Tabletop surface performance tests

At a glance

Summaries from public previews and a FIRA report; the standards were not read in full. None sets a pass level.

Five tests, five ways a table fails

When a restaurant table fails, it fails in one of five ways: a stain from a liquid, a ring from something hot and wet, a ring from something hot and dry, a scratch, or wear. Five European standards (all prepared by CEN/TC 207, the furniture committee) test those five things on a finished surface. They apply to rigid furniture surfaces of any material, except leather and textile, and each is run on a part of the finished furniture or on a test panel of the same material, finished in an identical manner, on an unused surface.

Three points save most of the argument later.

• A grade means nothing without its conditions. The cold liquid standard says the type and number of test liquids and the test periods are to be stated in the requirement specification or agreed between purchaser and supplier. So “EN 12720, grade 5” is not a requirement. “Red wine for 1 hour, grade 4 or better” is.
• Two of the five were re-issued recently. BS EN 15185:2023 replaced the 2011 edition, and BS EN 15186:2024 replaced the 2012 edition. BSI shows both older editions as withdrawn (31 January 2024 and 22 March 2024). A report that cites an older edition used a procedure that has since been revised.
• The standards report; they do not pass or fail. The pass level is set by the specification. We found no published pass level for hospitality tables and give none: see the next section and the wording at the foot of the page.

Reading a grade: 5 to 1

Cold liquids, wet heat and dry heat share a rating code. The contents of the standards call it a descriptive numerical rating code. A FIRA test report we read prints the scale as follows, in the report's own words paraphrased here: grade 5, no change; grade 4, a slight change that shows only when light reflects off the surface towards the eye, with no change to the surface structure; grade 3, a moderate change visible from several viewing directions; grade 2, a significant change, clear from all directions, or a slight change to the structure such as swelling or cracking; grade 1, a strong change, with the structure distinctly changed or the surface material removed, or the filter paper or cloth stuck to the surface.

• Higher is better, and the steps are about how visible the mark is, not how large. A grade 4 mark shows when light reflects off the surface towards the eye, which on a glossy top in a lit room can be often, so judge a grade 4 against the sheen you have chosen.
• A person reads it. The FIRA report quotes the standards as asking for each surface to be rated by an experienced observer, with three observers in cases of doubt. Ask who rated the panel.
• One headline can hide shortfalls. The report we read gives an overall pass “with a flexible rating allowance” under the specification it was run against, with some results marked as failed areas. Read the line for each liquid and temperature, not the headline.
• Scratching and abrasion are not on this scale. The abrasion standard finds an initial wear point, and the scratching standard has a different clause for each of its two methods. Ask the laboratory to say in the report how each result is expressed.

What to ask the finisher for

A test report is only useful if it describes the thing you are buying. The drawing marks seven checks. The first two matter most, because a report can be accurate and still be about a different surface.

• The panel is the product. Same substrate, same finish system, same number of coats, same sheen, same cure. A FIRA report we read says the finish is normally tested on the substrate it will be used on, so that the finish and substrate combination is assessed. Ask the partner finisher for a panel made with your approved sample's system, not a similar one.
• The edition is stated, for each of the five.
• The conditions are stated: liquids, exposure times, temperatures and, for scratching, the method.
• The laboratory is named, and you have asked whether these tests are within its accreditation. The report only carries accreditation for tests in its scope: see FIRA Gold and furniture test reports.
• Raw results, not a summary. A table of ratings per liquid and per temperature, with failed areas marked.

The standards also have a technical report of precision data (PD CEN/TR 17292:2018), which FIRA says helps laboratories improve the accuracy of their results. We have not read it, and take it as a reminder that two laboratories can differ by a grade on the same panel. Where a result is borderline, ask for a second reading or a repeat.

Matching the tests to the venue

The five tests are fixed; what you choose is the liquids, the temperatures and which tests to call up. A venue's own hazards decide.

The liquids to name are the ones the venue actually serves and the cleaner it uses. The cold liquid standard has a list in a normative annex and allows others to be used if required. We have not read the list. The FIRA report we read used coffee, tea, ethanol at two strengths, and cold oil and cold fat; use those as a prompt, then add red wine, citrus and the venue's cleaning product, and confirm the list with the laboratory.

By surface: what the tests can and cannot tell you

The tests do not rank materials; they test the surface in front of them. What differs between materials is whether a standard applies, what the usual gap is, and what to ask. This table is our reading and is not a set of results; the partner finisher and the laboratory should confirm every row.

For how film and penetrating finishes compare as families, see finishes on timber joinery. For the metals, zinc, pewter, copper and stainless bar tops. For stone, natural stone finishes; a sheet on sealing, staining and etching of stone is planned.

