My floating vanity ended up being only 6 inches from the floor. This was because of existing plumbing that i did not want to move. It did not look like a floating vanity. so the enhance the effect, we added lights under the vanity! so when the lights are on the effect is nice otherwise it does not look to be floating. I would say 16" will create the separation needed for a true floating look but then your vanity ends being very small for storage...You can do a mock up with some cardboard boxes.

Hi enduring, Do you rememeber you helped me with my bathtub decision? I am so glad I could offer bathroom vanity photos for your reference. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask. First photo is the bathroom full view. The vanity cabinet is custom made using clear alder wood. Cabinet pulls are from Ikea. The counter top is made of quartzite Moonlight. We use same quartzite to trim around the bathtube, shower nitch, and window frame. The quartzite is very pretty, almost maintainence free, super easy to clean. We thought it would be easier to bath small kids, we decided using long shower curtain (from Restoration Hardware) instead of glass shower door. This photo shows the towels storage. I put two big bathsheets, and one roll of paper towel in the top drawer. There are 4 regular bathtowels and 4 face towels in the bottom drawer. The 2 top drawers on the right sides I keep make ups, grooming items, in the bottom drawer I put a bath scale and jewelry cleaner there. This photo shows trash pull out. The top shelf I put hair products there. 2nd shelf I put body wash, mouth wash, body lotion, shampoo bottles, face cleaner..etc. 10 full size bottles in total, and still has room for more. Next to the Toto toilet there is storage room for toilet paper rolls, paper towel and magazine rack. By the toilet (cannot see from the photo) there is an electrical outlet in case we want to add a washelet later. The two wooden boxes next to the mirror are medcine cabinets. The only doors are under the sink. There is plenty room for cleaning products and equipments. The top left drawer is for medicine. The 2nd drawer keeps hair drayer, curling iron, and toiletry bags for trips.The bottom drawer is for shoe polishing kit, shoe pads, emergency medicine bag...etc. . As I mentioned earlier, I am glad we chose full size cabinet. The ample storage keeps everything, so nothing is out. The counter top and tiles are all easy to clean, therefore keeping this bathroom clean does not take much effort at all. This post was edited by azmom on Fri, Jun 28, 13 at 3:49

It depends on the material of the top. Some stones and solid surfaces can be backlit nicely. You can mount your vanity at any height you please as long as it it isn't a public place subject to the ADA. My buddy Tom and I, along with our wives, visited Italy in 2011. I told Tom if he bought this glass piece from the Murano factory, I'd build a gloss black Corian Nocturne shelf for it. The strip LEDs tuck behind the front rail and are dimmable.

There are three issues you need to reinforce for in this order. As the wall gets heavier, you need to consider the second and third item: 1) Pulling off the wall. This one is the easy one to imagine, and is the only consideration in most cases with builder grade cabinet and countertops because they are relatively light. In this situation, either the vanity separates from the wall, or it pulls the drywall (or similar) layer away from the studs. Putting an angle iron bar below the cabinet, putting plywood blocking on/in the wall, puting a heavier duty mounting board in the back of the cabinet, using extra brackets to hold differnt parts of your structure together, using longer screws, wood screws, are all good choices to prevent an item from falling off the wall. 2) Pulling the wall out of shape / compromising it, or in a catastrophic case even pulling the wall down (unlikely but possible with enough weight and a poor wall). A wall is usually just a simple box made of 2X4 wood with studs, and it is put together with screws or nails, and then attached to the floor, ceiling and other walls with more screws or nails. Drywall or rock board is attached to to the face, and that gives it more strength. If you have a long or very heavy (like cement) countertop, or a stone sink, you will need more studs, or thicker studs, and they need to be attached very firmly with extra screws to the ceiling and other walls. Your blocking in the wall may need to be heavier/larger, and brackets heavier or more of them. 3) The last consideration is reserved for the heaviest of heavy items, and it applies both wall and non-wall installations. When you get into this territory, you should have an architect define or review the structural integrity of your plan before proceeding. Extra large stone, cement, or glass items (like large cantilevered items, glass doors over 6' wide, fireplaces, stoves, stone or brick arches, small pools/hot tubs, etc) will need extra support below them in the floor, so the floor doesn't sag below your reinforced wall. If your wall is on an upper floor, ideally it is sitting on another wall below it that will share the burden. If your wall is on the first floor, you could install a post in the basement level below it, if it is not already supported by something in the basement. If you have a very heavy item on an upper floor, and it is supported by a wall that has no wall below it in the floor below, it may be possible to put a steel beam in the floor to support the weight, or use special hardware to suspend the item from a steel beam spanning the top of the wall. Most of us will rarely if ever hit this last category,