Epoxy Over Anything

Video

Summary

This video starts out with a quick summary of their intention to teach you how to resurface your laminate countertops with epoxy. It flashes up a great cost comparison of the cost of recoating your laminate with epoxy vs replacing it with various alternatives. The epoxy stands out as an excellent bargain at just $5/sqft. Other options start out around $25 with laminate and go up to about $70 for quarts. A medium sized kitchen counter might be 60 square feet, so the savings will range from $1200 for a laminate and $3900 for quartz. That's a substantial savings. Be sure to watch this video if you intend to resurface your kitchen or bathroom counters!

First step: rough up the surface by sanding it with 60-100 grit sandpaper. This will ensure the epoxy bonds securely. Round the edges and corners so the epoxy can flow nicely from the top surface to the sides.

Next apply a bonding primer. Let it dry for 20-30 minutes, then return for the next step.

Now, apply an epoxy undercoat. In this video, the creator is using dark metallic colors to make a stone-like finish, so his undercoat is black. This will not dominate the color of the counters, but instead it will provide depth to the final colors.

Tape up edges of the counter to prevent the epoxy from spilling down the edges (until later).

Mix the epoxy. Separate out portions to allow mixing separate colors.

Mix the colors, then pour some back into the larger mixing bucket. Don't blend, but pour them in so that they swirl a bit.

Put a thin coat on the top surface of the counter so that it will wet the surface. That way when you pour the mix of colors, the epoxy will easily flow across the surface. Once the surface is lightly coated, pour stripes across the counter. As the epoxy spreads out, you will some natural veins from the swirled colors.

By pouring a few large strips that mostly cover the counter, then going back over and pouring some thinner ones, it yields a very nice blend of veins and produces a tremendous appearance.

The surface is quickly torched to expand and pop any bubbles in the epoxy.

Allow to set for a bit (in the video, they say 2 hours for this particular epoxy). This lets the epoxy start to thicken. Then the tap on the sides can be peeled so the epoxy flows over the edges. Pull the tap off in a slight downward direction. This will prevent pushing the epoxy back on the top and will instead help pull it down the side of the counter.

The epoxy is thicker, but will still flow. But to make sure the epoxy covers the whole side one should wet the surface by pulling the epoxy down all around. Without this, a few larger drip paths will form and there will be complete dry spots on the sides. Those initial drip paths have a thicker volume of epoxy, pick up someof that with your finger and then brush it on the dry sections. Once the whole side is wet, the epoxy will level across it. Be sure to not touch the top surface.

This is one of the best videos I have seen for creating a stone like countertop.