Thanks for all of your input. I've discovered what was in the container that came along with my countertop - mineral oil. Which explains why the countertops have not performed up to my expectations. After talking to my contractor and the fabricator, I believe the breakdown in communication was with the office staff of the contractor who actually placed the order for the top. They did not specify a waterlox finish that I had emphatically requested. So...my contractor has agreed to refinish the tops himself with waterlox. During this discovery process, I talked to the man who owns the company that made my countertops. He said the process to re-do the finish would be to go over the wood with mineral spirits a couple of times to draw out the oil as much as possible (I have not added any more oil). Go over the wood with a fine grit sandpaper to smooth the roughness and then proceed with the waterlox application. One coat per day. Can anyone who has experience with this process give me advice? Will these steps be enough to get a professional finish on the tops? I am disappointed that I will not be able to finish the undersides of the counters because they are already bolted down to the cabinets. I am afraid that may cause problems down the road. Any input from experienced users of waterlox would be greatly appreciated!!

You made your choice based on "food safety" That finish offers a low level of protection. The product you used is primarily for wooden bowels and utensils. The product will still allow the surface to wear, a beeswax film is not very tough, even if mixed with a polymerizing oil, like linseed. 3 coats of anything is not enough finish for a countertop. For oil based finishes, I use about 6 coats for a countertop. The first 3 coats soak into the surface. When you buff after only 24 hours, and after every coat, it is impossible to build a surface film. Use Waterlox. Strip off the beeswax. Sand the surface with 180 or 220. Wipe it down liberally with clean rags and denatured alcohol. Follow with mineral spirits and a new clean rag. Test the Waterlox on a small spot to ensure you prepped correctly. Apply 4 or more coats of waterlox original, don't use the Satin, its not really good for countertops, its a slightly softer finish. After the top cures for several days at room temperature, it is food safe. Most wood coatings are food safe after cured properly. Bars and restaurants have plenty of options when it comes to choosing a food safe finish. It's all about marketing.

Waterlox is really just a wiping varnish. You can make your own wiping varnish simply by thinning any oil based varnish w/ paint thinner & wiping it on with a rag or brushing it on & removing the excess. It is much easier to use than plain varnish & is a lovely, reasonably natural finish. I used it years ago on a primitive pine box originally used to store chicken feed that we use to store firewood. The upside is that it's easy to use; downside is that's it's a little plasticky looking, IMO, not super easy to repair blemishes, & tends to sit more on the surface & not penetrate to the degree that a true oil finish does. In the past few years, I've started using pure tung oil, not to be confused with tung oil finish. Switched to it because I needed superior water resistance on some wooden single pane windows I was trying to get a few more years service out of. I've been very pleased with the results. The windows have been thru three Wisconsin winters where the windows grow ice on the interior due to condensation, melt, refreeze.... The wood still looks great with no signs of the finish failing & with no addt'l maintenance. Since then, I have used tung oil on the new wood windows & wood doors that we have installed in other parts of the house. I thin the first two-three coats of tung oil with paint thinner or citrus solvent, depending on the season. If I can open the house up, I use paint thinner because it's cheaper & I have a ton of it collected at bargain prices from garage sales. But, I must say that working with the citrus solvent is a joy because it smells wonderful. I only wish the smell would linger longer. Lots of upside, downside is that it's slow going. At most, & that's pushing it, one coat a day. I like to give it a day & a half between coats. Knock any nubbies down with fine steel wool between coats. (One of these days, I'll switch to Scotch Brite pads when I've exhausted my steel wool supply.) Anyway, long story short, I've started (finally!) building cabinets for my new kitchen. I'm using a water-based poly for the interior of the cabs. I don't have any prior experience with it but am loving that I can get three coats on in one day. But the exterior will be finished with tung oil. All of that said, I don't have any experience with 'Waterlox.' It seems pretty pricey for being a thinned out varnish--the reason I've never tried it. That, & I'll have to order it because I've never seen it any stores I've been in. But, one of these days, I'll get around to ordering a pint or a quart & subject it to a test. (Right now, tung oil is being tested on the redwood gas grill side table extension thingees.) A couple of other notes: I've read that you should not use tung oil if anyone in the home has peanut allergies. AND: Be aware of the dangers of spontaneous combustion associated with oily rags from using any oil-based finishes. The rags can combust very quickly (happened to friends of ours who dropped oily stain rags into the trash can). I've alway been careful with them but doubly so since our friends experience. I either toss them outdoors in the firepit after hanging them to dry or hang them to dry over the grate in the fireplace.) Here is a link that might be useful: Oil Finishes article by Bob Flexner

My first object is to see if the repair can be made without a complete surface refinish. I will always start too fine to begin the process. Wet sanding with a drop of soap puts the burned product in suspension and keeps it going much more so than dry. Once you know where you are you can drop to 600 to speed things up. But doing this pushes you away from most chances of solving this without a complete surface refinish. The suggestion of using 50 grit with a belt sander on finished wood is so far beyond anything an experienced cabinetmaker would even consider...I reacted with an opposite end of the spectrum view. You have stone experience and substantial expertise. Wood and clear finishes...50 grit....you have no expertise here.