As much as they appear tough, most countertop materials will get damaged by heat. You don’t want to replace your countertops as it’s too expensive regularly, do you? To ensure this doesn’t happen, you should protect the countertops from heat.
How do you do this? Here is how to go about it:
Use silicone mats
They are large, thick, and highly effective at protecting your kitchen countertops from heat. The mats work by blocking the heat emitted by your appliances, and to protect your countertops, you should place the mats under your stove, coffee maker, toaster, microwave, or any other appliance you might be having.
The cool thing is that besides the mats protecting your countertops from heat, they also protect the surfaces from spills, scratches, and grease.
Silicone is non-slip, which means that your appliances will stay in place, without moving around, which comes in handy in ensuring that the appliances remain where you want them.
The mats effectively take heat ranging from 40 degrees to 446 degrees Celsius, keeping your countertops as safe as possible.
Heating pads
You place heating pads beneath hot dishes and pans where they block the heat from getting to your precious countertops. Most of the pads are made from cloth, but they can also be made from other materials such as cotton, rattan, cork, or even silicone.
Some people use towels for heating pads. While they work, you should be ultra cautious when using them as the loose ends can be a hazard for accidents that could lead to a serious injury.
The condensation from the pad can get trapped beneath, damaging the surfaces.
For peace of mind when preparing your meals, use silicone pads or thicker cloth pads specially designed for hot pots and pans. These will keep your food accessible and your counters safe from heat damage.
Ceramic countertop protectors
These protectors are highly effective when looking to protect your surfaces against high temperatures. Some manufacturers make higher-grade protectors that can withstand as high as 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
While the protectors are highly effective at taking high temperatures, the downside is that they sometimes get hot, putting your countertops at the risk of getting damaged.
To prevent your counters, go for protectors with a protective base to ground them. These bases can be made out of rubber or silicone.
Ceramic protectors come in all colors and designs, which gives your surfaces a splash of color.
The cool thing is that they always come with a cork backing that ensures that scratches and other possible accidental surface damages don’t happen.
As you are buying ceramic protectors, you should note that they aren’t the most durable materials on the market. This means that after some time you will have to replace them. The good thing about this is that they are easy to replace when they chip or crack.
Peel and stick countertop covers
From their name, these are covers that you can easily stick to your countertop, and in the process, you not only alter their look, but also protect them from damage.
The covers are sold by the roll, making it easy to cut and tailor them to the exact dimensions of your countertops.
To install them, you need to measure the size of your countertops, cut your desired countertop, peel off the backing, and get ready to go.
Should they get damaged or change your mind about their design, they are easy to remove as all you need is to peel them off without worrying about damaging the countertop beneath or leaving residues behind.
Wooden countertop protectors
Besides being highly decorative and improving the appeal of your kitchen, they protect your counters from excessive heat.
The only downside of the protectors is they aren’t as heat resistant so if you aren’t cautious in the kitchen, you can easily damage your granite kitchen countertops NC or any other countertop surfaces you might be having.
To get maximum protection and stability, go for countertop protectors with rubber feet and a rubber base.