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As it turned out, the bathroom provides ample opportunities for design. There are many interesting solutions that give the sanitary room a sophisticated look. Moreover, functionality and convenience do not suffer, but, on the contrary, improve. One such solution is a bathroom countertop under the sink. Instead of the usual cabinet, there is only a horizontal plane, under which you can place a washing machine or a laundry basket.
What materials are they made from
The bathroom countertop under the sink is made of various materials:
- natural and artificial stone;
- DSP and MDF;
- glass;
- wood;
- drywall lined with ceramic tiles or mosaics.
Part of the bathroom countertops for sinks is sold ready-made and you have to choose from those sizes and colors that are available. For many, a sink is immediately offered – not all materials can be easily drilled. It is extremely problematic to do this in stone and glass without special equipment. Sometimes a set of a tap / mixer and a siphon is immediately offered. All the “stuffing” is clearly visible and everything should be in the same style and the purchase of a kit is justified.
Some countertops in the bathroom – glass, wood, MDF and chipboard – can be ordered from the manufacturer according to your own dimensions. It will cost a little more than buying ready-made, but perfect size matching is sometimes important.
The countertop in the drywall bathroom is made “in place”, so that it is always homemade, and finished with the same materials as the walls, but mostly with tiles or mosaics. This option is possible for self-production.
Countertop washbasin
There are also sinks with a solid cast top (they also call it the other way around – a countertop with a solid cast or integrated sink). These sanitary wares are made of porcelain, faience, artificial stone. Their device completely eliminates the flow of water, since there are no seams – the sink is only a recess in the plane, everything is made of a monolithic material. There is only a hole for installing a siphon and a tap (there is not always a tap for a tap, as wall models can be installed).
Similar products look no worse, only porcelain or faience ones do not have such a large selection of sizes and shapes. But artificial stone products can be ordered according to individual measurements and they can be of unusual shapes. For example, as in the photo above, there is even a leg-sidewall, and the shape is non-standard – one edge is narrower, the other is wider.
How to choose a countertop under the sink in the bathroom
You can argue that it is better endlessly, since there is still no ideal choice. Each material or form has its own advantages and disadvantages. You can choose the best option for a given situation, but to make a decision, you need to clearly know the properties, pros and cons of each solution. So that the features of operation are not an unpleasant surprise.
From laminated chipboard and MDF
Both chipboard and MDF are made from the remains of wood. It is crushed, then plates are formed from them. The difference is that in the production of chipboard a larger fraction is used and a binder is added for strength. This binder releases formaldehyde, which in large quantities can be harmful to health. This parameter – the release of formaldehyde – is controlled and prescribed in the documents. It is denoted by the Latin letter E and numbers from 0 to 3. The safest class is E0 – the level of emissions is no more than that of wood. E1 is safe – it can be used in the manufacture of children’s furniture. The rest of the classes are not approved for residential use. Therefore, when choosing a countertop for a sink, pay attention to this aspect.
In the production of MDF, wood is split into very small fragments, practically into fibers, then it is pressed under high pressure without extraneous additives, sticking together due to the natural binder contained in the wood (lignin). When finished, the wood fibers are so tightly adjacent to each other that moisture practically does not penetrate inside. That is why, if you choose between a countertop made of chipboard and MDF, you should choose the second option. In addition to being environmentally friendly, it is also less affected by moisture. For a bathroom, this is a very important property.
Even if the bathroom countertop under the sink is made of moisture-resistant chipboard or high-pressure MDF and covered with a laminating film with a pattern on top, you should not count on a very long service life. The weak point of such products is the edges and the back side. Only the front surface and the edge are laminated. The rest are left unprotected. To extend the service life, all open cuts (the cutout for installing the sink too) are treated with sealants. For these purposes, sanitary sealants are excellent, you can use silicone for aquariums.
But even with this treatment, the service life is several years. And the main condition is that the laminating film on the surface remains intact. Such countertops are easy to maintain – all dirt is easily removed from a smooth surface, but you can only use a damp cloth, make sure that water does not stay on the surface for a long time, do not use abrasive products. In general, it is quite problematic.
Natural and artificial stone
In fact, these are two different materials, but the appearance may be similar. The countertop for the bathroom sink made of natural stone is made from a plate a few centimeters thick. Holes are made in the right places, then they are ground and polished.
These are expensive models that look good in spacious bathrooms. They are durable, not afraid of water, but weigh a lot, which makes installation difficult. There may also be maintenance issues. It is necessary to know what stone the countertop is made of in order to know what detergents can be used. For example, marble cannot be treated with chlorine-containing preparations, granite can withstand even less such tests. So care must be selected individually. In general, expensive, beautiful, reliable, but there may be problems with care.
Artificial stone is a natural stone crushed to a state of fine crumbs, mixed with a binder (polyester resin or acrylic). This mixture is poured into a certain form, after hardening we get a monolithic slab with an integrated sink (or without).
The advantages of this material are the ability to get any shape, a wide variety of colors. The performance characteristics are high: the artificial stone is not afraid of water, it is easy to care for it, you can use non-abrasive detergents (so as not to scratch) and wet rags or sponges. The material is resistant to loads, is not erased, in order to damage it, considerable force must be applied. And only countertops using acrylic as a binder have a limitation – at high temperatures it can melt. But if no hot work is foreseen in the bathroom, you can use such countertops without restrictions.
