Stainless Steel Counters on a Budget

[Stinky The Clown]

Stainless steel counter tops are, to say the least, popular, desirable, and considered very high end. Here is a detail I developed for my son's upcoming house renovation, which includes a new kitchen in a whole new location from where it is now. This detail is a way to have real stainless steel counters at far, far less cost than to have complete counters, with integral sinks and back splash, and a full edge.



Essentially, these are sheets of stainless laid over a plywood base and trimmed with tile. The cost of custom stainless steel counters is very much for labor. The raw material (while up 35% in the last 6 months) is still fairly reasonable, albeit more than some other surfaces. 14 gauge, which I suggest for this project, is about $15 per square foot. Add a bit for them to cut it to size. Also, anything longer than 12 feet is custom. You can save a buck or two by going to thinner 16 gauge, but I think that's too thin for this application, and may dent if something heavy gets dropped on it. While any metal can dent, 14 is sufficiently strong to resist most kitchen accidents. Instead of formed sinks and edges, use a drop in stainless steel sink and tile for the edge and back splash.

One thing to keep in mind is any "L" or "U" shaped counters. For that, you're likely to need welded mitres. That gets costly, so this method is best for straight runs of counter only. It can also work on an island, which may give you the look by having just a spot of it mixed with your other counter material. Alternatively, you could just live with the exposed seams, but I think you'll be unhappy with this. The seams are hard to seal and they could lift. They'll also be very obvious.

So .... you just need to order the metal, precut to the size you'll need. Don't forget that your counters are **more** than 24" deep. They're probably a minimum of 25", and could be as much as 26" or even 27". Be sure to allow for any needed overhang and measure carefully. Once it is cut, you own the metal. I suggest you cut your plywood a tiny bit long (1/8" to a max of 1/4") and then sand it using a belt sander so it is flush with the metal when it is installed.

The method is simple. Put one layer of 3/4" plywood on top of your base cabinets and secure it with screws from below, through the cabinet webs that are there for that purpose. Now put the second layer over that and screw it down from the top, into the first layer. Make any cutouts needed (for sinks, for example). Spread an adhesive made for both wood and metal. (Liquid Nails brand has one, but it is NOT the usual Liquid Nails product.) If you can't readily find the right stuff, ask. Make sure it is a type you can spread with a notched trowel. You want an adhesive that dries solid but retains some flexibility. You may have to go to a specialty supplier. (Almost all stainless steel counters in homes are glued to plywood, so surely it is available in your area.) Whatever you use, do NOT get contact cement. You need to be able to adjust the metal after you lay it down.

Spread the adhesive with a notched trowel. Use the smallest notch recommended for the adhesive. If none is specifically recommended, use a small one so you'll lay only a thin coat. Maybe a 3/16" notch. When everything is evenly coated with the adhesive, its time .......

Lay the sheet of stainless on the adhesive. Push the metal so it butts against the wall. If there are gaps, don't worry; the tile will cover it later. Critical is to get the tile lined up with the front edge of the counter. When it is where you want it, it needs to be pressed firmly to make good contact with the adhesive. Use an industrial roller. Lacking that, a wooden rolling pin will also do the trick. A small roller may be needed to get into the wall.

Now let it dry per the adhesive manufacturer's directions.

Now the hardest part ..... you have to make the cutout for the sink to match the cutout in the plywood you already made. I say its hard, but really, it isn't. Allow the adhesive to dry fully. Use an electric jigsaw with a metal cutting blade. Be sure to put some tape or even glue some felt to the shoe so the saw doesn't scratch the metal. Maybe even better is to put a bunch of that blue painters tape on the counter along the cut line. Lay several widths so you cover any area that could possibly come in contact with the saw. The saw's base (shoe) **will** scratch the counter. You could use the tape to mark the cut line, too. File or grind the cut edge to remove any burrs or sharp areas.

You could also use an angle grinder with a metal cutting wheel to make these cuts. just be careful. The grinder could build up enough heat to discolor or warp the metal. While this isn't very likely if you use care, it could.

Now you're in the home stretch. All that's left is to install the sink and tile the edge and back splash. The sink is done like any other sink installation - no special tricks. Just make sure the seam between the sink and the counter top is well caulked. The best seal is plumber's putty. Use it generously and wipe any excess off later. It doesn't harden and it doesn't stick like glue, so cleanup is easy. The worst that happens is some linseed oil residue. Clean that with 409 or even with lighter fluid.

