Blog · Process
Before template day: the checklist that keeps a project on schedule
Templating is when we measure the real room with a digital templater and turn it into the file the stone is cut from. It takes about an hour. It also has more ways to go wrong than any other step, almost all of them avoidable with a little preparation. This is the list we send every client before we come.
Cabinets installed, level and final
The countertop is cut to the cabinets, so the cabinets have to be where they will stay: installed, screwed to the wall and to each other, and levelled. If a run of cabinets moves half an inch after we template, the stone will not fit. Filler panels and end panels should be in place too, because they change the overhang.
Sink, cooktop and faucet on site
Every cut-out is measured from the actual fixture, not the spec sheet. Sinks especially vary from their drawings by enough to matter. Have the sink, the cooktop or range, and the faucet on site, in their boxes is fine. If you are undecided on the faucet, tell us the model before fabrication and we drill the hole in the shop.
Walls finished where the stone meets them
Drywall, tile that the stone will butt against, and any window sills or trim need to be done. We scribe the back edge to the wall, and a wall that changes after templating leaves a gap. If a full-height stone backsplash is planned, the outlets and switches must be roughed in at their final positions.
Decisions to have made
The templater will confirm these with you on the day, and it is much faster if they are already decided.
- Edge profile: eased, mitered, bevel, bullnose or ogee.
- Overhang at seating areas, usually 10 to 12 inches, and whether it needs supports.
- Seam locations, which we propose on the slab scan afterwards for your approval.
- Which side of the sink the dishwasher goes on, for the cut-out layout.
What happens after
Within a day or two you receive the layout on the scan of your slab. Once approved, fabrication takes about a week and installation is usually a single day. If anything on this list is not ready, the honest answer is to move the appointment; a template taken on an unfinished room is the most expensive shortcut in the trade.
