Having The Cutout Work For You #1

One method for gathering good outlet cutout and splash height information – and bypassing a risky step in the communication chain – is to use a measurement-capture kit in a photo-templating system such as Photo Top®. Your installer can be trained to correctly place marker panels, arrows, and outlet cutout jigs and take pictures of them for processing in the shop. The measurements gathered this way, aside from being more-accurate and -reliable than a guy with a tape measure, can also be used to verify the measurements your installer brings back from the field.
This method also gets the information quickly into digital form for work with computer-controlled saws and waterjets. In addition, the pictures can be used by the sawyer to ensure that the color and pattern of the backsplash will match the base pieces.
If you or your installation crew are less than thrilled about relying on the installers to bring back quality measurement information for expensive backsplash, schedule your templater to stop back on the tail end of an install. With a laptop that has mobile broadband, it’s possible to send the CAD file back to the shop from the jobsite and then move on to the next template.
Make sure your installers have a good line of communication open to your templater for adjusting measuring schedule to fit the timing on the base countertop installation. If your installers run into problems and your templater shows up before it’s possible to take measurements, time is being wasted and the installers may feel rushed … thus increasing the risk of a mistake.
Piece management for full-height splash is an issue beyond the control of the installer, but it can affect the job nonetheless. Before a sawyer cuts a job with full-height splash, there should be a clear layout of his pieces on the slab to ensure everything will fit in a logical and aesthetically pleasing manner.

Sometimes, when cutting outlets, you just have to grin and bear it when you’re doing outside work – even in sub-zero weather.

Simply cutting the slabs haphazardly and saving the remnants for backsplash may result in some full-height splashes that have oddly placed seams or badly located color changes. A shop that operates like this may also suffer from this problem – the stone being saved for full-height splash is broken, thrown away, or used for another job.
Think that doesn’t happen? I’ve dealt with this issue several times, including once when the sawyer was running a side business and made a double-bowl vanity out of a piece being saved for backsplash. Mark your backsplash stone clearly and set it aside in a safe area.
Once splash measurements are brought back, the seam placement needs to be carefully considered in relation to the locations of outlet cutouts. Placing a seam too close to a cutout may result in one side of a cutout blowing out or breaking away, which is never an easy or enjoyable fix.

The final result from that frigid fabrication shows that on-site work was a must.

If your company is a template-and-install operation like mine, you may find it more difficult to measure and then install on a second trip. For one, you are at the mercy of the fabricator’s schedule, since you may not get fast-tracks priority for your full-height backsplash.
Installing the base pieces and then telling the homeowner you’ll be back in a week or two also can be a problem. On a remodel, the countertops are coming in at the tail end of the project, and the homeowner is usually sick of being inconvenienced by her torn-up kitchen. She wants you finished with her kitchen in one trip.
Next month, we’ll cover the skills and techniques for cutting outlets, as well as the best ways to ensure you’re covering yourself on their cost and risk.
Jason Nottestad, a 14-year stone-industry veteran, is co-owner of Wisconsin-based Midwest Template Services (www.countertopsbymts.com).He’ll be one of the panelists on the “Countertop Installers Forum” on Oct. 17 at StonExpo/Marmomacc Americas in Las Vegas. Check www.stonexpo.com for more details.