do you have an IKEA within reasonable driving distance? I have their butcher block and their laminate

I love ikea, but there's not one near me. However, I'm not really concerned with WHAT type countertop to use; I'm looking for suggestions and/or experience with removing the damaged top that's on there now. Hoping someone can offer some suggestions on best way to get the old one off.

Get in touch with an independent counter person or 2. Get a couple of estimates and see what you can do with them. Lowes and others like them want to sell new cabinets and can't think outside of the box.

My thoughts: Lots of people replace countertops in these homes. It sounds like the countertop has to come off anyway. If they're particle board (chipboard?) I don't see how you could save them. Since I had moved things out under my sink I looked under there with a flashlight. I saw screws (not many of them) going thru frame work up into the countertops. I didn't see any evidence of glue. I saw framing also screwed into the wall behind (more screws there). Looks pretty sturdy to me. If yours is anything like mine you should be able to remove it without your cabinets collapsing. Hope that gives you some encouragement. I'm all about the DIY :)

abbisgram - Thanks, you've given me the confidence to go ahead and tackle this. Mine looks pretty much the same underneath. I was just afraid there was something I was missing after the remark from the guy at Lowes. I will have to special order the tops (like I said, no room for the backsplash on the stock laminate counters) and then give it a go. :)

You're welcome. Sometimes all we need is a little nudge to get going. Come back and let us know how it goes. Maybe post some pics, too?

Okay. Update on removing countertop(s). We took the first (of 2) countertops off. Abbisgram, you were correct, and there were only a few screws attaching the top. All came out easily except one which was impossible to get to without disassembling the whole cabinet, so we got out the sawzall and took care of that one. Decided for several reasons not to special order countertops. We bought a sheet of 3/4" plywood (4x8), had it cut in half lengthwise, and that will do all the new countertops. Got the first one on and will need to put the tiles and edging on. Regarding the comment from the guy at Lowes: He was correct in the sense that the cabinet was very flimsy; however, it didn't 'fall apart'. The front (where the doors are attached) is pretty standard, however the sides of the cabinet are 1/8" (at most) luan, and there is no back piece at all, just a 1x2 strip fastened to the bottom of the (old) countertop, then screwed to the wall. Thankfully, the shelf inside the cabinet seemed to help keep it all together til we got the new top on it. Once the new plywood was on though, it is as sturdy as it was before ... lol. Not sure if I mentioned that this is not our full-time home, it's a mobile home that we purchased in a resort town, so we are not there to work on it every day. Hoping to go back next week and remove/replace the 2nd countertop, then cover them. Bottom line is that it wasn't nearly as scary as the Lowe's guy made it sound. And thanks, abbisgram, for the encouragement. :) As a side note, the finished countertops will end up costing under $100 for approx. 13-14 feet of countertops. I'm not the best at taking pictures, but will try to post some when we finish.

This post was edited by danandcarol on Sat, Sep 27, 14 at 22:44

I'm so glad you went ahead with it yourself. I'm sure they'll look great. Tiling is something I've never done but I keep thinking I will sometime. Good luck with the rest of the job.

Okay, here's my pics (so far, anyway). First, a little about me ... I'm 62, and I alternate between spending 'too much money' (in my DH's opinion) and doing things 'on the cheap'. I'm doing this 'on the cheap'. I also have no small children and am fairly careful with my countertops. I have 10-year-old formica that still looks new. I'm sure I'll get some nay-sayers on my method here. But I decided to cover the new countertop in vinyl tiles. I used the largest ones I could find (18" sq) and they have some texture to them (which I like, even though there were 'smooth' options too). I do keep a glass cutting board on my counters, so no cutting or hot pots on the countertop, but I don't do those things on formica either. And I just didn't want the 'clank' of setting things on ceramic, porcelain, or granite tiles. If it doesn't work out (although I believe it will), I can simply remove the vinyl tiles and replace with something else. Also, keeping a few extra vinyl tiles 'just in case'. I used decorative wood moulding around the edges to hide the plywood plus protect the edges of the tiles. Anyway, still got one counter to go, but here are some pics for now. I also put in one pic of the 'before' countertop just to show how terrible it was. Also have a breakfast bar and will probably give it the same treatment although there's really nothing wrong with it; just want it to match. : ) PS, abbisgram, tiling (ceramic, porcelain, etc) isn't hard except on your knees ... lol ... so you should really give it a go.

This post was edited by danandcarol on Wed, Oct 1, 14 at 19:52

One pic of the new countertop. The mosaic tile at the very top will be my backsplash when I finish the countertops.

This post was edited by danandcarol on Wed, Oct 1, 14 at 19:43

One last pic.

This post was edited by danandcarol on Wed, Oct 1, 14 at 19:48

Sorry .. picture posted twice and I don't see a way to remove the duplicate .... oh, well ...

This post was edited by danandcarol on Wed, Oct 1, 14 at 21:55

Yes, you definitely needed to fix that. A+ for creative thinking! I really like your choices, I keep looking at that red in the backsplash tile with the curtain. The moulding is a nice (and useful) touch & I'm pretty sure I have a sample of that tile. lol Similar tastes, maybe? You'll have a nice, clean surface for your kitchen & careful as you are should last a long time. I hope you'll show pics of the finished look.
I'm soon to be 54 and my knees are just about done for :( might attempt a backsplash sometime though.

Thanks. I was looking for a thrifty solution and remembered the linoleum countertops of old, then wondered why the vinyl tiles wouldn't work and couldn't think of a reason, so ... voila! The mosaic was definitely one of my 'spent too much money' moments. Saw it on one of the HGTV design-competition shows and had to find it. I was going to use it in my full-time home, but never did, so it's just sitting in a closet for the past 4+ years. I am definitely dreading the tile cutting though (tried it years ago before putting in closet). Part are stone and part are glass, which makes for a pretty contrast, but a PIA to cut. Hoping I won't have as many cuts to do in this kitchen. My knees are also pretty much shot, so no more floor tiling for me, but walls are easy too. Believe me when I tell you that tile is NOT hard to do, just be sure to prep correctly. Will try to post finished pics, but it will probably be a while before mosaic goes up; also have to do the floor (vinyl planks ... love them) in there.

This post was edited by danandcarol on Thu, Oct 2, 14 at 18:04