From Cracked to Intact: Easy Fixes for Your Corian Worktop
Corian, whether in the kitchen, covering a baby-changing station, or framing your windows, is a common feature in many homes today. Its relatively affordable price, availability in all the colours of the rainbow and different surface finishes, long service life, and easy maintenance make it a go-to material for a lot of home builders and renovators.
While Corian and many other hard surface materials from their competitors (Corian is a brand owned by DuPont) promise and generally deliver long service lives, they aren’t immune to scratches, abrasion, and cracks. These cracks, in particular, can harm both the aesthetics of your worktop as well as open up holes that could lead to water damage, mould, or even cuts and snags.
Fixing a cracked Corian worktop is possible, but it should be warned that this is a more technical DIY job than many others we’ve written about. This article will focus on fixing hairline fractures and small cracks, but for larger cracks and open holes, contact the specialists at WeRestoreSurfaces to have it taken care of quickly, with as little inconvenience as possible, and done right the first time around.
Step 1: Assess the damage and gather your supplies
Every good fixing project starts with an assessment of the damage and gathering the necessary supplies.
The main thing you need to determine is whether or not the crack you wish to fix needs to be filled up with material or not. Hairline fractures that are simply an eyesore or might allow water to seep through are easier to fix than cracks with missing material.
For a hairline crack in your Corian worktop, you’ll need:
-
Superglue / cyanoacrylate
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Hydrogen peroxide
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An old toothbrush
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Ultra-fine sandpaper (400-grit)
- Ultra-fine scouring pad
- Isopropyl alcohol (optional)
For a crack that needs filling, you’ll need
- Tow-part epoxy filler in the right shade and finish Hydrogen peroxide
- An old toothbrush
- Ultra-fine sandpaper (400-grit)
- A clean rag or piece of kitchen towel
- Isopropyl alcohol (optional)
Useful tip: Epoxy resins are readily available at DIY shops and online. If heading to a physical store, take a well-lit photo of the crack with you. This can help the shop assistant pick the best colour and texture match.
Step 2: Prepare the area
Cracks or other openings in Corian can provide the perfect environment for mould to flourish. Before making any repairs, it’s critical to ensure that all mould is cleaned out and that the surfaces are clean and ready for treatment.
Reaching deep enough into a hairline crack to properly clean it out can be challenging. A long, thin-bristled brush, like an old toothbrush, works best. Pour a small amount of hydrogen peroxide into the crack and vigorously brush. Rinse the area with more hydrogen peroxide, wiping off any excess with a rag or kitchentowel.
Consider using isopropyl alcohol if dark stains persist after using hydrogen peroxide. Allow the area(s) to fully dry before moving on to the last step.
Step 3: Repair the crack with superglue/cynoacrylate or epoxy
Hairline fractures or cracks in Corian are more typical in the thinner variants, i.e., 6mm and 12mm. Repairing the crack as soon as possible is important, especially on kitchen worktops, as mould could begin to grow inside the hard-to-clean crack. While epoxy resin would work just as well, superglue is easier to work with, more affordable, and works exceptionally well on very thin cracks.
After ensuring that the surface and crack are dry, slowly lay a thin bead of superglue along the length of the fracture. Do not wipe off any excess, but allow it to slowly seep into the gap and dry. Make sure not to move or disturb the worktop for 24 hours in order to get the best hardening results.
After the superglue has dried completely, use fine sandpaper to gently sand of any superblue ‘bumps’. Make sure to sand in the same directions as the crack, not across the it. Once the surface is flush, use a very fine scouring pad to buff the area until it matches the surrounding area.
Bigger cracks require a filler material, and superglue is no good for that. Epoxy resin, a common DIY go-to, is an affordable, durable, and all-round convenient option for many hard surface repairs.
After ensuring that the crack and its interior are completely dry, mix the epoxy in a small container (small paper or plastic cups are great) as per the instructions. Slowly pour the well-mixed epoxy into the crack, but don’t fill the crack to the top all at once. At about 1⁄3 of the way up, pause and ensure that the epoxy is filling all the gaps. Adjust your pour as necessary. Do the same at 2⁄3, and top it off.
Be careful not to underfill the crack. Add filler material until you have a small, protruding layer; wipe off any messes, spills, or epoxy; and allow to dry as per the manufacturers instructions, typically around 24 hours.
Once the epoxy has dried, sand and buff it as per the instructions for hairline fractures. Happy fixing!
When to leave it to the professionals
While small or even medium cracks in Corian worktops can be sealed up and blended with the surface, it’s important to remember two things: that this repair job will often be in your line-of-sight, and that any mismatch in colour or texture will be a constant eyesore. If you’re repairing even a small crack in a textured or specialty-finished worktop, consider contacting professionals with the skills and experience to get it done with a seamless finish.
Bigger cracks that run the entire surface of the worktop and large holes and cracks that require lots of filler material are very difficult to fix without professional tools and know-how. WeRestoreSurfaces can take the guesswork, headache, and risk of further damage out of the equation with no more than a phone call.
Feel free to contact WeRestoreSurfaces for an obligation-free consultation on your best options for repairing cracks in Corian.
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