Although Corian is an attractive and durable surface material, it's not very flexible—and if your home has recently been affected by area floods, a minor earthquake, or another foundation-shaking weather event, you may find yourself dealing with small cracks in the surface of your kitchen and bathroom countertops. What can you do to fix these blemishes yourself? Read on to learn more about the minor repairs you should be able to handle on your own, as well as a few situations in which professional help may be needed.
What Corian cracks can be filled or removed by the DIY homeowner?
There are several ways a homeowner can refinish a chipped, cracked, or scuffed Corian counter. Shallow nicks and cuts in the counter's surface can usually be sanded away with ultra-fine grit sandpaper and an electric or battery-operated power sander without changing the topography of the counter enough for you or anyone else to notice. By not using coarse sandpaper, you'll even eliminate the need for any waxing or polishing to restore your Corian counters to like-new shininess.
For cracks a bit too deep to be sanded away but still just a hair's-breadth wide, epoxy seam-sealer may be a viable option. This gluey material is packaged in separate containers and must be mixed on site to achieve its final texture. After thoroughly cleaning the outside and inside of the crack and applying heat to it for a few minutes to contract it slightly, you'll want to dab the epoxy into the crack with a toothpick or the end of a paper clip until the crack has been filled. After the epoxy dries, you'll want to carefully sand the surface of the crack with fine-grit sandpaper to maintain an even counter surface. Although this epoxy dries clear, it's thick enough that its use in hairline cracks should render them imperceptible to the naked eye.
When should you contact a professional instead?
If your counter has a crack that is both deep and wide or the surface of the counter appears to have shifted so that it's no longer attached to the cabinets below, you may want to hire a contractor to come out and set your counter straight. Attempting to fix the problem on your own without a good idea of what you can (and should) do to restore your counter and cabinets to their like-new position may only make it worse (along with more expensive when you finally try to have the problem professionally solved).
For more information, contact companies like Corian Repair Man.
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