Countertops & Lighting - ICC Floors Plus Blog

Welcome to week three of our guest blog series! If you are new to this series, in August, ICC Floors will be featuring a guest blog series from our very own, Blake Powell. In this series, Blake Powell tackled an extraordinary DIY project, where he built a custom outdoor bar that features a big green egg smoker. He is here to share with you what he learned and show you how you can do it yourself. No professional experience is required! Let’s take a look at part three! What countertop material he chose:

“In this week’s series, I wanted to focus primarily on the countertops and lighting included on the bar. For the countertops, I hired a fabricator, Majestic, that used specialized equipment to make my countertops.”

Pro-Tip:I would recommend hiring an expert to help create your countertop for ease of mind and guaranteed quality. I used Majestic Stone Imports for my countertop needs. They do a field measure for their clients, and you can actually go into their warehouse to view different kinds of slabs from their display. Majestic then can order in a slab so that the client can see a larger scaled version of the countertop. This way they can feel the countertop and pick out the particular sections that they want for each area of the bar. Once they order the material, they will cut it and schedule a time for delivery and install it for you. Majestic knows precisely where each section will go and can install it with or with or without the homeowner being home during the installation.

“The reason that I love Majestic Stone Imports is that they do a 15-year seal. At first, I was concerned about purchasing a nice granite countertop for my outdoor area. This would mean that it would have to withstand all of the harsh elements featured throughout the Midwest. Fortunately, the 15-year seal helps to protect and maintain the countertop for fifteen years. In essence, we suggest Majestic Stone Imports because they provide excellent service, guarantee a lack of maintenance down the road, and give us care-free, peace of mind. With Majestic, you get the most out of your product.”

“Majestic Stone Import uses this tool to get an accurate reading of the countertops to ensure perfect precision and peace of mind with laser technology.”

“After we took the measurements, I headed over to Majestic Stone Imports to choose my outdoor countertop.”

“Majestic Stone Imports used specialized equipment to map out the edges with a laser and determine the measurements of the countertop area.”

“Next, they took the measurements to figure out the dimensions within the slab and determine which area went on what side of the bar.”

“Here is an up-close image of the countertop measurements displayed on the granite.”

“Next, they cut out the dimensions with a saw.”

“Here is an image of the countertop cut into the perfect dimensions for my bar.”

“Afterwards, Majestic Stone Import delivered the countertop to my home for installation.”

“They delivered my new countertop and applied the 15-year seal.”

“I did not want the hassle and cost of running power to the outdoor bar, but I still wanted to light the area. To create an energy efficient and money-saving solution, I decided to incorporate white and blue LED lights. I ran the lights underneath my bar to create the perfect ambiance. I even purchased 90-degree angle connectors to run the lights across the angles of the doors. I adhere the lights to the bar where I wanted them to be placed then used battery packs with on/off switches to incorporate another energy efficient solution. I adhered the battery pack to the underside of the bar to reduce visibility but create ease of use. I also used rechargeable batteries (80 hours) to reduce the need to replace batteries .”

Pro-Tip: I would recommend spending more time prior to the actual construction to plan the lighting layout. You can spend more time preparing a well-thought-out lighting situation and incorporate different options of lighting (i.e., solar lights).

“For more information on Majestic Stone Import, click here to visit their website.”

“Be sure to check back next week for the final post of the series. Thanks for reading!”

-Blake Powell

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