- Budget Friendly
- Low Maintenance & Easy to Clean
- Stylish
- New & Improved Patterns
- Magazine Worthy
- They Last
We have our own installation teams to assure a quality job.
Laminate Countertops
Make your space useful & different
Countertops take a lot of wear and tear so you’ll want some idea of how they’ll age before choosing a material. In Consumer Reports’ countertop tests they stained, sliced, scratched, scorched, and nicked 14 materials from leading brands and found enormous differences in materials but little variation among brands. That’s why they rated materials, not brands. Stains and heat weren’t a problem for laminate in the tests, but it was easily scratched by knives and isn’t repairable so if you choose it, always use a cutting board.
When ordering your laminate surface consider not including the laminate backsplash seen with many of the older versions (that little lip or apron that rides up on the wall).
Instead, opt for a countertop that stops at the edge of the horizontal plane and choose a pretty backsplash that meets the countertop at the bottom of the wall.
Stylish, professionally-designed laminate countertops are a good choice for commercial and residential applications.
Laminate countertops are looking so good! The new patterns complement dark and light, painted and wood cabinets, but do you notice how they’re installed?
The price is right.
Laminate is inexpensive and usually costs a lot less than most other materials. It’s about $10 to $40 a square foot installed. Look at the largest samples available and try them out in your kitchen. The Design Center on Formica’s website invites you to design your own kitchen so you can see what the counters would look like. Keep in mind that, unlike pricier materials, laminate can be replaced at a fraction of the cost.
They last.
Countertops take a lot of wear and tear so you’ll want some idea of how they’ll age before choosing a material. In Consumer Reports’ countertop tests they stained, sliced, scratched, scorched, and nicked 14 materials from leading brands and found enormous differences in materials but little variation among brands. That’s why they rated materials, not brands. Stains and heat weren’t a problem for laminate in the tests, but it was easily scratched by knives and isn’t repairable so if you choose it, always use a cutting board.
It’s not granite.
For years some have predicted that granite was on its way out, saying it’s been overused and will become as outdated as avocado green appliances. But the NAHB study showed that granite countertops are as desirable now as they were in 2007. On the up side, while granite became more popular, laminate got better looking. Formica’s new Anniversary Collection features 12 graphic patterns with a mid-century modern flair, including Dotscreen’s microdots and Halftone’s printing screen vibe. They’re $12 per square foot installed.
How Laminate Countertops differ from Other Countertops
- Solid Surface vs. Laminate – If laminate is ever confused with another countertop substance, it’s usually what we call solid surface. Solid surface (i.e., Corian, etc.) is a thick polymer-based material, solid all the way through. Laminate is typically cheaper than solid surface and somewhat easier to fabricate.
- Natural Stone vs. Laminate – Natural stone can be either slabs of natural stone or engineered stone (stone particles bound by adhesives into slabs). In either case, stone is solid all the way through, unlike laminate with its particleboard base. Stone is vastly more expensive than laminate and is difficult to fabricate and install.
- Tile vs. Laminate – Tile, either ceramic or stone, is a little like laminate in that it is a thin layer installed on a wood base. The difference is that tile’s base will usually be plywood, whereas laminate’s base is particleboard. Tile counters are comparable to laminate in cost.
Vendors
Care and Maintenance
Low Maintenance & Easy to Clean. When we were growing up my mom had ceramic tile countertops and I remember her saying she couldn’t wait for the day to rip them out. I also remember her scrubbing (and making us scrub!) the grout to keep it clean and bright. Laminate offers an easy to clean solution with a household cleaner, a sponge, and some hot water, cleaning them is a breeze and maintaining them is a cinch since you don’t need to seal them.
Only at Jerry's
Backsplash
Our backsplashes are standard at 4” high. Any height backsplash can be done with a minimum of 3” to full height backsplash, eliminating the need for tile. Backsplashes are installed using a 90˚ butt joint where the backsplash rests on top of the counter along the wall. Because granite is a natural stone we cannot make coved backsplashes as seen with laminate tops.
