1. Countertop Jig Template

Ron:Now when Annie, a neighbor of mine over in Wilton, CT, called me the other day about improving the energy in her kitchen, I figured she was planning on upgrading her electrical service. It turns out that she was planning to install a new granite countertop, now granite’s never seemed very energetic to me, it sort of just lies there. Annie, a Feng Shui practitioner, sees granite with a whole different vibration.Door bellAnnie:Come in.Ron:Hey.Annie:Hey Ron.Ron:How are you?Annie:Fine thank you. Welcome to my house. My name is Elsebeth Ann Byer.Ron:Elsebeth Ann, do people call you that?Annie:Yes they do, Elsebeth or Annie.Ron:Can I use Annie?Annie:Absolutely.Ron:I noticed you were down here, what is this?Annie:This is the alter in the Thai Chi of my house, in the art of Feng Shui which is the art of managing energy and space. This should be the most peaceful of all the areas of the house. And I happen to have a lot of chaos in my kitchen which is why I have you here today.Ron:Alright.

Well let’s sort out your circus, let’s take a look.Annie:Alright. So Ron this is my kitchen.Ron:Do you spend a lot of time in here?Annie:Well not as much as you’d think?Ron:Are you a gourmet cook?Annie:No I’m not.Ron:But you hate this countertop?Annie:I really, ever since I bought this place, I’ve disliked this counter.Ron:Now as a Feng Shui specialist, tell me about this.Annie:Well there’s 3 main rules in Feng Shui, there’s many rules, but this rule that you don’t like something, or that it’s broken or that you haven’t used it, is part of the choice of changing to granite.Ron:Well obviously you’ve used it, you’ve got to have it, so you dislike it? Is it broken?Annie:Yes I have, but I, I dislike it. It’s broken over here.Ron:Where?Annie:Over here, and I tried to fix it, and you can see I can pull it apart completely.Ron:I like the little nail down here though, that was good.Annie:Yeah that was my doing.Ron:You know what, if you can live with this, I think I can probably repair this.Annie:No way.Ron:So the overriding thing here is that you hate it.Annie:That’s right. That’s right.Ron:So is there anything else about the granite, about stone, the reason that you prefer it?Annie:Yes, the reason I, yes, the durability and the beauty factor of granite, and in Feng Shui, this section of my home has to do with fame and reputation, which is governed by the element of fire, which produces earth, and granite is obviously a symbol of earth. So that was a part of the decision that I made.Ron:Is it that you want fame and reputation, or that you’re protecting fame and reputation?Annie:We all need to have a good reputation in the way that the community views us. It’s not just fame in being famous.Ron:Well no wonder I gravitated to my new kitchen, it happened to come with granite in it.

Well listen, I’ll tell you what. You up for a little sort of like a shopping trip?Annie:Yes I am.Ron:Kind of just go, let’s go some place that’s got a bunch of granite, and we can both look at it. Let’s see what, what tugs at us. Okay.MusicRon:Wow it’s like a rainbow of color.Annie:Isn’t it beautiful?Ron:What uh, what tweaks your fancy here?Annie:This is a very difficult decision when you look at all this variety.Ron:It takes a while, but Annie finally settles on a sample that’s her cup of tea.Annie:I also wanted to have a little bit of red into the, uh, stoneRon:Like this, this is really red.Annie:Blue with a little bit of red in it, which would be this one.Ron:Oh that’s interesting.Annie:And it also has whiteRon:Jubenero Indigo.

Wonder what these uh, what these, the price range is on these.Annie:I have no idea, I’m sure I picked the most expensive ones.Ron:Hi.Salesperson:Hi.Ron:How are you? Ron this is Annie.Robert:Robert nice to meet you.Annie:Robert nice to meet you.Robert:How are you today?Annie:Great thank you.Ron:We were just wondering about some things, prices to begin with.Ron:Robert answers our questions, then addresses Annie’s concern. Making such a big decision from such a small sample.Robert:Yes that’s a very good point.

Actually we tell customers that small sample doesn’t tell the truth, that’s why we go to the slide yard, and take a look at a large piece uh, slab itself, and uh, then make a decision. This is the indigo, we can take this with us.Ron:I say let’s go to the slab yard. Wow look at this.Annie:Incredible.Ron:How much do these weigh?Robert:About 600, 700 pounds, it depends on the size of the slab.Ron:And where’s our slab there?Robert:This is indigo, it’s, I assume it’s right here. This is the, uh, the sample, do you see?Ron:What do you think Annie?Annie:Oh it’s much more beautiful in person.Ron:So you want to go with that?Annie:I think that’s perfect, what happens next?Robert:Um, we need to take a template, and once we take a template, we bring that here, and we can cut your stone, we can make your countertop.Annie:Fantastic.Ron:Annie’s stone is pulled, prepped, and poised for cutting.

A few days later, a technician arrives at her home, to make a template. The template is made by laying thin strips of glue on plywood along the edges of the existing countertop. This process reduces measuring areas, accurately reproduces angles, and shows the sink location. The individual strips are then glued together with a hot metal adhesive, forming a rigid pattern, that can be lifted off in one piece. Finally notations about edge profiles and sink style are written on the face of the template.Technician:Now you, on the backside here as well you want to do the same measurements you’re getting?Annie:Yes I do.Ron:The template is brought back to the fabrication plant, laid on the slab, and traced.

A laser sided saw then cuts along the outline. The saw is equipped with a diamond blade that’s water cooled to prevent the granite from chipping or cracking. Finally the stone workers use hand held grinding and polishing tools to form the decorative edge that Annie wants on her countertop. Well the stone cutters have done their job, but the new countertop can’t go in, until the old one comes out. And that’s our job.Ron:We start down under by disconnecting the old sink plumbing, then move up to the sink itself.Ron:So we’ve got to take this out, this is kind of glued in, so this is what I want you to do.

Just take the putty knife, and just work it around here. Oh hey, hey, we’re making progress.Annie:Hey, I’m having a sinking spell.Ron:A thinking spell?Annie:A sinking spell.Ron:This is getting just a corner, just get it under, okay that’s it, is it coming up?Annie:Yep.Ron:Alright can you get your fingers under there?Annie:Yep.Ron:Okay I’m gonna come straight up, and bye, bye sink.Annie:Strong like bull.Ron:Next it’s on to the back splash.Annie:Splish, splash I fell in the bath.Ron:Not a splish splash, a back splash.Annie:Got it.Ron:Now we’ve got to take it off.

Countertop Jig Template

Do you know how it’s put on there?Annie:No, glue probably?Ron:Glue. Step 1 Visit a Vendor to Select Your Granite Countertop. Step 2 Make a Template of Your Current Kitchen Countertop. Step 3 Transfer the Template Shape and Cut from the Granite Slab. Step 4 Remove the Old Sink and Plumbing from the Countertop/Cabinet.

Step 5 Loosen and Pry off the Countertop Backsplash for Removal. Step 6 Detach the Countertop after Removing Screws, Caulking or Glue. Step 7 Remove Appliances after Switching off the Appropriate Electrical Circuits. Step 8 Install New Appliances That Hide beneath the Countertop. Step 9 Install the Granite Countertop and Backsplashes.