Here is some breaking news regarding stone countertops – they are heavy! Okay – so that probably isn’t really breaking news after all. You could have guessed that a solid stone countertop would be extremely heavy, which is why they require a team of professionals to get them installed properly. Before you ever get to the point of installation, however, you need to make sure your kitchen is ready to handle a heavy counter from a structural perspective.
Cabinet Pressure
In almost every case, the counter you install in your kitchen is going to be placed on top of some cabinets. Are those cabinets able to safely hold all of the weight you are going to force them to deal with? If they are new, the answer is probably yes. Old cabinets, on the other hand, may not be up to the task. Before you invest in a new counter and schedule a time to have it delivered, it would be a good idea to have a professional countertop installer inspect your cabinets to confirm their structural integrity.
Beyond just having to bear the weight of the counter, your cabinets also need to be square enough to have the counter fit properly on the day of the installation. If you are dealing with old cabinets that have warped over time, it may be a serious challenge to fit a counter securely on top. Again, this is an issue that should be dealt with ahead of time. Make sure everything with regard to your cabinets is in place before placing an expensive order for a beautiful stone counter.
Under the Counter Concerns
Even if your cabinets are in good repair, you also need to be concerned about the status of the floor beneath them. Of course, the weight of the counter will be pushing down on the floor just as it is pushing down on the cabinets, so an old or damaged floor may be unable to support this new load. This is another point that usually won’t come into play with a new home, but is very often a concern in an older structure.
Again, it comes down to planning ahead to make sure this issue doesn’t become a major problem. Have your floor checked out by a professional, and have the floor reinforced if there is any doubt as to its ability to hold up under the weight. The last thing you want to do is spend thousands of dollars on a great counter only to find that it is doing damage to the structure of your kitchen. When it comes to a project of this magnitude, it is always better to be over prepared than to be caught off guard at the last minute.
As professionals in the counter business, Stone World has seen it all before. If you have any questions about the structural integrity of your kitchen prior to purchasing your stone counter, feel free to contact our team for assistance. Once the groundwork has been laid for this project, you can then turn your attention toward picking out the perfect stone. Thank you for visiting!
