Rods – Steel rebar rods can be installed into the stone piece to provide reinforcement throughout the top. Advantage: strengthens the entire length of the piece and will eliminate cracking in overhangs.
To be on the safe side, support the stone wire mesh or plywood as well as with corbels or brackets placed at equidistant intervals along the width of the bar top. Put them closer together if you have 2-cm granite slabs for your bar top. Your overhang should not exceed 24 inches.
Use a countertop support that extends to within 4 inches of edge of your countertop. Fasten your supports to the most substantial support available. Consult with a design engineer or contractor for custom support applications.
You should use a countertop bracket that extends within four inches of the countertop edge. This prevents too much pressure and weight on the countertop without proper backing. Fasten these brackets with fasteners to keep them securely in place.
Use granite countertop brackets when overhanging stone counters. Considering that granite, marble, and limestone can have overhangs weighing hundreds of pounds, and considering how brittle granite countertops can be, granite support brackets are imperative. Quartz countertops often do not need support.
Granite thickness – granite tops with a thickness of 3 cm can have an 8-10 inch overhang without additional supports. If your granite top has a 2 cm thickness, we recommend attaching a support system should the overhang exceed 6 inches.
Overhangs like those found on a wall pass through, and eating bars of more than 6”, but less than 12”, can be supported with wood or metal corbels. They can also be supported by a relatively new product called a COUNTERBalance™ CounterPlate™.
Different countertop materials have different requirements. Solid Surface countertops can overhang 6 inches without additional support (e.g. plywood decking). 3 cm Quartz (engineered stone) can handle a 14 inch overhangs and 3 cm Granite overhangs should not exceed a 10 inch overhang without additional support.
The maximum overhang is no more than 1/3 of the total dimension of the countertop – not to exceed 15”. Overhang greater than 15” requires corbels or flush mounted steel supports. Supports must be designed to bear the weight of the countertop and be mounted to studs or equivalent load bearing structure.
The upper limit is usually 15 inches; anything beyond that requires extra support. More important than the length of the overhang is its proportion to the rest of the counter. The overhang should not exceed 30% of the depth of the countertop, and 70% should be supported by the cabinets underneath.
Fiberglass mesh is used to reinforce granite slabs by applying the mesh evenly across the back (or underside) of the granite and affixing it with an epoxy product. The fiberglass mesh strengthens the granite and makes it more resistant to cracking from the impurities that might be inside the granite.
For 3cm stone, use an I-brace support with overhangs that are 12 inches or greater, and for 2cm stone, use an I-brace support with cantilevered brackets or corbels that match the cabinets. I-brace supports are spaced every 18 to 24 inches, and other bracket systems are spaced 3 to 4 inches apart.
1- How much overhang do you have
Most granite fabricators will recommend support brackets on overhangs over 12″ however, solely based on the overhang amount. Final determination on bracket requirements and spacing should be recommended by your fabricator based on the following factors.
Supporting your Granite Worktops
Granite is a heavy material, so it may be crucial to install extra supports such as plywood around the tops of the cabinets to support the weight, especially in corners. It is worth the fitter checking that everything is level before drilling into the cabinets.
How many granite brackets will you need? Countertop brackets are generally spaced 18 – 24 inches apart. Start with a bracket at each end of the countertop set 4 – 6 inches away from the end.
Granite up to 1.25” thick can safely overhang your cabinets up to about 10 inches, but only if the counter is at least 30” deep to ensure proper cantilevered support. A lack of balance will not only create a safety issue, but potentially damage your counters and your kitchen cabinets.
Do I Need Plywood under Granite Countertops? If you are asking, do I need plywood under granite countertops? You must be thinking about installing granite in your home, but aren't sure whether also budget for plywood, right? Well, you need plywood if your granite slab is less than 3cm thick.
Standard countertop overhang is 1 ½ inches.
Keep in mind that this is 1 ½ inches over the front edge of the base cabinet. While some countertops may have different overhang measurements, this is the number that is seen as standard for homes. While 1 ½ inches is the most common, it's far from mandatory.
A typical overhang for a comfortable seating area should be around 25-30cm (10-12”), this should leave enough knee room and adequate space between the countertop edge and the person seated. Therefore, as the depth of the overhang increases, so does the comfort and usability of the bar.
You can get away with no overhang to just sit near the counter (sitting sideways) but it's standard to use 12 to 15" to be comfortable.
In general, the recommended countertop overhang is between 1 and 1.5 inches. 'The standard overhang measurement is based on the fact that most people find this distance be the perfect place to rest their forearms while food prep is taking place,' notes Chris Alexakis, founder of CabinetSelect.
In certain instances, a larger or smaller overhang may be desired. This is more common with custom countertops. Still, while some countertops can have different overhang measurements, 1.5 inches is considered standard for residential homes. The standard countertop overhang for kitchen islands is 12 inches.
You must be thinking about standing or sitting on your countertops and unsure whether your countertops will take the weight, right? Granite is fairly thick, often at the very least ¾ of an inch. If the weight is evenly distributed over a large area, the countertops can hold up to 1000 pounds.
Granite Bracket Thickness
They brackets are under a floating countertop, so the ascetic isn't too important. Since these brackets are mostly hidden, we highly recommend using 3/8″ or 1/2″ thicknesses, which are our two thicker models.