I need more space for my new refrigerator and need to cut off 1/2" of my corian counter. What is the best toolto use.

1/2 an inch is a lot to trim, but it should be possible with a router. A carbide blade fitted into a trim/circular saw and finalizing the cut with a router would be faster.

It's going to be difficult getting next to the splash, so a multifunction tool like the Fein Multimaster can do a flush cut with a diamond blade.

I'll put you here: How to Cut Corian Countertops | eHow.com (http://www.ehow.com/how-does_4928206_cut-corian-countertops.html)

Thanks I will try to do the job over the weekend. Ill let you know how I made out,

Calvin@ <a href="http://www.tilecuttingsawsite.com/">Cutting Saw</a> agree with Keep it Simple. The splash will be difficult but take your time and it should work out for you.

Put tape on saw base to protect counter top. Put a line of tape on counter where u want to cut to protect from chipping.

Chuck

I taped counter top, scored the cut and cut with a skill saw- came out smooth and without chipping,
Very dusty but good- thank you all for your help - Ahwatukee

You did good.

I have to trim 1/4 inch off both sides of my stove cutout for my new slide in. There is no backspasl and I don't ned to cut the third side since the depth is fine. I was wondering if the skill saw would be OK to use:
What type of blade did you use
How do you score the cut? What tool do I use for that? I think that means that you cut a little way down first then went through the whole way the second time around?
How hard is this to do? I'm not too handy really. Will corian chip or split down the part of the counter that shows?
I'm a total novice but need to do this myself out of necessity.
Thanks for any help!

Yes, this can be done with a circular saw and a 40 tooth carbide blade.

You said you are a novice so here is how I would approach this task.

First, set you saw in the opening and make sure that it will cut to the back of the opening before hitting the wall. Set the depth of the saw blade to 1/4 greater than the thickness of the material. Which is probably the built up front edge of the counter top. The closer to 90 degrees the tooth of the blade exits the material the greater the chance of chipping. Raising the blade increases the angle that the saw tooth exits the material and reduces the chance of chipping.

Retract the blade guard and set the saw on the counter top with the blade against the edge of the counter top opening. Mark the edge of the saw shoe. Do this at the front and back of the counter top.

Do the same for the other side of the opening.

Measure 1/4" from your marks and glue a straight edge to the counter top with hot glue. Let you straight edge extend out from the counter top about 6". The hot glue can later be scraped off.

Make your cuts. Cut at a reasonable speed. Don't cut too fast and cause chipping. Don't cut too slow. If you really drag out the rate of cut, the heat build up by the blade can melt the Corian.

If your saw will reach the back edge, this a rather simple task.
If your saw will not reach the back edge, invest in a Porter Cable laminate trimmer and a 1 1/2" long carbide bit. Total cost about $100.

You are allowed 1 hour for this task, including clean up.

As I posted earlier, the only thing I would add to Harold's instructions, is to protect counter top with duct tape.

Chuck

Wow- Thanks you sooooo much for the deatiled instructions and hints- we just finished and it came out great with no chipping, nice straight lines, and no scratches to the counter top thanks to the taping idea. I even finished up the cleanup and vacuuming- it's very messy stuff. We taped the bottom of the saw with duct tape so it wouldn't scratch and also taped the line that we were to cut on the countertop with tape. We made a guide by clamping down a long piece of wood to the front and back of the counter since we didn't feel like scraping off glue but wanted the protection that a guide provides. We cut down each side nearly to the end but stopped a smidge short just to be sure we didn't overcut it since that would have shown. We used a hacksaw to finish off the 1/4 inch at the back end of each side and that worked well. We used a carbide blade but I think it was greater than 40 teeth. Got it at HD and said it was for 'hard plastic'. This site gave us the confidence to tackle this on our own and we're very happy that we did it. Thanks a ton! Ps- I say 'we' but my better half did all the 'scary' cutting part since I was too timid. Thanks, we greatly appreciate your taking time to help us through this- quite nice and generous of you.

Cutting chorion is a flakey business. Its best to use a router for trimming the edge. Honestly, call a carpenter, you need Jesus.