Help with work table top

I've got a great glass topped building table, but I've built another general purpose work table with "bull nose" board on top. Bull nose is medium brown in color, has a great smooth and flat finish, but it's much like a 3/4" piece of paper. If you set a cold drink on the table it will ruin the surface with the moisture deposits.

Does anyone have any suggestions as to what I can coat this stuff with to alleviate this problem?

It sounds like you have a type of material that does not like water. I would cover it with a different material like maybe a sheet of 3/4" plywood finished smooth on one side.

I have 3 tables.

One table is 3/4" plywood smooth finished on one side. The plywood is attached to a 2x4 wood frame around the edge with 2x4 boards across the center on 16" centers. Legs are 2x4s 36" long. 1/3 of the table is covered the 3/16" plate glass. I have a bar stool type chair. This is the table that I build on.

My 2nd table is identical to the 1st table only difference is, it is covered with 1/2" CDX plywood which has a ruff surface. This is my tool and supply table.

The 3rd table is smaller 3'x 4' and made the same with 2x4 frame covered with 1/2" sheet rock. This is my drafting table.

>I've got a great glass topped building table, but I've built
>another general purpose work table with "bull nose" board on
>top. Bull nose is medium brown in color, has a great smooth
>and flat finish, but it's much like a 3/4" piece of paper.
>If you set a cold drink on the table it will ruin the
>surface with the moisture deposits.
>
>Does anyone have any suggestions as to what I can coat this
>stuff with to alleviate this problem?

You might try Z-Poxy. Squeegie it around with a credit card let dry. Then Block sand.

Cement a piece of Formica or similar material to the top.

Formica is a great idea, tape the edges down to keep from moving around. I vote against using plywood and would and do use a MDF 3/4" board. It is cheaper than plywood and is directionaly stable over time. You can also buy it in half sheets @ Home Depot. I cover mine with 5/8" sheetrock. I cut the recessed edge off the drywall "first 4" on both sides so the surface is uniform. This is not important if you remember not to build near the edge. About three years ago I was working on a High Rise in Seattle and they were breaking all the extra windows and throwing them away. I was able to scrounge one that was 60"x 30" 1/4" plate double pane. Still haven't used it but couldn't see it going into the trash. I have drilled a set of Tom Morris Lincoln Log blocks and filled them with lead, I was and still might use them on the plate glass. I tried cutting them and the time I wasted made me order a set from him...well worth it. Working in the trades I get all kinds of stuff...recently got 2" angle iron for nothing. I even use a piece of flat iron I got off another High Rise for my stooge. If they are building homes near you, I would bet you could get drywall for free from the hangers, just ask....they get paid by the foot and a lot goes into the trash...Jim J.

I painted my utility table with a coat of primer and then two coats of epoxie concrete/driveway paint. you just roll it on like wall paint and let it dry 24 hours between coats.

My table top took two coats to cover. The surface is amazingly tough and if it ever stalns or something, I still have plenty in the can!

Just ask the folks at Home Depot and you'll get the right stuff.

Guys,
You might want to try melamine. This what they used(a long time ago) to make kitchen counters out of. Almost nothing sticks to it, and stays very flat! Try lumberyards for 4x8 sheets. Be sure to get the double sided type.
Gary

Thanks everybody for the suggestions.

I was wondering about something else also. At craft shows and flea markets you sometimes see folks selling wall clocks made of a tree cross section. The ones I remember seeing looked like they were dipped in some type of clear plastic, or at least coated in such material.

If I could find out what that stuff is, I could put a small lip around the top and pour in a layer of that coating.

Any idea what that stuff is, and where one would obtain it?

>Thanks everybody for the suggestions.
>
>I was wondering about something else also. At craft shows
>and flea markets you sometimes see folks selling wall clocks
>made of a tree cross section. The ones I remember seeing
>looked like they were dipped in some type of clear plastic,
>or at least coated in such material.
>
>If I could find out what that stuff is, I could put a small
>lip around the top and pour in a layer of that coating.
>
>Any idea what that stuff is, and where one would obtain it?

Hi Chip,
Sounds like what a good friend of mine did when he opened is resturant. He framed a small lip around the top of the old bar and poured polyurethane on it. When it was dry it looked like an 1/8th inch of glass. VERY durable, and waterproof. I am pretty sure this is what the tree slices are covered with.
HTH,
Bill <><

Hi Bill,

Sounds exactly like what I was thinking of. Thank you.

Well, if I get all this done this week, perhaps I'll have something ready for Huntersville. Would be great to see you there.

Hope you and Aaron are doing well,

I belive the stuff you want is Envirotex Lite. It is available from Dick Blick art supplies (chech it on line at http://www.dickblick.com/) Just enter envirottex in the search box. catalog # A02918-1006 $11.09. I hope this helps.