Tile on Countertops! Part IV

As to edging there are a lot of options. Some clients have their cabinet maker manufacture wood edging to match their cabinets. We encourage the use of Schluter metal edging (solid brass or stainless steel). We also use Schluter painted aluminum metal edging with rounded corners with good success over the years. Ceramic or porcelain sink rail are available, some of which even match the large body field tile. They are, however, much more expensive and to our mind clearly indicate a tile countertop. With the metal edging, even though it is less expensive, it does not signal what the material is and allows the illusion of stone counters to come through. One of those rare occasions within the least expensive alternative looks the most expensive!

A decorating trick to make a small kitchen look larger is to use the same tile on the floor and the countertops! The trick works particularly well if you use very large body tiles as the reduced number of grout lines increases the appearance of both the floor and the countertop! Since they are the same material and texture the countertop blends into the floor and makes the area look much larger!

Since there is no free lunch -- you ask how much? Even with the use of solid brass edging and 20x20+ sized porcelain tiles we have installed the countertops with total labor and material charges of approximately $12-18/sq. ft. A typical kitchen countertop has about 30 to 50 sq. ft. so a tile countertop for that sized area would range from $360 - $900 - not considerably more than replacement cost in Formica and only a small percentage of what or Corian or granite would cost.

See other tile articles by Carlo Americo Odella who has owned and operated Europamerican Tile and Marble in Centerville Ohio for over 15 years