Butcher block is the warmest surface you can put in a kitchen and the least forgiving of a bad install. Wood moves with humidity, and Central Florida gives it plenty to move with. Done right it lasts decades and can be sanded back to new. Done wrong it cups, splits at the sink cutout, or lifts off the cabinet within a year.
We cut, seal and install butcher block for islands, bar tops, peninsulas and full kitchen runs — and we seal the faces nobody sees, which is where most failures start.
Estimates are free and hold for 30 days. If you already bought the slab, we install customer-supplied tops too — just tell us the species and thickness.
Sealing the underside. A top sealed only on the visible face absorbs moisture from below at a different rate than the top, and that difference is what makes a slab cup. Every face gets sealed here, including the cutouts, before the sink goes in.
Allowing for movement. Wood expands across the grain with humidity. Fastened rigidly to the cabinet it has nowhere to go and it splits. Elongated screw holes and figure-eight fasteners let the top move without tearing itself apart.
Acclimating first. The slab should sit inside the house for several days before it is cut, so it settles at the humidity it will live in. Cutting a slab the day it arrives from a warehouse is how a perfect fit becomes a gap in March.
Maple — hardest and most neutral. Best if you will cut directly on it.
Walnut — darkest and most dramatic, and the most expensive.
Oak — strong open grain, middle price.
Acacia / birch — budget options, softer, more prone to dents.
Edge grain vs end grain: edge grain is the common look and costs less. End grain is the chopping-block checkerboard — heavier, more expensive, and the only one that truly self-heals from knife marks.
Food-safe oil if you will cut on the surface: repairable, re-applied a few times a year. Polyurethane or hardwax if you want it sealed and low maintenance, but you cannot cut on it and repairs mean refinishing the section.
We ask how you actually use the kitchen before recommending. Someone who cooks daily and someone who wants a warm-looking surface need different finishes.
Kitchen islands, bar and coffee counters, laundry room folding tops, home office desktops, and as a warm contrast against quartz or granite on the perimeter. Mixing surfaces — wood island, stone perimeter — is the most common request we get.
Orlando, Winter Park, Windermere, Maitland, Dr. Phillips, Lake Nona, Hunters Creek, Winter Garden, Celebration, Kissimmee, Lake Mary, Longwood, Oviedo, Apopka, Ocoee, Clermont, Sanford and Davenport.
Granite & Quartz Countertops • Kitchen Cabinets • Custom Carpentry • Wood Ceiling Beams
Material runs $30–$90 per square foot by species; cut, seal and install adds $20–$45. An island top typically lands between $800 and $2,200 installed, a full kitchen run between $2,500 and $6,000.
Yes — if every face is sealed, including the underside and the cutouts, and the slab acclimates indoors before cutting. The failures we see here are almost always unsealed end grain or a top fastened rigidly with no room to move.
Yes, undermount or drop-in. The cut edge gets sealed heavily before the sink goes in, because that is where water reaches raw wood.
Maple is hardest and most neutral, walnut the most dramatic and priciest, oak in between. If you will cut directly on the surface, maple end grain lasts longest.
Oil if you cut on it — repairable, re-oiled a few times a year. Polyurethane or hardwax if you want low maintenance, but you cannot cut on it.
One day for an island or bar top; one to two days for a full run with cutouts. Plan the slab delivery several days ahead so it can acclimate.
Yes. Tell us the species, thickness and dimensions and we will quote cut, seal and install on your material.
Two quick details and we can usually quote the same day. No obligation.
Send a photo of the space and rough dimensions — that is usually enough for a real number.
(407) 483 - 2804 CALL FOR FREE ESTIMATEName, phone and email — we reply within 24 hours. No obligation.