[msfidget]

I'm trying to figure out what to seal my numerar countertops with. I know at least one person sealed with Marine Waterlox, but I've read many threads hinting that this may not be food safe. I read the waterlox website up and down and couldn't find the info so emailed them and I wanted to share what they wrote.

• We suggest using our regular interior grade finishes unless the surface is in direct UV. Even if the surface is outside, but not in direct UV, we recommend regular interior grade.
  
• We do not recommend our Marine products for interior use since it is truly overkill, not because of any food safe issues. The Marine Finish is formulated to resist the ravages of UV degradation and is therefore high in solids, high gloss and also the most elastic/softest finish we make. The solids are there for more protection, the high gloss is there to reflect some of the UV and the elasticity is required so that as the UV eats away at it, it stays flexible as long as possible. If your project will therefore not see that direct UV then everything we put in it is overkill.
• Many customers have asked about our Marine products for kitchen and bath countertops thinking they need it for increased water resistance but in fact, any of our Tung oil based products will “lock out water” which is where our name “Waterlox” came from.

So, the take-away message is that the Marine version IS food-safe, but not necessarily any more effective than the regular version for kithen/bath applications that aren't in direct UV.

This information helped me...I'm posting it in case anyone else has the same question

[Tigratrus]

Thanks for posting that! And my congratulations on a well phrased post title a lot of people don't realize how important that is...

Great bit of info to have out there. ::thumbs up::

James

[NBeth]

I think a softer more flexible finish is actually less desirable in a kitchen, confirming our decision to stick with the original finish. Thanks for the details!