countertop - House Reno Tips

How Much Space Do You Need?

Plan the installation of your bathroom vanity countertop with care. Measuring your countertop for replacement allows you to estimate not only how much space you have but will also help you determine the cost of your replacement materials. Because the top side of your counter is such a large prominent work surface and the fact that a fair amount of activity in the washroom takes place here. There its presence normally dictates it as being the centerpiece of your overall bath design.

If your surfaces are looking a bit dated or is damaged and needs replacing, there are many solutions on the market that are affordable and durable. In many respects, planning and measuring your countertop for replacement is easier than planning for any other room in your home because bathrooms are normally the smallest room in your house.

Although space restrictions may limit the size of the work surface of your vanity as well as whether or not you have purchased a stock vanity base, there are still options you can incorporate into your design to overhang and increase the usable surface area of your vanity countertop.

The Center Piece of Your Design

Just remember when designing and measuring a lavatory countertop for replacement that it should not overwhelm the vanity or the room but fit comfortably into the space to balance the rest of your fixtures in your lavatory.

Your countertop is one of the first things that you notice as you enter the room, an off kilter work surface will create an unbalanced look and possibly unsightly tapered edges where the top surface meets the backsplash.

You can purchase building materials by the foot or by square footage, either way, before installing a new tabletop for your old vanity; it is paramount that you make sure the cabinet frame is level.

Calculating The Square Footage

The tools you will need when measuring your surfaces for replacement are: a carpenter’s level, measuring tape, ruler, pencil, and some graph paper to record the dimensions of your countertop. To calculate the length, width, and square footage of your bathroom vanity top you must first begin by measuring and recording the top side of the back flat working surface of the fixture.

This is important when remodeling your bath because even if your counter is not in a straight line, this measurement will help gauge the amount of material you will need to obtain when evaluating your countertop for replacement. When measuring, a good rule of thumb followed by most renovation professionals is to measure three times for accuracy.

Also to get an accurate account of the width, try to measure at the side edge so that the width of the backsplash does not interfere with your measurement. A typical bath countertop measures about thirty-four and a half inches long.

Will Your New Counter be Larger or Smaller?

An important consideration before you measure your vanity counter for replacement is whether you will be using the same area occupied by your current countertop or whether your remodeling plans incorporate an expansion of your existing counter space.

If you find that you can squeeze more surface space out of your layout by extending your countertop ledge past the vanity and along an unused wall then you must realize you will have to purchase a much larger slab of surfacing material in order to build your custom extended wall-hugging countertop. Of course, the only stipulation with a customized countertop is to make sure there is enough room to move around without bumping into other fixtures in the room.

Getting The Most Out of Your Countertop Materials

So in order to calculate the square footage of your surface area, you need to take the measurement of the widest width and multiply that number by the total length of the back of your planned grooming area. With this figure in hand you can accurately compare prices of different materials to get the most bang for your buck.

Before cutting into the countertop material you need to take your graph paper and make a life-size mock-up of your intended design. This diagram should include the accurate placement of your bath sink and faucets so when you place the graph paper on your building material, you will have a precise sketch of where to cut out your fixtures, thereby eliminating any wastage of expensive construction materials.

Besides, who wants to have to buy, measure, and cut your countertop again, so measure, measure and measure once again, just to be on the safe side when evaluating your vanity top to replace the one you already have.

Custom Designs

As a side note, make sure when designing a custom countertop that you take into consideration getting the material into the chamber and also that you will actually have enough space around the countertop to put it in.

A flat level working surface designed to fit or be used on a bathroom cabinet or vanity is the definition of a countertop, but this grooming surface is far more than that. It is a communal area where we can groom ourselves, store our precious trinkets, or put on display our sense of taste and wealth with our choice of exotic natural surface materials.

It can make your powder room look tacky or become the centerpiece of your room’s design, either way accurately measuring your bathroom countertop for replacement will ensure it will make a major contribution to both the design and usability of your lavatory, so do it right the first time.