Counter Top Installation Help for IKEA Sektion 15" Base Cabinets
I have just installed a run of 15" depth IKEA Sektion base cabinets and plan to
fabricate a soapstone counter out of a remnant I have. The stone is 3cm
thick as typical for soapstone. So this issue with the metal strips has
me concerned. Alex Wood had a thread that I posted on but decided to start my own. Here is his thread:
New Ikea Sektion base cabinets and stone countertop install
I could use the filler layers of Formica along each box
side front to back, between the metal strips as mentioned by Treb, in Alex's thread. Or I could lay a 1/2" ply
down across the whole run of 8.5'. I used ply to raise my counter in my kitchen to get extra room for my dishwasher (another story). This would be used to get a smooth
surface for the stone to set upon. I don't want to rout channels to
accommodate the proud metal strip. I know Alex Wood had his stone set
right on top after all was said and done. I really don't like the idea
of having the points in the corners taking all the load (at each end of metal strips, about 1
sq-in) The metal strips themselves have some flex in them, so they I
don't know how much support they are for a counter. I wont be standing on the counters because they are the same depth as the uppers ;)
While searching for more information on filler strip fabrication for the side of my cabinets, I
found a site that mentioned using the cover panels as a base for the
countertops. The comment was made as if this practice was the IKEA standard. IKEA store did not mention this to me, of course I didn't buy their countertop material either. The panels are 1/2" thick for the cabinet panels and 5/8" for the
large refrigerator type side panes. This seems like an expensive base
for a counter. I could just paint my ply a dark brown/black to blend
with my counter. It won't be seen anyway because of the overhang.
This
cabinet run is in a small office. Any help would be really appreciated.
Now that I look at this picture, I think a ply or the panel would be a nice thing to have to give the counter a nice margin of space above the drawer faces:
Comments (7)
enduring
8 years agoRelated Discussions
Installing pedestal sink basin on vanity counter top question
Comments (12)Thanks. I don't comment on fixtures often, but I do have to say I think the Memoirs is a lovely sink. The sink itself is large, the wide rim I absolutely love, and it has a good-sized bowl. It is indeed a nice sink. We had the same feelings over the backsplash. We went back and forth between painted wood or teak. I thought the teak backsplash would make the Memoirs pop more due to contrast, but my wife didn't want too much wood grain in the room. So we did painted wood which I topped with a teak cap. If my wife ever did want teak, I told her I'd simply glue a teak veneer over the painted wood. It's still painted. That run of cabinetry changed a couple of times during the design process. It was originally going to be a spacious 2-sink vanity. My wife really insisted on one sink! So that freed up space for the floor-to-ceiling storage closet on the left and what we call the "toilet pantry" on the right. The design has worked quite well for us over the years, I built it around 15 years ago. My daughter, who was 7 or 8 years old at the time, designed the profile for the toe kick cutouts. That was quite a bit of fun "working" with her. If you go in another direction, no worries. Choose what works best for you....See MoreAnyone Have the Sektion 15" Base Cabinets and can Recommend Inserts?
Comments (37)Hi everyone - I am also using Section cabinets to create a console for my home office, and then I'm using "Semihandmade" to create the custom drawer / door fronts. I am having huge concerns however with the filing cabinet solution. The Section cabinet frame I am using for the filing cabinet is 18W X 15D X15H. I also bought the Medium Maximera drawer. My issue is that the back of the Maximera drawer is only 5 1/2 inches tall and i need it to be at least 10 inches tall so I can screw a hardware filing cabinet mount into the front and the back. I'm not a fan of placing in plastic or cardboard items that fit inside and hold the files, I know it works well, but I'd really rather this be more professional and have the metal glides. This would be easy to install if only the back was at least 10 inches. Does anyone have any ideas on how to increase or extend the height of the back of the Maximera drawer? They don't make the Deep / High Maximera drawers for the 15D and 15H - so the Medium drawer is my only solution. I also have to use the Maximera drawer as "Semihandmade" is using these drawers as the template to create my custom drawer / door fronts. Thus, it seems my only option here is to figure out how to increase / extend the height of the back of the Medium Maximera drawer. Any suggestions would be beyond appreciated, thank you!...See MoreHelp in choosing counter top material!!!!!!
Comments (94)Every choice has pluses and minuses, in the end you have to choose which plus and which minus matters the most to you and/or which have an easy fix (like using a cutting board under the crockpot; at work we have an extra piece under the big coffeemaker). budget mattered a lot to me (and I hated formica) so, I ended up with a lesser expensive granite and am very happy, no sealing or extra work for the stone I chose. I had formica previously which looked like h#*! from the day I moved in and didn't get better (except that I could use bleach to remove stains) so those of you whose formica looks like new after 30 years must be taking appropriate care -- using cutting boards (mine had little cuts all over) and so forth -- where my previous owners did not. But, I read that formica now is much better quality than what was installed 30 or 40 years ago. I looked at Burled Beach and liked it. It looked a warm sand-ish color on my samples in my house, but I saw a demo kitchen of it at a big box store and it was a warm greenish tone (I still liked it) under their fluorescent lights. You always have to ability to STOP and make changes unless the cabinets are all already made. If he is just now starting it might not be too late -- call him now! PS do you have an IKEA near to you? Most counter materials are less expensive there....See MoreCounter-top and Cabinet Budget
Comments (6)I just renoed a similar size home. Put new cabs with granite. No laundry though. $9k for remnants and chinese cabs. My last laundry room was $1k for ikea and laminate (probably less actually). Base budget for current build is $35k. A bit more square footage but it would scale down to $28k for you. So my suggested range is $10k to $28k. Helpful? probably not but really the best I can do. Add 20% for HCOLA. What you can do from plans is get linear feet of cabs. That helps. Island? Paint vs stain? Crown/end panels etc? Custom panels for appliances? Ceiling height and plan for uppers (stacked/tall uppers etc). But most importantly is expectation on door complexity and degree of customization....See Moreenduring
8 years ago
Terri_PacNW
8 years agoenduring
8 years ago
Mags438
8 years agoenduring
8 years agoMags, I don't have my counter top totally fabricated and installed, maybe this weekend. I am slow. This isn't a kitchen, but a room off the kitchen were my DH has his office for the farm. The 15" sektion cabinets have been good. I have slowly taken over 2 extra drawers :) I need them for kitchen stuff! He has ample room with the uppers and lower stack of drawers on the right hand side.
Before the toe kick. I'm keeping this end open as a hidey hole :)
after the filler strip and toe kick on the left side:
under cabinet lighting:
the uppers. "Backsplash" will either be repurposed paneling from the room, or tile as in the kitchen, since it is next door:
One edge of the run with the soapstone counter in place and oiled. The fabric is what I will get to make a roman shade for the window in the room:
practigal