From glass
The glass top fits perfectly in large and small bathrooms. They are made from thick tempered glass. It can be completely transparent or with some shade, or it can even be colored. No one doubts the moisture resistance of this material, but many are afraid of the fragility of glass. Of course, there is a chance to break this glass, but considerable effort is required for this. In families with small children, it is probably not worth installing them, but in other cases there are no contraindications.
Just keep in mind that any stains on the glass are very noticeable. You will have to rub the surface to constantly monitor cleanliness. In general, a glass bathroom countertop under the sink is for those who love cleaning.
Wood
Many people think that wood in the bathroom is not the best choice. Perhaps this is so, but with proper processing, it will serve no less than faience or porcelain. Yes, it needs more careful care, but this drawback does not negate the decorativeness of wood.
A wooden countertop for a bathroom under a sink can be from an array – a single piece of wood, or maybe from glued bars. The second option is less expensive, but no less decorative. To protect against moisture, the wood is covered with several layers of waterproof varnish. Varnish is glossy, semi-gloss, semi-matte and matte, that is, with varying degrees of gloss. So varnishing is not always a shiny surface. But this protective film is completely waterproof and dirt is well removed from a smooth surface.
Another method of protecting wood from moisture is impregnation with oil-based protective compounds. They protect against water just as well, but do not form a film, but penetrate into the fibers, clogging the water passages. Wood treated this way looks and feels natural, but a textured surface is harder to care for – the grooves are just made for the accumulation of dirt and salt deposits.
Wooden countertops for the bathroom require periodic updating of the protective coating. Oil impregnation will have to be updated about once a year (just cover it with the same composition again), the varnish coating can last for several years, but its restoration is a more troublesome task (remove the old one, apply new layers of varnish). In general, care is the same as for wooden furniture, only care must be taken that water does not remain on the surface for a long time.
Plasterboard with tile or mosaic finish
Plasterboard countertops are made by master finishers who lay tiles on the walls. You can do it yourself if you wish. It is necessary to use galvanized profiles (it is important that they do not rust) and moisture-resistant drywall. Also, instead of drywall, you can use moisture-resistant plywood. Both materials are suitable for subsequent tiling or mosaics.
This type of countertops under the sink in the bathroom is usually made in the form of a table – at least some kind of support is needed, since the weight of the structure with the finish is considerable. The technology of working with profiles and drywall allows you to make both straight and curved surfaces. So the form can be any – at will.
The properties and care of this type of bathroom countertops under the sink are the same as those of the finish – ceramic tiles or mosaics. After grouting the joints with a moisture-resistant compound, the surface becomes waterproof, resistant to mechanical stress and wear. Care is not difficult – you can use any detergent, even with abrasive particles. With caustic and chlorine-containing products, you need to be more careful, but not because of the tiles, but because of the seams – they can become lighter.
Installation of countertops
There are three ways to install bathroom countertops:
- Hanging on brackets. In this case, the space below remains absolutely free, which, firstly, facilitates cleaning, and secondly, gives freedom to place things or equipment. This type of installation is called a suspended countertop.
- Installation on legs. The design is more reliable, but the legs are a limitation and sometimes they get in the way.
- Mounting on furniture. Making several shelves or cabinets below, and installing a countertop on top is one of the options for arranging a bathroom.
All methods are equivalent in terms of reliability. But the materials must be selected correctly. And the rule applies: fastening is best done with a margin of safety. As a rule, the sink in the bathroom costs a lot, so saving on fasteners is more expensive for yourself.
On brackets
When mounting on brackets, choose powerful modules from a corner or profiled (square section) pipe with stiffeners. When installing a heavy countertop on brackets from a corner, it is desirable that they have a diagonal reinforcement.
In addition to the brackets in the form of a triangle, there is a rectangular design. They are suitable for hanging porcelain or faience sinks with countertops, as well as lighter options.
This method looks good and is also convenient: you can hang a hand towel on the crossbar. In order for everything to look harmonious, the siphon and these stops are chosen in the same color and most often it is stainless steel, but there may be other options.
Under the sink
Installing a countertop under the sink in the bathroom on legs is no different from installing legs on any piece of furniture. The installation sites are marked, the legs are screwed with fasteners, the valley of which is 3/4 of the thickness of the countertop.
Difficulties can arise only when installing porcelain, stone or glass products. In this case, an adhesive-sealant (based on MS polymers or polyurethane) can be used.
When installing in these two ways, it is desirable to additionally fix the structure to the wall. From below, at the junction with the wall, a metal corner (made of stainless steel or galvanized) is screwed. This gives additional rigidity and increases reliability.
Installation on furniture
Installation on furniture is even easier: they take aluminum or galvanized corners, you can – reinforced. On one side they are attached to furniture partitions, on the other – to the back of the countertop (depending on the material, on self-tapping screws or glue-sealant).
After installing the junction with the wall, it is necessary to seal it. You can use a moisture resistant sealant. Better – silicone sanitary or for aquariums, it is also very good based on MS polymers. When installing wooden countertops, you need to look for a composition that can be used with wood.
Photo ideas
If you still can’t decide what kind of bathroom countertop under the sink should be, perhaps photos of interesting options will help you.