Contractor Ruined Countertops - Looking for Help to Fix Them

[TheSergeant]

The short of it is that my parents needed their kitchen island refinished and hired a guy that was recommended to them.  He used "FAMOWOOD" Glazecoat available from Home Depot.  I havent' seen it in person yet but from what they're telling me, and the photos I've seen, it has an almost orange peel-ish surface and there are some spots with divots that look like hammer marks.  The guy poured the epoxy and used a roller to spread it around the surface.  I'm guessing this is what contributed to the horrible finish. 

Anyway,  I'm headed up there next week and will be bringing my RO150.  Assuming it has fully hardened is this something that can be sanded down to level it out and then polished up?  They don't need it perfect and are okay with some divots but can't handle the texture as it stands currently.

If it can be sanded/polished what jumps in grits would you recommend? 

Thanks guys!

 

[Cheese]

Yea, the biggest thing you want to do is to level the surface so everything is smooth. Here's a photo of the various grits I used on some West epoxy that I put on some white oak. I'm showing the picture to point out that any style paper will work as long as the grit is correct.
Left to right:
120...180...240...320...500...1000...2000. Purchasing all of these grits from Festool in 100 pack boxes would have cost close to $500. [eek] [eek]
[attachimg=1]

And here's what the final product looks like. It does have a sheen but I didn't want it to be as shiny as poured epoxy. I feel that looks too much like plastic. You can still see the reflection of the stainless utensil holder. Besides, this helps conceal any spots that are not perfectly flat.[attachimg=2]

 

[chrisrosenb]

It sounds like silicone contamination. Good luck trying to fix that.

 

[Vondawg]

Yes as cheese states you’ll be wanting to level the surface, plenty of sanding...and it can tend to ball up a bit and that’s where your 150 with DC will shine, the tech support at West Sys and Systemthree will tell you 180 and 220 then re-coat...I believe cheese was polishing his as I remember (I think)and sounds like that’s what you’d like to do, but the good news is you would just need a top coat (Mirrorcoat w/Systhree@ Woodcraft) and you won’t have as many bubbles to deal with. It CAN be re worked to perfect....been there done that. Good luck

System Three tech support- 253-333-8118
West Sys - 866-937-8797

 

[Cheese]

I believe cheese was polishing his as I remember (I think)and sounds like that’s what you’d like to do, but the good news is you would just need a top coat (Mirrorcoat w/Systhree@ Woodcraft) and you won’t have as many bubbles to deal with. It CAN be re worked to perfect....been there done that. Good luck

Yes Vondawg, you're correct. I had done a 2mm pour of West epoxy so I wasn't worried about cutting through the epoxy. I was more concerned about getting a flat surface and then bringing it up to a semi-gloss finish.

Here's a good photo of how thick the epoxy actually is.

[attachimg=1]