Before you install the tile, caulk all the wall/counter joints. I suggest you use silicone sealant. Put some blue painter's tape on the wall about 1" above the counter. Put another line of tape on the counter top, just slightly less than the thickness of the tile you'll be using. Now lay a generous bead of the sealant. Make sure it gets down into any gaps and fills them. When you get the bead laid, work it with your finger to give a nice radius between the wall and counter top, feathering it to near nothing by the time you get to the tape. Remove the tape as soon as you're done. Don't worry about the fact that you now seem to have taken some of the area that the tile will need to fit tight. You need to keep the tile off the counter by about a penny's thickness - or maybe even more, depending on your tile. In essence, keep the tile one full grout line width above the counter.

Let the sealant dry. This might take overnight.

When you tile, be sure to protect the counter top. I suggest painter's tape and rosin paper. Lay a line of tape right up to the edge of the front, ends and back of the counter. Now cut rosin paper to fit and tape it down. If you tape a line first, you don't need to be very fussy with the location of the paper; just cover what's exposed after that first line of tape was laid. Keep this in place until all the tile work, including the grout, is done. The mortar and grout are very abrasive and will ruin the counter.

A few words about the counter edges. I show three ways to form the plywood edge. In the first case, you simply lay one piece over the other and move on. Easy. But the downside is that the raw wood edge is prone to water absorption and could cause the tile not to stick, or later, if the gout fails, allows the counter substrate to get wet and maybe delaminate the metal.

The second way shows the edge mitred with a turn down of plywood. This forms a solid base for the tile and hides all the end grain of the plywood. But it can be fussy to fabricate.

The third way may be the best. Cut a rabbet on the edge of the top piece, leaving only the top ply of wood intact. Join the front piece with glue and nails or screws. This covers almost all the end grain and is easier to fabricate than the second method.

In the second or third case, use a silicone based glue - or even silicone sealant - as the glue. This will hold things together and also waterproof the edge.

For the edge tile, consider using white (or silver) silicone sealant instead of grout for the grout line between the edge tile and the metal. This can be messy, so tape the tile and the metal first. Run the caulk, tool it with your fingers, and remove the tape immediately. This is the most vulnerable part of the whole installation. You may find that this joint needs to be resealed (or regrouted) once in a while. If this happens, remove as much of the old material as possible before you redo it. The rest of the counter, edge, and tile should last as long as you do.

Not shown in the illustration is another whole way to do the edge. Use wood! Just make sure to bed it in a generous amount of silicone so as to fully and completely waterproof the joint. Use polyurethane as a top coat, even if you're using prefinished moldings.

If you have any questions, you can certainly PM me. But maybe ask them in this post so others can see it too.

Some notes about stainless:

1. It isn't. It could show some stains from odd things. We have a ring from a coffee cup next to our espresso maker. Faint, to be sure, but there nonetheless. I have NO idea what caused it. Surely not MY coffee!

2. It scratches. No matter how pristine it looks and no matter how careful you are, scratches will appear. At first it looks horrible.. After a month or three, it becomes a patina. And that's what you want. Just look at any stainless working surface in a restaurant; you'll see what I mean.

3. Fingerprints are a problem when the metal has no patina (uncoated appliance fronts). It won't be a problem here.

4. This method of counter fabrication can handle hot pots with no problem. The glue forms a bit of insulation. The wood below can handle a good bit of heat so any that gets through won't bother it. Remember, stainless is a poor conductor of heat.

5. Be careful with electricity. Stainless is conductive. While this should not be a problem with any normal, sound appliance, I'm just sayin' ........

6. Consider a deeper-than-normal sink. They make drop in stainless steel sinks that are 10" deep. Try it. You'll be glad for the extra depth. One word of caution, however: make sure your drain rough-in (where it comes out of the wall) is low enough to deal with the lower sink. The normal sink depth is 7" or 7-1/2". That extra 3" of depth could put your drain connection below the wall's connection point (he said from hard experience!). If you go for the deep sink, consider also a high arch faucet. Next time you try to fill that 12 qt pot to cook three pounds of macaroni you'll thank me!

7. When you order your metal, you want type 304 or type 430 stainless in a number 4 mill finish. This is a semi matte that has a visible grain. This helps hide those first few scratches you'll be cultivating. It is also a standard, non-premium finish.

Good luck! This is ambitious, but the results will be worth it.

