Replacing countertop with Corian (solid surface)

All "man made" solid surfaces are quite durable, but they can crack from extreme heat or flexing of the substructure.

Our rig SEEN HERE has Corian counter tops as shown in some of the pictures, but the material is only a 1/2" thick. We never had a problem with it, and nobody on the Phoenix forum has either....that I know of. Our stove top and sink are both surrounded by Corian. It has been a very good material.

Nice work there BruceMc, but I would surely miss having a bigger sink. I know, I know, it's all about trade-offs. ;)

ron.dittmer wrote:
Our rig SEEN HERE has Corian counter tops as shown in some of the pictures, but the material is only a 1/2" thick.

1/2" is "standard" for Corian. They typically double up the front face to make it look thicker.

I have a friend who cracked her Corian TWICE ! They upgraded her to 3/4" which is considered "commercial".

Thanks Ron!

Regarding the cracks, it probably depends on the size of the panel, how it is mounted and supported, and if there are any odd binding pressures. The material must be treated like glass - if there's a chip in the edge, a crack can run just like it does in glass.

The material I'm using is 1/2", or more correctly, 12mm. I added 1/4" shims to the tops of the cabinet to bring the top up to the same height as the original in order for the stove to fit w/o modifications.

As it's 1/2", I built up the edges to create 1" / 24mm around the perimeter using contrasting material:





We've never needed a large sink in our campers/motorhomes. I put a small pan or bowl in the bottom of the big round sink, fill it with a pint or so of hot water and soap. Then as I wash dishes, I rinse them with a small stream of hot from the faucet, which sometimes runs back into the pan/bowl. My wife takes the rinsed item & drys it, then puts it back where it belongs.

I guess this is due to my sailing days where I learned to conserve water, and the early camping days where we would consume only 5 to 10 gallons of potable water over a week for a family of five. We used local stream or lake water for dish washing and baths.

I think you are doing a great job but I am sure for every 100,000 successful uses of 1/2" solid surface material there are two or three unsuccessful uses of anything you wish to consider at any thickness. Nice Job and don't worry about the naysayers.

D.E.Bishop, thanks! I'm certainly not concerned of cracks, or I'd have found a different material. I've done formica counter tops, but had never liked the results. This gave me an opportunity to try a medium I'd never used before so I thought I'd try my hand at Corian.

Our main issue with the setup in our Sunseeker was the dismal lack of counter space due to the large sink: (sink removed in this image; I was resealing the area due to the water leak which caused the bubbles & spongy spots)

I finished the backsplash trim today:



Installed:



Corner detail:



Right side with metal tile held in place; this is the material I'll install beside/behind the stove tomorrow:

Beautiful work Bruce. Thats a nice winter project since it's raining all the time here. I'm in the valley too. Thanks for sharing.

Thanks T18SkyGuy!

The story continues On Forest River Forums ...

Kitchen is finished!





Backsplash:



Detail around the window:




The bath vanity countertop is next. I'll soon have a 10x13 oval stainless sink, and will post pics once it's complete.