LARGE ISLANDS: HOW BIG IS TOO BIG IN YOUR KITCHEN?

Large kitchen islands

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Kitchen islands continue to grow in popularity, and continue to grow in size. Large islands in both granite and quartz are commonplace, and we are often asked to quote for islands which are larger than can actually be made in one piece.

What are the constraints on island size? Just how big is too big? We wrote about this some time ago, but that article is now a bit tired and outdated, so we thought we would freshen it up. We have also written more recently, with a special emphasis very large islands with joins.

Large islands: the practical considerations

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Very large islands can be problematic so far as practical usefulness is concerned. For anyone apart from the tallest, islands more than 1500mm across can involve a lot of walking and reaching to get at or clean the strip in the middle. If you are on the short side, you will regret having a large worktop with areas which are permanently out of reach.

Of course, this only applies to one dimension. An island 3000mm long by 950mm wide will be easy to use at all points by anyone – it is the distance across that is critical. However, you need to think about the distance round the whole thing too.

An island can just take too long to get round – it becomes an obstacle in your kitchen rather than a help or focal point. And you need to have the room to move easily around it too. If you haven’t got room to have at least 1100mm of space all round an island, don’t have one at all – or reduce the size of the island plan until you have that kind of clearance or more.

On top of that, you do need to think carefully about the purpose of your island. What kitchen function(s) is it aimed to fulfill? Storage, preparation, cooking, serving, washing up are all part of the normal kitchen roles, and in today’s multipurpose kitchens you need to add eating, homework and general socialising! What is your island for?

Large islands: workshop and installation challenges

bridge saw for quartz and granite islands

Very large islands present challenges in manufacture and transport. Our bridge saws can only take slabs up to a certain size. Anything over 3400mm in length is pushing it for space on the saw beds; anything much longer would be too long for our vans anyway. Our vans also have a height limit at below 1600mm, though sometimes we hire for the job.

Add in the difficulties of handling very large slabs. Even with excellent access into the kitchen, a 30mm thick Nero Assoluto island at 3000x1500mm weighs 427kg – that’s 940lbs of appalling dense material. Extra men need to be sent, and sometimes extra mechanical help is needed too – we have hired cranes to get islands into second floor flats!

Even on the ground floor, access has to be right for really big islands. Expect us to say “access to be evaluated on templating” in your quotation. 

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One of our regular AG vans – you can’t get 1600mm height in there!

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In the workshop: a stunning island in Lemon Spice for Charlotte Williams Design – but too tall for the vans

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Jakub fork-lifting the island onto a specially-hired flatbed

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Ready to go!

Large islands: the raw material

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Edge on view of quartz slabs in the warehouse, showing size differences

Large islands need large slabs to make them. Natural stone (granite) varies significantly from quarry to quarry and from block to block – we have known maximum slab lengths at anything from 2500mm to 3500mm.

Man-made, engineered stone, is made in standard moulds. In the early days of quartz these produced slabs at 3040x1400mm or so. More recently a steadily wider range of quartz has come into the market in slabs at up to 3350x1660mm (Cambria). However, all companies that produce jumbo slabs don’t produce them for all products – NEVER assume that a quartz material is available at larger than 3000×1400 without having checked with a fabricator (like ourselves) or a wholesale supplier.

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Quartz slabs in our warehouse

Large islands: going truly large

If, after all we have said, you know that you must have a very large island, then we certainly want to help. Please look at our companion article which looks positively at some further challenges, and also how having a join in an island can become a feature in your kitchen, rather than just an annoyance.

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Massive island in Classic Quartz Calacatta Gold, installed in Norden Kitchens Showroom, Ewell

We are Affordable Granite, the leading granite installer in Surrey, Sussex and across the South East. We are proud of our expertise and craftsmanship – from being able to give you good, honest advice before you buy, right through to installation and leaving everything spot on at the end. For questions, queries and quotes connected with any aspect of worktop installation or kitchen design, please don’t hesitate to contact us on 01293 863992 or by email on sales@affordablegranite.co.uk/ .

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