Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I've read many reviews from Home Depot, Lowes and Amazon and decided to do this for our laminate kitchen countertops. The result with the standard kit is OK. However, the result when using an epoxy resin glaze instead of the Giani Top Coat is AMAZING! I'm not a big fan of the top coat glaze that comes with the kit. We tested it out on some of the back splash and it looked so-so. However, I saw a review on amazon where they substituted the included top coat with an epoxy/resin glaze. LET ME BE CLEAR - it makes a 10X improvement! We have had people over our house and immediately think we got granite countertops. The glaze is very thick and makes the colors more vibrant and also adds a little bit of magnification that increases the granite effect. There are some cautions though about using the epoxy/resin: It messy - be prepared to tape everything off as the resin will inevitably fall off the edges of your counters. It only works on level surfaces - If your countertop has a "lip" on the edge, the epoxy will not cover it as it's self leveling. I had to use a sander and wood planer to shave off our countertop lip for the epoxy to settle correctly. Also, you will not get a nice coating on the side edges or back splash (it will develop runs). I recommend using Giani's top coat for any vertical surfaces and FAMOWOOD epoxy/resin glaze for the top. You can royally screw up your countertops, so be prepared to take risks. However, I think this is totally worth it. Once you lay this down, it's extremely thick and cannot be sanded off easily. You really do need a chisel and sander to get back down to your original countertops. With a 15-20 minute cure time, you really need to make sure you work quickly and that you have full coverage. The instructions recommend a squeegee or trowel, but i found the best thing to do is use your two hands with nitrile or latex gloves. This allows you to feel the areas that have not gotten coverage. One thing that I found is when the glaze is drying, sometimes it will pull away from some spots and you will have areas that are like little holes. Just make sure you don't skimp on using the glaze and you should be fine. You'll also need another specialized tool such as a butane lighter or heat gun as you need this to remove bubbles after you have laid the glaze coat. If you have the will and want amazing results, try the epoxy glaze, you won't regret it. I think my pictures are testament to this.