H2S

[SoCalDem]

1. Stainless cleaning tip.. cheap and effective

Plain ole mineral oil on a soft cleaning cloth.. "Erases" any scratches and makes it look "purty".....:)

[Stinky The Clown]

6. I use a product made for restaurant use that anyone can buy

It is private labeled by Sysco. They're a national restaurant food and supplies house. Here is the DC/Baltimore area they operate a retail store that is open to the public. I don't know if that is just here or anywhere they have a warehouse. In any case, I am certain a similar product is available from any restaurant equipment/supplies store, no matter the brand. (And to be sure, almost any restaurant supplies store will sell to the general public - try it!)

This product (creatively named "Liquid Satin Shine for Stainless Steel" - oh those clever marketing gurus! :)) is a concoction of "detergent range alcohol", some flavor of glycol, and mineral oil. You spray it on the appliance or on a cloth (I spray on a cloth first) and spread it around, allow it to dry for a minute or three and polish it off.

The stainless will still show fingerprints but as long as there is some polish residue it is easy to just use a clean cloth to wipe them away.

At the end of the day, the stuff that does the trick is the mineral oil. There is no food safe "polish" that will protect stainless from fingerprints.

By the way, don't even try to polish your stainless counters. Just allow them to acquire the patina that they develop naturally. Appliance fronts are another matter.

[NMDemDist2]

2. i had stainless in my bungalow in CA and loved them

BarKeepers friend is a good way to clean them and the mineral oil works too, but will discolor with age

my kitchen here has too many sides to try this, as it is a "U" shape

i'm seriously considering tiling over my old pink and damagaed formica though

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=287x309

if i ever decide what color i want lol

[Lugnut]

3. I like BarKeepers

I was using Soft Scrub but it wasn't cleaning as well as I wanted. My daughter clued me in to BarKeepers and I'm hooked. We installed an 8" deep SS sink when I tiled the backsplash and countertop two years ago.

Deciding on a color is tough. I decided to stick with bone (I wanted to avoid a trendy color.) in a matte finish with taupe grout. To add interest I placed spaced decorative tiles one tile up from the countertop along the backsplash. Those tiles are painted with clay pots of various herbs. I love the matte finish tiles and the dark grout.

[wildeyed]

4. I am not sure I want stainless counter tops in my new kitchen.

It will be at least three years before we get started, but I am already planning. I love the smell of wet paint in the morning.....

But anyway, is it difficult to install a stainless back splash? I was thinking concrete counter tops, stainless backsplash behind the stove (can't forget the feng shui, people) and a stone or mosaic pattern backplash. Birch flat front cabinets with rustic wood pulls. I want a rustic/modern look, if that is not too contradictory. I think the concrete looks great with stainless and natural stone and wood.

The floor will need replacing, but I haven't decide what I want yet. I have medium stained wood floors in the rest of the house, so that would be an option. But I worry that with the wood cabinets, it will be too much wood. Cork is cool. Also, linoleum is making a come back. You can have it laid in patterns and there are some wonderful colors. I am not a big fan of tile. Anytime I drop something on my tile floors, it breaks, whereas with wood or linoleum, it usually bounces.

Have you ever posted a pic of your kitchen? I don't recall seeing one.

Anyway, H2S, what do you think? Have you ever made concrete counter tops? I have a book about it and a handy-dandy husband, so we are planning to make them ourselves. I love the handmade aspect of concrete, plus there are so many options for decorative touches.

[Stinky The Clown]

5. No pics of my kitchen yet posted

But I may do one. I jusy need to catch it on a day right after our (once every two weeks) housecleaner leaves. :)

Stainless backsplash .... I assume you're asking about a stainless backsplash but over a counter of some other material. Yes, it is easy enough to install. Kinda like the counter, you'll just glue it in place. I would suggest, if you have a mix of high and low wall cabinets (like you might over a range or a sink), you make a very precise template. This would mean that you'd have to have your new counters in place before making the template. If your your wall cabinets are all nice and even, there's likely no need for a template. Any uneveness or gaps would be shifted to the joint between the stainless and the bottom of your wall cabinets where it will be hard to see.

Given that the space bewteen your counters and your wall cabinets is 18", the materials cost for the stainless for a backsplash will not be much different from a counter (24+").

Be very generous with silicone sealant at the joint between your wall and your counters **before** you install the stainless. Then put the glue on the wall and install the stainless before the silicone sealant dries. This should give a nice watertight joint in that critical spot. The silicone always remains pliable, so some movement of the counter relative to the wall should be tolerated by the joint.

