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quiltgirl_gw

Any problems with making countertops 28' deep?

quiltgirl
11 years ago

I have a "U" shaped kitchen plan in progress and I need to pull out my cabinets three inches on the left side of the "U" to be even with the stove. I want to pull all three sides out to be symmetrical. My DH wants to leave the other two walls at 24" deep. I want to have an Apron Sink. What type of issues will I need to deal with if I have an Apron sink as far as the plumbing goes with deeper counters? For those of you who have deeper countertops, what issues did you have to deal with in order to accommodate pulling your cabinets out from the wall? Please post pictures if you can. Thank you.

Comments (18)

  • Madeline616
    11 years ago

    Hi Quiltgirl,

    I have 28" deep counters on the stove wall, which is a separate nook/alcove type deal. My cabinetmaker and countertop fabricator was very happy to do it, and I loved the fact that it would give me deeper drawers and lower cabs.

    FWIW, these are the reasons for the 28" depth cabs (besides wanting the extra counter space and drawer/cabinet depth)

    1) We have a white marble backsplash, and I wanted a space buffer between the back of the range and the marble (b/c of discoloration from heat, grease, etc.)

    2) So that we could make the upper cabinets that hold the hood a bit deeper from front to back, so that the hood could project out as far as possible over the cooking surface for better capture.

    3) Our backsplash is a 3cm slab of marble, so we needed a little extra space to accommodate that thickness.

    I have an apron sink; the sink wall and other walls are in the other section of the kitchen, with standard 24" depth cabinets. I have to say, though, that as long as your plumber can deal with the pipe issues Angie mentioned, and you're okay having some counter space between the back of your sink/faucet and the wall, I can't see it making a difference. Since the sink is aligned with, or juts out a bit from, the front of the cabinet, the extra depth. should be okay.

    28" Cabs:

    Space between back of range and backsplash:

  • Madeline616
    11 years ago

    Oops, sorry quiltgirl, posted wrong pic.

    Here's the space behind the range:

    Here's the nice depth of your drawers if your cabs are 28":

  • Fori
    11 years ago

    Plumbing is easier with the deeper cabinets. Much easier on the knuckles.

    I agree about checking stove projection.

    I pulled out my uppers the same amount as my lowers so I would be able to reach the same amount of stuff. At my height, you don't go making stuff harder to reach than it already is.

    If you are at all short of space and can do so, get actually deeper cabinets instead of just pulling standard ones out. You can fit a LOT more in!

  • coco4444
    11 years ago

    I pulled my stove wall out to 30" with no issues. It made for an economical way to have a built-in look for my regular fridge. I have a slide-in range, however.

  • socalsister
    11 years ago

    Unless you don't mind drawers that pull out completely, you will also need longer drawer glides to accomodate the additional drawer depth (more $). Or you can build a fake wall to which you can attach the regular depth (24") cabinets.

  • angie_diy
    11 years ago

    Just for clarity, the OP (at least originally) is only talking about pulling her cabinets out, not getting deeper cabs. I assume she is talking about either pulling them out 2.5" (to get 28" deep countertops) or 4" out (to get 28" cabs, plus 1.5" overhang = 29.5" deep counters).

  • mama goose_gw zn6OH
    11 years ago

    My 24" deep base cabinets on the stove wall are pulled out to 27", countertop 28.5" (3" extra--the depth of two 'piggybacked' 2x4s). Since the cabinets aren't exposed on either end, the 2x4s worked fine. The fridge and microwave are on that wall, and I wanted a little more counter space in front of the MW. I also pulled out the stove, and built a little shelf behind it, to keep things from falling behind. The shelf is the perfect size for S&P shakers. The hood was pulled out a few inches for access to the vent pipe, if needed, so now everything lines up better.

  • quiltgirl
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Thank you for your comments. Just to clarify, I would be bringing the cabinets out three inches which would give me a counter depth of 28.5 inches with counter top added.
    Angie: The stove will work well with the added depth. My concern is with the plumbing since it is already in and comes up through the floor. My husband thinks that the plumbing would be for naught and would have to be re done from the basement up if we move the cabinets forward. Naturally, he does not want to do that due to cost. My concern is with an apron sink, would the pipes be too far back from the sink if I leave them where they are or is there some other solution other than tearing the pipes out and drilling new holes through the floor?
    Madeline 616: I do not have a separate alcove for my stove. The stove wall is part of the U shape cabinet layout. That is why I felt I needed to pull out all three sides of the U in order to maintain symmetry. Your kitchen is beautiful and the alcove with your stove looks very nice! Thank you for the pictures.
    Socialsister: I am going to get a price from our Amish guy to see how much more 27" deep cabinets would run. If too much, I can live with the 24" deep cabinets pulled forward.
    Are there any other issues I need to consider? For those of you who actually went with deeper cabinets, did you find the cost that much more? I do have one end of the U exposed to the family room so might have to make that end cabinet a full 27" deep.

