Hi Lisa. I saw your thread last night and tried to answer it before GW burped!

I use soapy water to clean my walnut top. I don't cut anything on mine and never set raw meat down on anything but a plate or the cutting board. I've never been a big bleach-on-the-counters kinda gal as the smell of bleach makes me nauseous.

Come to think of it, I never asked the woodworker who made the top for recommendations on how to clean like I asked my marble fabricator how to clean that. My walnut is finished with Osmo.

Making decisions?!? That's great! I think the work on your bathrooms is having a good effect. :-)

Thanks, breezy! I don't set meat on anything but a plate or cutting board either but all the same, meat or its juices sometimes accidentally end up on the counter (I can be a bit klutzy) so I want to be prepared for what to do when that happens.

Yes, we're making decisions although I'm still more focused on the laundry room and master bath at the moment. But we did choose a fabricator for our kitchen yesterday. We've been happy with the fabricator we're using for our bathrooms but the one we've chosen for our kitchen is awesome. Their seams are incredible, barely detectable. And since they own the right equipment to do so, they can hone or antique any slab for a very reasonable cost, much (much!) cheaper than other quotes I've received. Yay!

(Glad GW is not burping - ha! - anymore.)

I used Good Stuff for Wood on our island, and clean it with Lysol or Costco brand wipes.

Thanks, Allison. Do you cut on your wood top, too? I've seen so many pics of your kitchen but I can't remember how you use your wood top.

lisa a-

We have old bowling alley wood plank counters (southern yellow pine) that are finished with Bush Oil, a food safe finish that looks and feels like silk and wears like iron. We cut stuff like sandwiches directly on the counters but don't do aggressive cutting and dicing on them. To clean them all I do is wipe with a soapy dish cloth, we don't use bleach or disposable wipes in our home, too costly and wasteful on the wipes and we don't believe in using bleach. We have a 24" square cherry cutting board that has been in continuous use since we got it in 1986, and we cut everything on it; meat (cooked and raw), veggies, bread, etc. I wipe it with a soapy dish cloth and sometimes follow up with a vinegar/water spray. It gets oiled with food grade mineral oil once every couple of months or when it looks dry.

I know it's not popular on these forums, but we choose not to obsess over germs, and there are studies out that show wooden cutting boards are actually better at repelling germs than dishwasher friendly ones.

Good luck-

sandyponder

Here is a link that might be useful: Where to buy Bush Oil

Lisa, as I hit enter I realized I did not answer that question. No, we do not cut directly on the wood.

Thanks, Sandyponder and Allison (and sorry it took me so long to respond to you both).

Sandy, I'm with you, we don't obsess over germs, either. We don't use antiseptic soap and counters impregnated with antibacterial ingredients aren't high on my list. I feel that if we follow simple rules, such as don't cut raw veggies ready to eat on the same board where you just cut raw meat, soap and water and common sense is generally sufficient. I remember reading that wood cutting boards were actually deemed safer than plastic. Something about wood having natural antimicrobial properties or something along that line. Good point.