All,
This Monday I will be installing new kitchen countertops which do not have a backsplash; commonly known as decks. I will be installing a tile backsplash after installation of the tops. Now for my question:
Are decks scribed to the wall like tops w/ backsplashes?
Thanks in advance for any advice!
dlb
MasterWorks Remodeling, Inc.
Replies
As long as the tiled backsplash can hide the gap, the deck needs not fit exactly to the wall. Make sense?
Tom
I do, but not as perfectly.
dale, I scribe em pretty close and caulk the wall/top joint as a second line of defense b/4 tiling. I'll cut away the grout at the top/tile joint, then use color matched caulk there rather than just caulking over the grout. Seems to hold better keying into that joint. Shows a crack later less often. One other thing. Get a good fit at any nosing end that dies into a wall and only gets tile above the top.
__________________________________________
Remodeling Contractor just outside the Glass City.
http://www.quittintime.com/
I install granite countertops for a living and I have learned to always lay a straightedge down the length of the countertop prior to the adhesive setting up if I am not installing splash. I do this as even granite slabs can dip or crown a remarkable amount. If I am installing the splash I can shim the slab up as needed to get a nice tight fit down the length of the splash.
karl
Do you mean you can correct the crown or dip in a granite slab by shimming? I thought they all come at least almost flat.
Tom
Typically granite slabs are flat but it is very disconcerting to see how much you can flex a 9 foot slab. If the cabinets are not flat any deviations telegraph throught the granite and you have to shim it level. Some colors like absolute black don't respond well to flexing but others like Giallo Veniziano will flex very freely.
Karl
Last granite I had installed, the guy told be at bid time that it would take him 6-7 hours to do the install job and to plan on letting him have the kitchen alone for that time.
When he came with the slabs, two hours later, he was packing up. What's up, I asked.
"Your cabinets and walls were actually straight, square, plumb and level! I never see that."Excellence is its own reward!
Piffin, Straight and level is remarkably rare. Home Depot installs so many of the cabinets I get called in to fabricate countertops and their quality control is disappointing. Basically any volume cabinet installer seems to work under pressure to work fast not to perfection. I can usually use shims to correct poor cabinets but occasionally I reject the conditions if the gap between edge of granite and drawer faces is going to taper or fluctuate wildly.
Karl
I don't do perfection either, just excellence, sometimes professional is good enough.
It's good to hear about subs who reject substandard prep, though, as long as we don't go too far like the primadonna that KiethC menmtioned a while back for a tile wallExcellence is its own reward!
Are you talking about 3/4 or 1 1/4 slaps? Or both?
Tom
Tom, Most of my experience is with 3/4" slabs but I occasionally (reluctantly) handle 1 1/4" slabs (too heavy). I have never installed a countertop over five feet long without automatically checking it for flat. It is amazing how much a stone slab will flex. I have to be especially careful if I have a sink or stove cut out because these areas are especially likely to crown due to adhesive/caulking being applied especially liberally around these areas. I reinforce all cut outs and many longer sections with 1/4" stainless rod embedded in epoxy laid in a slot cut in the backside of the slab to make the slab more stable in situations that cause it to flex.
The guy who loads most of my slabs maintains that slabs can absorb more water on the unpolished side and therefore can expand slightly more on that side causing a slab to bow. I suppose this may be the case but I haven't personally observed it.
It is so common to find walls that are not flat I will frequently bow a run of backsplash with some clamps to help it conform to the wall while the adhesive cures.
My long winded post is just to say Granite/Stone does flex and it really isn't related to how flat the slab is when it leaves the quarry.
Karl
Thanks Karl
Tom