Care, re-finishing and what is left over

• Ask for the care regime the test assumed, and put it in the handover and O&M pack. A result for a finish that is cleaned with a mild soap solution is not a result for the same finish cleaned with a strong disinfectant.
• Plan for the damage that will happen. A film finish that is marked through is usually re-finished across the panel. A penetrating oil can often be refreshed locally. Ask the finisher which applies and what it costs in downtime, so that a bar can plan it around opening hours.
• Keep a spare finished panel from the same batch for matching, if the project allows. See spares and attic stock.
• Protect from what the test did not cover: trivets for hot pans, coasters, and shade from strong sun if light fastness is a concern.

Before production the finisher is to supply a report from [a named laboratory, accredited for these methods] on a panel of the same substrate finished identically to approved sample [S-nn] (same system, coats, sheen and cure), stating the edition of each standard, with ratings for: cold liquids, BS EN 12720:2009+A1:2013, with [coffee, tea, red wine, ethanol 48 and 96 per cent, cold oil, cold fat] for [1 hour; 24 hours for oil and fat]; wet heat, BS EN 12721:2009+A1:2013, at [55 and 70] degrees C; dry heat, BS EN 12722:2009+A1:2013, at [85 and 100] degrees C; scratching, BS EN 15186:2024, method [A / B]; and, for a foil, laminate, melamine-faced board or lacquer, abrasion, BS EN 15185:2023. Required: not worse than rating [ ] for each liquid and temperature [allowance, if any: ]. If not met: [re-finish and re-test / alternative proposed for approval].

Bar top finish [system] to approved sample [S-nn]. The cold liquid test is to include [spirits (ethanol 48 and 96 per cent), citrus juice, red wine, coffee] and the venue's cleaning product [name] for [exposure], results not worse than [ ]. Wet and dry heat at [ ] degrees C, results not worse than [ ]. The care instructions used for the tests go in the operation and maintenance pack.

The five tests do not cover weathering or light. For [outdoor table top] the finisher is to supply [exterior performance evidence for the exact finish] and the care and re-finishing interval [ ].

Standards and sources

• BS EN 12720, 12721 and 12722, each 2009+A1:2013: cold liquids, wet heat, dry heat. BSI Knowledge, read 6 Nov 2026: each current, under review. Scope and public previews read; rating, period and temperature tables not read.
• BS EN 15186:2024: scratching. Current; replaces 2012 (withdrawn 22 March 2024). Scope and contents read.
• BS EN 15185:2023: abrasion. Current from 31 January 2024; the 2011 edition withdrawn the same day. Scope and contents read.
• PD CEN/TR 17292:2018 and a FIRA International report (May 2021): precision data (known from a FIRA news item; not read); the report on an oil-finished panel, read for methods, rating wording and layout, names FIRA Standard 6250:2018, not read.

Questions we are asked

What do EN 12720, 12721, 12722, 15186 and 15185 each test?

EN 12720 tests resistance to cold liquids, EN 12721 to wet heat and EN 12722 to dry heat. EN 15186 tests resistance to scratching, by one of two methods, and EN 15185 tests resistance to abrasion. All apply to rigid furniture surfaces and exclude leather and textile.

What does grade 5 mean in a surface test?

In the rating used for the liquid and heat tests, 5 means no change: the test area cannot be told from the surface around it, as a FIRA test report describes it. Lower grades describe a mark that is increasingly easy to see, down to 1, a strong change or a damaged surface.

Is there a pass mark for a restaurant table?

The standards report a result and do not set a pass level. The level is yours to set in the specification, for the liquids, periods and temperatures the venue meets. We found no published level for hospitality tables. FIRA has a specification for finish performance (FIRA Standard 6250:2018, which we did not read): ask FIRA what it requires.

Why is 'EN 12720 grade 5' not enough?

The standard says the type and number of test liquids and the test periods are to be stated in the specification or agreed between buyer and supplier. A grade for coffee for one hour says nothing about red wine for several hours, or about the venue's cleaner.

Do older reports still count?

Check the edition. BS EN 15185:2011 and BS EN 15186:2012 are withdrawn and replaced by BS EN 15185:2023 and BS EN 15186:2024, which changed the procedure. A report to an older edition can still be informative, but ask the finisher whether the result still holds under the current method.

Do the tests apply to stone, HPL and metal?

The cold liquid, wet heat and dry heat standards cover rigid furniture surfaces of any material, so they can be run on stone or metal. HPL and melamine-faced boards have their own product standards, and EN 15186 method A is not suitable for them. Ask the maker which tests it reports.

Are these tests for outdoor tables?

They do not measure weathering or light. For an outdoor top, ask for separate evidence for the exact finish, and agree a care and re-finishing interval with the partner.