ListWise

Sunday, September 18, 2005

Close But No Cigar

Well, I went and looked at the fir counter top and it was too small. Too bad, it was in really good shape. It turns out the counter was original to a rental property my friends owned. The house is 1901 and judging from the current state of the kitchen there was a 1970s remodel and the counter ended up in the rafters of the garage at that point. That means it was in service more than 70 years.

The counter was one piece of fir and had a drain board milled in to the top. It was 22X86 inches, and about an inch thick. The hole for the sink was perfect for the sink I have. There was metal banding around the perimeter that would need to be replaced, or cleaned up, but the wood was sound. There were no splits, or warping, and there were no big gouges. There was another piece of fir that looked like it was the backsplash.

I need a minimum of 26X98 of counter space for symmetry so it was not even really close. I need to have a certain amount of counter on the right side of the sink so the counter goes all the way to the wall. It seems logical to have the same amount of space on the left side of the sink. That, and it’s only 22-inches deep. I need 26-inches because the dishwasher is going to be hidden behind a cabinet door. It is just not going to be workable. :-(

So I’m back to square-one. I have a few ideas percolating in the old head-bone, but nothing I’m ready to share at this point.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Bummer. New fir isn't like that good old stuff. I'm sure you will come up with something cool!

Kim @ Twice Remembered said...

Sorry to hear that...Do you think maybe you could use it for something else like an island top or something?

Jocelyn said...

bummer on the counter top- it sounds very cool. You'll find something good though I am sure.

countertops are a tough one. All the things I like (soapstone, marble)are tres expensive. Boy, if you could find some salvaged marble slab- now wouldn't that be something?

Gary said...

Make a 4 inch wide concrete spice shelf to place between it and the wall and you are in business!

Anonymous said...

I'm with gary on this one. That's too valuable a find to let go!

Deb said...

o i agree with the boys... i can just see that fir counter nicely oiled up sitting on top of your loverly cabinets... droooooool

Greg said...

I gave something like that a thought but ruled it out. The problem is the faucet. I’ve already plumbed for a deck mount faucet. To do something with a spacer or in-fill at the back I would have to mount the faucet on the backsplash. After 9 months of working on the kitchen I’m not willing to open up the wall and re-do the plumbing. It is not like the counter will go to waste. These people will not throw it away.