How to Install a Butcher-Block Countertop

1. Butcher Block Must be ordered in advance; plan six weeks for delivery

2. Cardboard to make a template for ordering the butcher block. An old packing box will do, as will poster board—as long as it's stiff enough to hold up to scribing but flexible enough to be folded for mailing.

3. Painter's tape

4. Scrap wood to use

as blocking on open-topped cabinets or as furring strips on solid-topped cabinets. Blocking should be 3/4-inch plywood or 1x material, but ¼-inch plywood will suffice for furring strips.

5. Kitchen and Bath Sealant for gluing the butcher block to the cabinets. Look for a 100 percent silicone product

6. 1-Inch Fender Washers

7. 1½-Inch Deck Screws to attach the blocking and the butcher block to the cabinets

8. Mineral Oil or any other FDA-approved oil for food-prep surfaces. Walnut oil is a good organic alternative to petroleum-based mineral oil because it won't go rancid like other food-based oils.