Instead of plain old stainless, you may want to look into a quilted pattern (think old diners). That's more costly, to be sure, but the look, with no stainless on the counters, can really be nice! I think I saw someplace on the internet where you can order this, but it is also quite possible to have it actually made, custom, locally. There are several possible patterns .... fans .... diamonds .... a grid .... etc.

My business partner has concrete counters in her kitchen. They were professionally fabricated in a shop and brought to her house for installation. They're gorgeous! She has them in a light slate blue tone. The color is really gray, but there's a visible hint of the slate blue. They're finished to a matte gloss. They've been there for about 3 years now, and they've developed (fully expected) hairline cracks. They're not a bother and just add to the charm of them. The underlying structure is perfectly sound. There's wire mesh all through the concrete and the concrete itself has a high fiber content that aids in carck resistence. I've heard of homeowners making their own concrete counters, cast in place over a plywood base. My concern is that the concrete mix is critical to their success. It involves some esoteric materials (the fibers) and a precise mix of the various ingredients. I've seen some internet sites thta have instrctions. You may want to check them out.

Floors ..... I like the linoleum. If you do the stainless backsplash, that could add to a whole retro thing you could have going on! You could do linoleum in sheets (I think the sheets are pretty narrow, though ... like 72") but might have to deal with seams. If you are willing to deal with the visible seams, consider either a checkerboard (doesn't at all have to be black and white) or an inlaid pattern, like maybe huge swirls or something. The checkerboard you might be able to do yourself. The sheets or the inlay would need professional installation (meaning more cost).

You might also want to look into cork or bamboo. Both, like the linoleum, are green (made from renewable resources). The cork is actually an old, old flooring material (Frank Lloyd Wright used acres of it in his projects) that is exceedingly durable. It comes in a dizzying array of patterns and can now be colored, too. You can get it in sheets, in squares, and also in laminated boards (goes together like Pergo). Bamboo is similar. It comes in planks or as laminated boards. It looks like bamboo, but also like a nice, light hardwood. It is also very durable. Again, do some Googling and see what comes up.

Anyway ...... hope that helps!

And maybe I'll post some pictures of my kitchen soon .......

[wildeyed]

7. I hadn't thought about bamboo.

That might be a good idea, too. I like the 'exceedingly durable' part of the cork. With two little kids and two dogs, we put some wear on our floors.

I was thinking about trying a concrete vanity top in the master bath before I attempt the kitchen counters. A smaller project just to see if we can really manage it. I actually know several people who have managed concrete counter tops themselves, but I haven't seen the actual results. One of my husbands cousins is in the concrete biz, so he can give us pointers, too.

Thanks for the info. Looking forward to the kitchen pics.

[NMDemDist2]

8. H2S fibbed a bit

we have this photo



and this thread has tantilizing glimpses throughout too

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=236&topic_id=4709

[wildeyed]

9. Oh yeah, I remember that one.

But it is kind of blurry. I want to see it all, in all its glory. I think he is just being modest 'cause he knows we will die of jealousy when we see his set up. But it will be dying in a good way. Besides, I'm nosy.

Speaking of nosy, did you paint yet?

[NMDemDist2]

10. LOL Not nosy, inspiring!!! and no, I am feng shuiing the bedroom

took a HUGE box of old shoes out last weekend and am going to do the clothes this weekend.

then rearrange furniture in there

figure we'll paint when it's hot here since we have so many weeds from all the rain, the spring is going to be all about outside work I fear.

I can live with the paint in the kitchen for now, but the bedroom is completely out of control so it gets my attention for the next few weeks. I say weeks, cuz it's too big a job to tackle in my mind all at once. One baby step at a time, and the closet is half done already!

DH and I DANCED in the closet when we could actually see the floor again LOL

[wildeyed]

12. My office is the current trouble spot.

Plus I have been feng shuiing the business. Gotta attract some more of that prosperity, don't you know. Maybe I should put a mirror behind the cash register?

We are planning to completely landscape our front yard in the spring, so I want to get all our indoor projects finished up and then take a rest first.

Are you posting about the bedroom redo in DIY? I want pictures! I should spend more time in that forum, I love fixer-upper stuff.

[NMDemDist2]

13. nah, cleaning isn't a DIY project. but if i tile my counter tops this

summer I'll put that one in :)

[eleny]

11. Great pic!

And I enjoyed seeing the recipe thread, too. My favorite pic is the one where he's pouring the vermouth and you can see it splashing out. Nice touch.