  • CEFreeman
    11 years ago

    I'm gonna hijack this thread a tiny bit, so I apologize.

    1) I'm going to make my counters probably 25" deep, because I'm going to put face frames on top of existing cabinets. Since I built my countertop, I can stretch it out.

    So I think it's fine. If your overhang is really big, you'll have to get down lower than usual. If you're installing new cabs, just pull them a bit out from the wall so your countertop overhang is more functional.

    OK, Madeline616. What are your drawers? I live for beaded inset, and your drawers are exactly what I've been hoping to find. Share?

    Thanks,
    Christine

  • angie_diy
    11 years ago

    is there some other solution other than tearing the pipes out and drilling new holes through the floor?

    I can help answer this (or at least try), but I need some more info. Most important: how far are the pipes from the wall now? What material are they?
    Second questions concern the cabinet. What kind of construction? Mostly I want to know if the the toekick and base are integral to the cabinet (as is most common on North American face-frame construction) or whether the cab box sits on feet or a separate plinth (most common on frameless construction).

  • ci_lantro
    11 years ago

    My concern is with an apron sink, would the pipes be too far back from the sink if I leave them where they are or is there some other solution other than tearing the pipes out and drilling new holes through the floor?

    This should be no problem at all. The faucets are usually connected w/ tough flexible supply hoses that are connected to the pipes. The hoses are available at any home improvement store and come in various lengths and various end fitting sizes to accommodate just about any scenario. Same story with the drain. Added bonus of deeper cabs is more space for the plumber to work in.

  • mama goose_gw zn6OH
    11 years ago

    I should have addressed this in my previous post, since I did exactly what you want to do (twice, ;). I'm coming at this as a complete amateur/DIYer, so I hope I can explain coherently.

    I had a SS drop-in sink with a maze of plumbing pipes that I didn't want to disturb when I replaced it with an apron sink. As ci-lantro said, supply lines are usually flexible, and not an issue.

    The drain pipe/trap set-up has two U-shape/J-shape pieces that when loosened, will allow for adjustment to meet the pipe that connects to the sink drain. On the front piece the U is down--on the back piece the U is up.

    I (well, my BIL and I) first installed the sink with flush reveal in the back, as well as the sides. After I used it like that for a short time (without caulk), I loosened the U/J pipe pieces, then adjusted the sink forward 3/4" so that I could try it with a cutting board sitting on the back reveal, which I decided that I liked better. There was no problem adjusting the drain to move the sink, or with the initial install. I love my apron/farm sink!

  • Fori
    11 years ago

    Mine didn't cost much more because they used the same sheet of ply as standard depth. I used a local cabinet guy. (Once your total goes over 48" wide top plus bottom they have to waste a lot more materials--I liked that cabinet guy!) The drawer slides were probably a bit more since they were longer and some were really heavy duty. The counter was a little more of course. but not a lot since the labor was about the same (edges, cutouts, etc.)

  • quiltgirl
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Angie, C lantro and mama goose: Thanks for the info on the pipe situation. My pipes for the drain now come up about 2.5 inches from the back wall of my 24" cabinet. Seems to me that the U shaped piece of white plastic pipe could just rotate forward to accommodate a sink sitting more towards the front of the cabinet. Yes, I see that the hot and cold water lines are flexible and if need be, I could get longer ones. Thanks for the info! My son the carpenter was trying to tell me not to move the other two counters out because it would mean moving the pipes and be a lot more work, cost etc. Ah Ha! I don't think so thanks to all of you! I am going for it! I will have the sink cabinet made the full 27" deep so there will be no problem with the pipes coming up thru the back wall of a 24" cabinet. I will only be losing 6 inches between opposite walls so that would leave 46.5 inch walk way around the sides of a 4 foot wide island instead of 49.5 inches. Do you think that is sufficient?

  • quiltgirl
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Oh Angie! The cabinet base and toe kick are integral to the cabinet. The pipes are pvc for the drain and the hot and cold water hoses are metal. Sorry! I forgot to answer that question in the above post.

  • quiltgirl
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Oh Angie! The cabinet base and toe kick are integral to the cabinet. The pipes are pvc for the drain and the hot and cold water hoses are metal. Sorry! I forgot to answer that question in the above post.

  • angie_diy
    11 years ago

    Okay. I did not realize that you did not already have the sink base, and that it could still change to a deeper cabinet. In that case, there is no problem at all (as I think you now know). The pipes will STILL come in 2.5" from the back wall of your cab, because the cab (of your deeper cab) wall will be in exactly the same place as it is now. (My questions were aimed at finding a workaround for pulling a 24" cab forward.)

    Best, A_D