‘noon all.

I had a new kitchen fitted last December. This morning I was giving the worktops a clean and noticed some bulges at the join. Closer inspection shows the sealant has bits missing along the join (so there has been some water ingress).
The joiner is coming on Monday evening to have a look.
Where do I stand legally if he starts playing up??

What is the warranty period?

To be honest i think you will struggle.

Having worked in the laminate fabrication industry for over 20 years I have seen many panels/vanity units that have blown in this way.

It is nearly always caused by standing water.

If it had gone straight away then you would have had grounds to complain.

When you say join…is this where two tops are jointed together?

When jointing kitchen tops a good joiner would work in a combination of silicone and a laminate filler to waterproof the joint. However it is always the weakest part of the work top.

Trade price for a laminate worktop is around £70-100 for a good brand so if your guy is a good chap then you should be able to come to some arrangement between the two of you. Expect a couple of hours to fit the new top excluding any plumbing or gas works.

I’d agree with the above in that it doesn’t sound like a complete failure due to manufacturing ineptitude. Again, as above, I think you could try and negotiate the cost of replacement down and as long as the fitter isn’t out of pocket you should be alright. Unless you can demonstrate poor workmanship led to the failure.

Good luck.

It’s the mitre joint between the two tops and it’s only in a few parts where it has blown.
We never leave any standing water and even so if it was joined and sealed correctly this shouldn’t happen.
The other side where the washing up is done ie it gets more water on it is fine.

It is definitely water ingress that has caused this.

Don’t go in with all guns blazing. Get the guys opinion and then tactfully suggest that the joint wasn’t properly sealed and explain that you do not leave anything or water standing on the worktop.

I currently have Corian in my kitchen so will never have this problem but in two previous houses with laminate worktops they were in for 3 years without any issues.

The first was installed by a friend and the second was a new house so it could have been anyone doing the job.

Good luck and if you approach the guy with some common sense hopefully you should both achieve a satisfactory outcome.

always better to have the joint trims, not as nice but a lot easier to replace.

I hardly think Mr Kitchen fitter is going to pay upwards of 160 for new worktops for you, he has absolutely no idea how you use your kitchen, and cant be held responsible for water ingress after a year, bit like noah compalining his ark leaked due to the wrong type of water.

But if it’s properly sealed water shouldn’t get in and I quote from above

in two previous houses with laminate worktops they were in for 3 years without any issues.

The worktops that were replaced hadn’t blown and they had been in years so methinks something is amiss.

I hardly think Mr Kitchen fitter is going to pay upwards of 160 for new worktops for you,

Perhaps not, but his insurance should, no?

cant be held responsible for water ingress after a year,

If there’s been water ingress due to incorrect installation, of course he should. We’re down to ‘fit for purpose’, it’s a kitchen worktop for heaven’s sake. If a bedside cabinet had failed in a similar manner then fair enough, but it’s hardly unreasonable to expect furniture fitted in a kitchen to be, y’know, waterproof.

If there’s sealant applied then that’s there for a non aesthetic reason presumably. If the bulging is down to that sealant having been poorly applied at fitting time and thus not doing it’s intended job then I would imagine you’ve every right to complain and expect it to be put right FOC.

Cougar what is this insurance you speak of that pays out for faults either in the workamanship, or faulty product eg sealanmt ,worktop, or negligent customer.

A few years ago, a customer had a worktop, that she had spilt some sort of kichen cleaner on ,it bubled the worktop laminate, the cleaner makers paid out for replacement work tops, but not the fitting, eg gas fitter to remove the hob, and a tiler to replace the tiles.

I hadnt fitted it thankfully.

Cougar what is this insurance you speak of

+1

The fact there are 2 separate bulges and no others shows a weakness in certain spots IMHO. He used that colour matching stuff and there is a small gap in it at the bottom of the join. So either the stuff he’s used is not upto the job or how he’s fitted it.

Monkeychild , is there a washing machine ,dishwasher or cooker under the offending worktop all generate heat and water vapour/moisture.

I am kind of amazed that most folk would be happy and just accept it if their less than a year old kitchen did this!
I have found cracks in the sealant on the other join thats on the opposite units.
There is a washing machine but it was there before and my last tops were not blown.

I am kind of amazed that most folk would be happy and just accept it if their less than a year old kitchen did this!

Presumably it all looked OK when you signed the work off and paid for it?

Presumably it all looked OK when you signed the work off and paid for it?

There’s only so much you can check at that time, finding small gaps in sealant coverage would be very difficult to spot I would imagine.

Be thankful that the guy is at least coming back to have a look.

He can’t take your word for it that you never leave standing water on it. I do believe you of course, but just check people here saying that “suggest you never leave standing water on it” without knowing that you do or don’t.

I’d say you might have to go halfway with him…e.g. pay for a worktop and he fits for free? Is all his other workmanship good?

I get this with floors occasionally – I’ll always fix a problem if its my fault (of course, that never happens), but I’ll always fix for free if it isn’t as long as the client supplies the materials, and it’s only a day here or there, and it isn’t three or four years later, etc etc.

Goodwill is important.

Are the tops a name brand eg Formica or Bushboard or are they the generic boards that were offered by the kitchen company?
How were they installed, are they bolted and biscuit jointed?
I have fitted hundreds of worktops and never really had issues with any so far however I can guarantee if and when they arise the problems will be with the cheaper non branded worktops.

Presumably it all looked OK when you signed the work off and paid for it?

Well yes, but unfortunately I don’t have micro or future vision lol.

The tops are from Howdens, as is the rest of the kitchen. They are bolted from underneath.

I can feel that the top has been sealed around the sink from underneath.

Images paint a 1000 words so… http://tinyurl.com/6g6l7v8

The 1st image is a front on shot of the cracked sealant on the L join that’s on the opposite side of the kitchen.

2nd image is away from where the bubbling is.

3rd image is a top shot of the L join is on the affected side away from the bubbling and you can see where it the sealant has become cracked.

4th image is the 2 bubbled areas.

If water from wiping the surfaces down can do that, then clearly the product should not be on the shelves!!!

I asked in Howdens today if they ever get any returned worktops, and they said no,never had any returns.

If it was me who had fitted them i would ask Howdens to replace them, they would probably send out their sles rep, or just swop them, depending on my annual spend, and how much they liked me as a customer, or they may well refer it to their suppliers.

Probably they wouldnt pay for removal or new instalation, let us hope the original fitter didnt silicone the worktops to the bases, some do .

Well Mr Fitter came today and………..
Admitted something is amiss with the seal and is replacing it all for free 🙂

Nice Mr Fitter, i am ………..