Step 1: Build the substrate

build substrate to start laminating countertop
Photo: Kolin Smith
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Using a circular saw, cut a sheet of particleboard to fit your countertop, adding a 1-inch overhang to edges that don't abut a wall. Cut 4-inch strips of particleboard to line the underside of each edge. Glue and screw the strips to the sheet with 1¼-inch screws. Make sure the edges are perfectly flush. If you will be connecting two countertop sections, size and arrange the strips on one piece to extend beyond the end of the sheet and fit under the adjacent piece (see overview). Use shorter strips on the other piece to accept the extensions.

Dry-fit the countertop sections before laminating them, and make sure pieces fit tightly. Sand the seam with 100-grit paper to correct any mismatches.

TOH Tip: To make a really tight seam between two particleboard pieces, back-cut the end of one piece by tilting your circular saw blade to 5 degrees.
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      Okay, people, give us a little room to work here. Because we'd like to fold the laundry without having the delicates drop off the dryer into the dust bunnies, and we sure could use a place to lay out the parts of those "some assembly required" projects. Please, we beg of you, give us a proper countertop.

      We're not holding out for granite—save that for the dream kitchen. All we really need is some smooth, clean laminate, a surface that can serve its purpose simply and with style. Laminate is inexpensive, comes in hundreds of designs (some to mimic that out-of-the-budget granite), and when glued onto particleboard makes a rather convenient work surface. As This Old House technical editor Mark Powers shows on the following pages, it's easy to turn a disorganized garage, mudroom, or shed into a multifunctional workroom in one quick weekend. With that kind of setup, we'd really be able to spread out and get something done.

      Crystalline Dune laminate, about $3 per square foot, WilsonArt.

      Cabinets from Omega Cabinetry, through Jilco Window Corp.

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    1. LAMINATE
    Order at home centers or through kitchen designers (allow two weeks for delivery). Laminates range from about $2 to $5 per square foot, but they come in 4-by-8- or 5-by-12-foot sheets. Because you want as few seams as possible, choose a size that will yield the longest uninterrupted pieces, taking into account not only the surface of the counter but the sides and backsplash as well.

    2. 3/4-INCH PARTICLEBOARD
    to form the substrate to which you adhere the laminate. A 4-by-8-foot sheet should be wide enough to create all the pieces needed for one standard 25-inch-deep countertop section and backsplash, up to 8 feet long.

    3. WATER-RESISTANT WOOD GLUE
    to glue together pieces of the substrate. Look for PVA wood glues rated Type II. 4. PRIMER
    to protect the particleboard from moisture.

    5. NEOPRENE CONTACT CEMENT
    Look for a water-based or low-VOC product rather than a solvent-based one, which will dry faster but can only be used in a well-ventilated area. One gallon will cover about 250 to 300 square feet.

    6. 3/4-INCH DOWELS
    to hold the laminate off the particleboard before adhesion. Plan on one 3-foot-long dowel for every 12 inches of countertop. Clean scrap wood will also work.

    7. CLEAR LATEX CAULK
    to seal and waterproof seams between two countertop pieces and to seal edges where the countertop meets a wall.

    8. 11/4-INCH and 15/8-INCH DECK SCREWS
    to assemble the substrate and to attach the countertop to the cabinets.