At the risk of obfuscating communicative efficacy of this electronic missive Talk about self provocating! :-) Tile, directly on plywood, can peel off and cracks easier Short answer-- I disagree. Longer answer-- If done properly, it's actually a much stronger installation. However, the person doing the installation must be VERY familiar with the procedures for installing over plywood. I wouldn't even trust most pros. All it takes is one shortcut or missed spec, and it can cause the floor to fail. something so small as the species of the plywood is all it would take. So, for all intents and purposes, you're better off with the CBUs and membranes available today. It is best to use concrete backer board - but it is very thick (3/8" ?) There are two thicknesses of cement board (CBU)-- 1/4" and 1/2". So long as you have a 3/4" subfloor (for ceramic, or 1 1/8" in two layers for stone), you can use 1/4" CBU. The 1/2" is for walls. Another alternative that I've found is hardy backer board (gypsom board) -- half as thick as concrete backer board but very rigid and works well with mortar. Completely wrong. First, as I just stated above, cement boards also come in 1/4" version. Even with Hardi, it should be 1/2" version used on walls. Secondly, it is NOT a gypsum core product. It's a cement/ fiber board. The only gypsum core product approved as a tile backer is Denshield, and for that very reason, I don't like using it. is the gypsom board rigid enough for floor use? Perhaps... but I wouldn't test it with natural stone. Assuming you're again talking about Hardi, it's MORE than strong enough. Keep in mind (and this is why I said setting tile directly over double layer plywood is a stronger installation)-- ALL CBU's, whether they be gypsum core, cement/ fiberboard, or cement board, are there as nothing more than a bonding surface. The subfloor gives you all the strength. Try putting a piece of even 1/2" CBU across a pair of 2x4's set 16" apart, and step on it-- you'll see what I mean. It has practically no structural strength at all. Now do the same thing with a piece of 1/2" plywood. You'll see a HUGE difference. The only strength the CBU needs to have is strength of bond. I have used gypsom board for the backsplash behind the sink and stove as well. For any place other than wet areas (those areas where direct constant water spray is imminent), sheetrock is sufficient to tile over, even using the heavier stone tiles. OKAY!! What else have you learned? :-)

HI Mustangs! :) I had a full-height granite backsplash in my former home. It was 3cm...only because that's what they carried. If it's the same as your counters, at least it'll come from the same slab(s) and you'll know it matches. A caution...for some reason, my builder insisted the backsplash go in before my appliance garage, because that's what he "normally" does. Due to the unplanned thickness (most people before me had 4" backsplashes and somehow the appliance garage measurements were "standard"), the sides of my garage had to be cut down to fit flush with the front of the upper cabinet. The extra thickness inside the garage reduced the amount of space I had. Of course the shortfall of space meant my perfectly planned/measured, well-thought out toaster oven purchased specifically for that space...would NOT FIT!! Grrrr....I was so mad!!! Lesson learned. Put in appliance garage before backsplash...regardless of what builder "normally" does. Haha!

With a mitered edge, the line tends to be hidden on the corner transition. Some of the quartzites are pretty expensive so the 3 cm might cost significantly more (though the fabricator will charge something for the labor of making a laminated edge and probably even more for a mitered edge so that offsets the extra cost of 3 cm unless you go for a 2 cm edge). Our quartzite is laminated, not mitered and the fabricator did a good job so I mostly don't notice the line. Only when I look for it. You don't need to do a laminated edge even if there is plywood under it. Two friends of mine did a 2 cm thin edge. One used a simple trim molding of wood matched to the cabinets to cover the edge of the plywood. The other left the plywood edge uncovered - I know because I put my head under the counter and looked into the shadow for it. If I was doing it, I'd probably cover with a trim piece because it would bother me, but only someone very TKO who looks for it would notice if you didn't.

With 2 cm quartz they often do a plywood base underneath and a pieced on lip/edge at the edge of the counter so it covers the plywood snd looks like a thicker countertop. I'm sure they could just use a thicker plywood base if they need to build it up.