to do that right on the island? Would that be an issue with safety and/or with scratching?

You'd have to be pretty brutal with your cookie cutters to damage a finish enough to be gouging up big chips of that into the dough, I would think, no matter what finish you're using.

kelvance- If you WANT a worn look it seems to me oiled would be fine for you, no? The link that oldhousegal posted is so helpful. From the looks of it even with cutting on the island the one shown really looks great! And that person said they cut all kinds of things & I don't see any stains.

I'll really have to search out pics of an island with Satin Waterlox to see the sheen. Or better yet see one in person. I actually bought a sample packet and an unfinished cutting board that I am going to test but I'm trying to talk my DH into doing it instead of me. (following Craft Art's instructions)

Then I can compare both cutting boards- one with WL and one with Boos Board Cream (oil/wax). Maybe I'll do a 3rd with Salad Bowl finish too! : )
(and I can line them up next to my several marble tiles that I've been "using" on my countertop to see how they "wear" : )

This is all hard work this kitchen thing! lol

yes 2little fishies, it sure is hard work trying to figure this out. lol
I hope you post when you finish your cutting boards to find out, i just might do that too, with the different finishes thats a great idea!

The Boos Boards COME pre-finished with their Boos Cream (I called). Not sure if you can get them any other way from them. It was actually a Christmas gift. The 2nd board I ordered from Craft-Art and I had to call to tell them I didn't want anything on it and that I was experimenting with finishes : )

Ok, I have a cutting board I've been using for 8 years, and I've recently started putting mineral oil on it, and it's looks much better, never knew you could do that till recently, lol. I also have a small hallway in my house that is hardwood like 50 years old, and it looked bad, and I put mineral oil on it, and it's beautiful now!! I also did all my old doors in my house with oil too, and they look amazing! So who knows maybe oil it is :) I'm still just concerned about everyday wear on countertops, idk, I just don't want to ruin them.

I like the Boos Board cream b/c it's a mix of mineral oil and bees wax. I think it might be less shiny than the oil- although I know the oil gets soaked in soon enough.
I hear with wood even if you got a dent or bad scratches you can always refinish and they will be like new again. So, that's nice : )

I think we need to keep researching how WL or the oil holds up to everyday wear (sliding plates, glass rings, staining). Does the WL protect better than oil would?

I used Daly's Profin on my wood counters. It has a nice smooth finish and it is food safe. It is very easy to DIY.

Our island is finished with Good Stuff for Wood. It's FDA approved for food surfaces.

Here is a link that might be useful: my kitchen

This was good info from Devo's plus the link at the bottom:

Finishes Available

The type of finish you choose will depend on how you plan to use your kitchen countertop, island top or butcher block. All wood top finishes by DeVos Custom Woodworking have ingredients that are safe for food contact. However, countertops that are used as cutting surfaces are finished differently from countertops that need to be waterproof, scratch-resistant and heat-resistant.

Waterloxî (recommended as a permanent finish not to be used as a cutting surface)

Waterloxî is a tung oil-based permanent finish that will stand up to hard daily use. It is ideal for countertops (especially those around sinks and stoves), island tops, bar tops and tabletops. ItâÂÂs tough, hard, and food safe. Additionally, this finish is waterproof, heat- and stain-resistant. It gives a rich, hand-rubbed appearance while enhancing the grain and penetrating and sealing the wood fibers beneath the surface. The finish will not chip, peel, crack or wrinkle. Waterloxî finishes are available in satin, semi-gloss, and high-gloss. (Note: Do not chop on wood tops with this finish; use a cutting board instead.)

All tops that are treated with Waterloxî receive a minimum of four coats on the visible side of the top and three coats on sides that are not visible, though six coats are typical for tops with cut-outs for sinks or cooktops, or for satin-finish tops.

Waterloxî is an excellent finish. We use it on our own kitchen table and on all of our cabinets. See the Waterloxî website for additional information.

Tung Oil/Citrus Finish (recommended for tops used as cutting surfaces)

We highly recommend the Tung Oil/Citrus finish over the mineral oil finish for tops that will be used as cutting surfaces. Pure tung oil is FDA approved and non-toxic by nature. Citrus solvent, which is 98% orange peel oil and 2% water, is added to tung oil to hasten the drying process and deepen the penetration of the oil into the wood. The oil penetrating into the wood makes the surface resistant to water and chemical damage. Surfaces treated with the Tung Oil/Citrus finish have an overall matte quality while still retaining their natural appearance.

DeVos Custom Woodworking applies four coats of the Tung Oil/Citrus finish to ensure a well-oiled finish. Another advantage of using this finish is that the finish only needs to be renewed about every six months to a year, depending on usage, as opposed to a mineral oil finish that needs monthly attention. (See our Care and Maintenance instructions for more information).

Here is a link that might be useful: Devos Woodworking