Kitchen Center Island - Tuesday

in OCD4 years ago

Well, yesterday I said that I hope to be getting 50 squash a day once my other plants start producing and lo and behold I went out after posting and picked 50 squash. I am not super surprised since the plants are all kicking into gear. I just thought it would take a bit longer.

It was the hottest day of the year so far and I spent the bulk of it inside the house working on the center island. Quite the difference from the prior day where it was all spent outside in the heat.

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After moving everything out of the way in the kitchen I ran into my first problem. The water lines and the drain line are all stubbed through the floor. I had hoped to have the dishwasher open towards our sink but found that the lines were in just the wrong place to allow for that. So I had to do some redesigning in my head and then found I needed change up the water lines. I cut them both off to install 90s.

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Since it is copper and I had to sweat new fittings on I wrapped foil around the base of the pipes to cover the floor so I didn't catch anything on fire. It worked out perfectly that the 90s are small so I was able to heat the outside of the fittings and then apply the solder to the inside of the fitting so it gut sucked DOWN with gravity rather than having to draw up the fitting.

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I sweat both of the valves on and checked to make sure there were no leaks.

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So much mental work to put this all together. I have very basic drawings of the design with rough measurements but the changes made already have thrown much of it out the window. The basics are there but the dimensions are mostly in my head.

I started on the dishwasher end since it is the most fixed point in the whole design. The water and drain lines are where they are and would be FAR too much pain to move.

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With the change in the dishwasher direction that meant I had to cut down the wood face for that side. I had to take 24 inches off which left me just with the doors and frame. I then had to cut a 35" tall by 45" long board for the end next to the dishwasher. A lot of consideration has been given to the strength of the design and making it rock solid.

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I got the outer frame all together and fixed to the floor. The next design problem came from figuring out how to build a shelf in the island. My goal was to have as much space available as possible with the least amount of bracing.

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I figured out I had enough scrap pieces of plywood left that I could put them all together. It took a 13, 12, 11, 11, and 4 inch wide piece, screwed to 2x2 runners and edged with the same on one side.

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In the middle of the shelf I installed 2 legs to give support and strength. The frame is visible along the edge.

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7 supports were installed around the frame to support the shelf.

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I dropped the shelf into place but had to pull it back out to cut a notch to go around the drain line. Once in though I got it all screwed down and fixed to the frame.

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We have about the maximum amount of storage space available in the space available. There are just 2 support legs taking up any of the storage space. Pretty minimal.

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Reinstalled the 2 cross beams that will likely get a connector today to mount the outlet box to atop the counter top.

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Finally the framing was mostly done and I was able to start installing the doors and sides.

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These couple shots are from before I screwed them all in.

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I pulled out the Formica sheet and laid it out on the counter top. I let it sit in the sun and flatten itself out. Before I install the Formica I have to haul the top in and mark out where I am going to install the bracing to the underside of the counter top so I can fix the top to the base. I want to get the bracing in so I can cover the screws with the Formica.

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So today I am going to get the top figured out and likely the Formica glued down. I won't be installing the counter top until after the glue dries and I am able to cut out the hole for the sink. I am getting there though and will get back to work on it after I spend my morning picking squash and I have to pick beans or else they won't be saleable.

For more information about our farm:
Fleming Family Farm
FLEMING FAMILY FARM, LLC
Sustainable & Organic Methods | Heirloom Produce
All images are original works of Fleming Family Farm unless otherwise notated and credited.

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This project is sure moving right along!

Some days go better than others. Today was a lot of speed bumps and a few screw ups but things are still progressing at least. Figuring out gluing down the formica was the hardest of it. It seems my counter top is warped from being in the sun too much so it makes pressing the formica down a bit more difficult.