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| Manufacturer Part No | F2255 |
|---|
Most white worktops are a thin skin over chipboard, and the first chip shows brown. Polar White is white all the way through a single compact laminate slab, so a cut edge, a sink cut-out and a knock all stay white.
Polar White is Formica Aria decor F2255: a plain, clean white compact laminate worktop made as one solid slab, 12mm or 20mm thick, with a semi gloss finish and a square edge. It is waterproof through its core and carries a 10-year manufacturer guarantee. A 3.6m x 650 x 12mm worktop is GBP 397 inc VAT.
Formica make Aria as a single compact laminate slab, decorated on both faces, with the colour running through the full thickness. There is no chipboard core to swell and no laminate skin to lift, which is why the edges can be left square and a sink can be undermounted.
Polar White is a neutral white - not the blue-white of acrylic, not the cream of an older laminate - and the semi gloss finish gives it a soft sheen rather than a mirror. In a small kitchen it does what white is bought for: it bounces light and makes the run of units read as one clean line. Because the slab is only 12mm at the front edge the worktop looks light and modern instead of heavy.
Works with: sage, navy or forest green doors for contrast, pale oak for a Scandinavian scheme, or white handleless units for an all-white room. Add the matching Polar White upstand along the wall and the 6mm splashback behind the hob so the white carries up without a change of material.
All six pieces are the same decor and finish, so a run of worktop, the 900mm breakfast bar for an island, the upstand and the splashback match exactly. Prices include VAT. Delivery is GBP 30 per order by two-man service, or free Click & Collect from Burnley.
| Material | Formica Aria compact laminate - single solid slab |
|---|---|
| Made by | Formica Group |
| Construction | Colour and pattern run through the full thickness - double-sided decorative finish |
| Thickness | 12mm and 20mm worktops and breakfast bars - 12mm upstand - 6mm splashback |
| Edge | Square edge |
| Finish | Semi gloss |
| Widths | 650mm worktops - 900mm breakfast bars - 90mm upstand - 600mm splashback |
| Lengths | 3.6m worktops, 12mm breakfast bar, upstand and splashback - 3.05m 20mm breakfast bar |
| Weight | 6.3 kg to 85.03 kg per piece |
| Water | Waterproof - non-porous solid core |
| Guarantee | 10 years, manufacturer |
| Decor code | F2255 (Polar White) |
| Colour | White |
| Delivery | GBP 30 per order, two-man, UK mainland - or free Click & Collect from Burnley |
Compact laminate is dense and hard, so it is cut with a fine-tooth blade made for it and the edge is finished with a router rather than left off the saw. Joints are made with a compact laminate jointing kit and colour-matched sealant, and because the slab is solid and waterproof an undermount sink can be fitted with the cut edge exposed and sealed. Most fitters allow a little longer than for a chipboard-cored laminate; the reward is a worktop with square edges and no visible joint strip.
Warm water and a soft cloth handle daily marks on Polar White; a little washing-up liquid lifts grease. Avoid scouring pads, cream cleaners and bleach left standing, all of which can dull a semi gloss surface. Hot pans go on a trivet as they would on any premium worktop, and chopping is done on a board - the surface is hardwearing but not intended as a cutting surface.
Is a white compact laminate worktop any good? For a white kitchen it is the sensible middle ground: it has the thin square-edged look of a stone or solid surface worktop at a fraction of the fitted cost, and unlike a standard laminate it does not have a core that swells at the sink. The honest limits are that it is a slab, not a sheet - it needs proper support and proper tooling - and a deep gouge cannot be sanded out the way a solid wood top can.
Yes. It is a solid white slab rather than a white skin over chipboard, so chips, cut edges and sink cut-outs stay white. Formica back it with a 10-year guarantee. It suits people who want a clean square-edged look without the cost of quartz.
The 3.6m x 650 x 12mm worktop is GBP 397 the 20mm version GBP 593 the 3.6m x 900 x 12mm breakfast bar GBP 947 and the 3.05m x 900 x 20mm breakfast bar GBP 1,243. The matching upstand is GBP 98 and the splashback GBP 277 all inc VAT. Delivery is GBP 30 per order or free Click & Collect from Burnley.
12mm gives the thinnest, most contemporary line and costs less. 20mm reads as a heavier slab, closer to the look of stone, and is the choice for a large island or a long unsupported overhang. Both are the same material and colour throughout.
It cuts, but not with ordinary DIY tools. You need a fine-tooth blade designed for compact laminate and a router to finish the edge, and cut-outs are best made with a jig. Most customers have a kitchen fitter do it, or ask us about cut to size before ordering.
With a compact laminate jointing kit and a colour-matched sealant, pulled tight with jointing bolts from underneath. Because the colour goes through the slab the joint line is a fine white seam rather than a dark line of core.
Yes. The slab is solid and waterproof through its core, so the cut edge around an undermount or Belfast sink can be polished and sealed without any risk of the core swelling - the reason many people choose compact laminate over a standard laminate.
The slab is waterproof and non-porous, so the top and edges need no sealing. Only the joint between two pieces and the junction with a sink are sealed, with the sealant supplied in a jointing kit.
See every decor on the compact laminate worktops page, or the other white decors in the range: Polar White Monolith, Neo Cloud, Ice Onyx, Ice Quarstone, Aura Marble, Calacatta Marble, Calacatta Cava. The matching Polar White upstand and splashback are in the size list above.
Starting at £98.00
