Countertop Support Framing?

[Nate R]

Not sure where to look for this info. Haven't found anything so far, but maybe I'm just looking in the wrong places.

We're thinking of putting in a granite countertop in our kitchen remodel. How does one set up support for the countertop when the dishwasher it goes over is in a corner? How much support do I need on the edge?



As you can sorta see here, the dishwasher is between the end wall and the sink cabinet. The countertop would be supported on one side by the sink cabinet. Maybe in back by a small ledger? And then the wall side, what do I do?

I have another space in the kitchen with a similar problem. We have something like 53" of width in which we'd like to put a Washer and Dryer under a granite countertop. (No basement or laundry room in the 900 SF home.) We've found a few washers and dryers that are counter-sized. (IE: Same size as a dishwasher.) But, I have no idea how to frame around 2 24" appliances to support the granite. I'm assuming I can span the 24" openings, and need a middle support. But how thick do I need, how do I frame the left end? On the right end is the chimney, which has some framing we can use to tie in to.



Just looking for pointers from someone who's had do deal with this, or more importantly, a good resource to find this sort of information from a decent source.

[jadnashua]

For the dishwasher, you are going to want to put a spacer at the wall end, otherewise, the edge of the door will be so close to the wall it could scrape, or catch your fingers, etc. An inch or so is all that is needed. So, that would also give you a space to add a ledger board to support the slab. You may want to do something like that at the sink end, too to balance that space off. Many DW allow you to move the top support clips to the sides, and then that would also give you something to screw them into. Some DW have enough room at top to epoxy a wood strip across to allow you to screw into, but that may limit your future choices of DW.

[hj]

A ledger under the counter inside the dishwasher opening, assuming it is not a cabinet type dishwasher that uses the entire space. A corbel or cabinet side panel at the washing machine to support the end. The smart way would be to have it installed, so someone else has the liability if it cracks or is damaged while cutting it.

[jimbo]

I would contact your granite installer. They will tell you what is required. Granite is sometimes installed on a plywood substrate. At a minimum, you would want a 2X4 ledger to hold up the counter, but be very careful that it is level and plumb with final cabinet set up.

[frenchie]

For the dishwasher, I'd put a 3/4" end panel against the wall - same as if I needed to enclose the DW at the open end of a cabinet run.

For the washer & drier, same idea, an end panel between them & an end panel on each end; basically an open (no shelves, no doors, no toekick) cabinet that encloses the appliances.

Depending on your supplier, push comes to shove, you can buy an extra 2 base cabinets, and pirate the panels (i.e, don't assemble the cabinet, just use the side panels).