# 2 part food safe epoxy on cutting board?



## Micahm

I was wondering if I can put 2 part food safe epoxy on a cutting board to completely seal off the pores to makes them safer for cutting meat on? Or would the cutting and wear on it cause it to chip or crack possibly?


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## Charlie5791

A good wood cutting board doesn't need to "sealed against meat". In a commercial setting I don't think wood boards are approved, but in "real life" wood has properties that kill off bacteria and it's actually a "cleaner" board than most plastics. Used plastic boards get little cuts in them and it can be nearly impossible to get them as clean as a wood board (in terms of bacteria) even after sending them through a commercial dishwasher.

Wood boards get a scrub with salt and in about 20 minutes they're bacteria free. 

If you want a "meat board", buy some 1/2" HDPE and use that instead of wood. For myself… I'll stay with wood. It's cleaner and safer than we've generally been led to believe (due in no small part to the plastics industry).
Read THIS
It's not the entire scientific study but I was able to find it quickly and it references the study.


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## ChrisK

Also if you completely seal the cutting board, the wood movement would cause cracks and splits. I have been using my wood boards for years, no problems. Just coat with mineral oil when it looks dry.

I also have an HDPE board that the wife uses. i need to let it soak under bleach to get it white once every 3 or 4 months.


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## Blackie_

As Chris mentioned only use mineral oil on a regular basis, along with that keeping them clean after use, there are different ways to cleaning them but I use white vinegar.


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## Earlextech

+1 for mineral oil


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## RRBOU

I made an end grain walnut cutting board in high school in 1976. The board started out at 2 3/4" thick. It is now a little over 1 3/4" thick. Every couple of years I sand it down and re apply mineral oil and bees wax combo. After every use I wash it with soap and water. When I think about it I rub wet salt over it and let the salt dry then brush off and apply as much mineral oil as it will absorb. This board is the only one I use for cutting meat on. I use others for cutting every thing else on. I have thought about replacing the board over the years but sentimental value means a lot with this board. The board is 18" x 24".


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## Soonerdg

As stated above you don't want any kind of film finish that builds a finish on a cutting board. You are exactly right that the cutting with knives will cause the finish to chip and get into your food. I like mineral oil or a very thin wiping varnish.


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## a1Jim

Here's a thread that covers the subject of finishing cutting boards very well. Take particular notice as to what Charles Neil says about the subject,he's the best finishing expert I know.

http://lumberjocks.com/topics/42936


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## Minorhero

Putting epoxy on a cuttingboard to develop an actual epoxy film is a bad idea for a different reason then mention here (which are good reasons not to by the way) but additionally you need to consider the knives being used.

End grain cuttingboards are friendly on knife edges because of the end grain itself is softer then edge grain. If you did seal it completely then the hardness of the epoxy is what you would be cutting on which is probably harder then the endgrain and thus your knives will dull faster. Additionally since you will be making lots of cuts over the years the epoxy film would start to show wear VERY quickly and probably look terrible from scratches marring the finish a lot faster then an endgrain cuttingboard with more traditional finish types.


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## Micahm

Yeah makes sense, I'll just stick with my usual mineral oil.


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## TomInIndy

I found recipes for "Board Butter" online. It is a mixture of Mineral Oil and Bees Wax. Most of them are close to 4 parts Mineral Oil…..........1 part Bees Wax
Below is a link to one of the sites.
You could do a yahoo/google search for others.
I like the results it gives, but it works best if you "work it in" for a little while.

http://www.creative-culinary.com/wood-butter-helps-renew-wood-utensils-and-bowls/


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