How to prepare for a hassle-free worktop installation

Once you’ve picked and ordered your new kitchen worktop, you may be wondering what you need to do to prepare for the installation.

Luckily, most of the hard work is carried out by our worktop fitters, so your input is minimal. But there are a few things you need to do to help the process go smoothly.

In this guide, we cover everything you need to know to prepare for a hassle-free worktop installation.

Prepare for the worktop templating

When you have a sintered stone, quartz or acrylic worktop, it must be made-to-measure off-site. That’s because specialist equipment is needed to cut the material. It’s not a job the fitters can do in your home.

So, to be able to cut the worktop to your exact requirements off-site, our worktop fitters need to visit your home, measure-up and create a template.

The template is basically a plan of your worktop. It includes the precise size and shape of the units the worktop will cover, and the position and size of your sink, taps and hob. It will also include the detail for any special features you may have ordered, such as the position of pop-up sockets or drainer grooves.

This is what you need to have ready when the fitters arrive to make the template:

Your kitchen base cabinets need to be in place

The base cabinets are what our fitters will measure to make the template, so they need to be in their final position, ready for our visit.

If you’ve had a new kitchen installed, use a spirit level to check that they’re flat.

If you’re having a new worktop fitted in an existing kitchen, please remove your old worktops before our fitters arrive.

Some worktops are extremely heavy. We’ll be able to give you advice if we feel your cabinets and floor aren’t currently strong enough to bear the weight.

Have your sink, taps and hob available

To make the template, we need to know exactly where you’d like to position your sink and hob. And, if you have taps that will be fitted to the worktop rather than the sink.

We also need to see the items themselves. We’ll double-check the measurements and consider whether the sink will be over or under-mounted.

If you’ve opted for a heavy undermount sink, a support cradle must be fitted to the base cabinet BEFORE our templating visit.

But, please don’t have sinks and hobs fitted and plumbed/wired in! Those jobs can’t be done until after we’ve templated AND fitted your worktops.

Just have them available and unpacked, ready for our visit.

A decision-maker needs to be at home to speak to our worktop fitters

When we make your worktop template, there will be questions we need to ask you. The obvious ones are where your sink and hob will go. But there may be other questions, such as where joins in your worktop will be.

For this reason, someone who can make decisions must be at home when we visit. While a friend or neighbour can let us in, they may not be able or willing to make those decisions for you, and you could end up with choices made on your behalf that you don’t like.

Prepare for the worktop installation

Once your template is completed, our worktop fitters will send the details off to the manufacturer who will make your worktop to those exact requirements. This usually takes between 1-2 weeks.

Meanwhile, we’ll get your installation booked in, so we’re ready to go as soon as the worktop has been made.

To ensure the fitting process is hassle-free, here are a few things you can do to prepare for our visit.

Clear your kitchen and hallway

Worktops are large and heavy! When we arrive, we’ll need clear access from your entrance to the kitchen, as well as in the kitchen itself.

So, clear away anything that can cause an obstruction or trip hazard. Move anything breakable and shut your pets away.

This ensures we have plenty of room to move about and prevents any accidents.

Clear your kitchen base cabinets and remove the doors and drawers

If you’ve already started to use your base cabinets, please clear them out as the fitters will need to go inside the cabinets to get underneath the worktop.

It’s also best to remove the cabinet door fronts and drawers to prevent any accidental damage.

Leave the rest to us!

That’s it! You’re now well prepared for your worktop installation, and you can leave the hard work to the fitters.

Once they’re finished, they’ll ask you to inspect their work and sign it off to confirm you’re happy. Then you can sit back and admire the stunning new addition to your kitchen that will last for many years.

SEH Interiors have over 10 years’ experience supplying and fitting premium-quality kitchen worktops at affordable prices across the UK. Browse our worktop range and find out more about our worktop fitting service.