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Getabuilder Team 125 posts	Original message: posted 19-Mar-08 Kitchen... worktop, sink and plinth It’s the finishing touches – sinks, worktops and plinths – that will make your kitchen units look professionally designed and, most important of all, make them easy to work on and keep clean. Fitting the worktop Kitchen worktops can be made from a variety of materials, including wood, real or synthetic slate or marble, or laminated chipboard. Laminate worktop is the simplest to fit, and is available in a wide range of colours and textures. It also comes in different thicknesses; the worktop fitted here is 45mm thick. Use a panel saw to cut laminate board to the right length before you begin fitting. Factory-cut edges will inevitably be more accurate than those you cut yourself, so position factory cuts where the edge will show and hide your own cuts against wall junctions or under a joining strip. 1. Choose where to make the fixing positions for the worktop: three screws at the back and front of each unit will usually be about right. Using a 4mm gauge bit, drill clearance holes through the support panels on each unit. 2. Put the laminate worktop in position, checking it fits tightly against the wall, and that edges butt up snugly. 3. Where the run of units turns a corner, there has to be a join in the worktop. The front edge of a worktop is profiled, so to create a neat join you have to insert a specially profiled aluminium joining strip. Use a hacksaw to cut the strip to exactly the width of the worktop. Apply silicone sealant along the cut edge of the worktop, and then screw the strip in place using 16mm (3.5mm gauge) wood screws. Apply more sealant to the profiled edge of the adjoining worktop and slide the two sections together. 4. Now fix the worktop to the units. Wrap masking tape 38mm from the end of a 2mm gauge drill bit as a depth guide. Working from beneath the worktop and inside the cabinets, drill through each of the clearance holes you have already made, and into the worktop. Stop when you reach the masking tape so that the drill doesn’t break through. Screw a 38mm (5mm gauge) wood screw through each fixing position. 5. Apply matching laminate strip to exposed worktop edges; this will be supplied with the worktop. Cut the strip to the right length. Apply contact adhesive to both the back of the edging strip and the worktop edge. Leave for the recommended time and then stick into place. 6. Once the glue has dried completely, trim the edge with a craft knife and file off rough edges with a fine file. Fitting a sink into a laminate worktop Although kitchen sinks come in a variety of designs, the basic technique for fitting them into a worktop remains the same. Check the instructions supplied with the sink for any variation. 1. Use the template supplied, or turn the sink upside down on the worktop (with the bowls in the right position – the sink may not be exactly rectangular). Make sure it is an equal distance from the front and back edges, and will fit into the base unit underneath. Trace its outline directly onto the work surface in pencil or – if pencil won’t mark the laminate – stick masking tape on the surface beneath the sink edges and trace their outline onto it. 2. Take the sink away and measure the overlap required for the sink edge to rest on the worktop. The manufacturer’s instructions should give you this measurement. Use a ruler to draw another line at this distance inside the first. 3. Using a 12mm gauge flat bit, drill a hole through the worktop at each corner of the inner line to enable you to insert the blade of a jigsaw. Be extremely careful that you don’t stray over the line. 4. Cut along the inner line with a power jigsaw using a wood blade suitable for laminated chipboard. Stick masking tape on the jigsaw plate to avoid scratching the surface. Support the piece you are cutting out as you get to the end, to prevent the worktop splitting. To plumb in a sink. Fitting the plinth A plinth running round the bottom of your units will give a neat finish and make cleaning easier. It is held in place by special brackets that clip to the units’ legs. 1. Measure the distance of the run of units corner to corner, and cut the plinth to fit. Lie the plinth on the floor adjacent to the front edge of the units and, using a try square, draw lines level with either side of each leg. 2. Hold a fixing bracket between two lines and use a bradawl to make a starting hole. Screw the bracket in place using the screws supplied. Fit the other brackets in line with each leg along the entire run of units. 3. Clip the plinth into place by simply pushing each bracket onto the legs of the unit.
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