Hi scootagal, I wish I had the talent or patience. The amount of sanding and lacquer on this old red gum bench is impressive. No I bought it from a church auction and it was actually made by one of their congregation decades ago. It really is a show piece in the living room.
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Designing a kitchen for coffee
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Although I did make the work bench underneath, it's just two ikea shelves glued and screwed into the stack of wine racking...which are permanently glued together and chained to the iron bracing of the red gum for stability.
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Hey James.
Drilling through granite etc is not as hard as you think. I purchased a diamond studded hole 40mm for about $45.
Drilled slowly and also pour water over the bit and it's a snap.
So don't let the hole in the bench top put you off plumbing in your machine.
For me having plumbed in has been a huge step up and
I love it. Your setup deserves it!
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Well, its over 15 months after my original post but finally the new kitchen is in with dedicated coffee area as well as new machine, grinder etc ... and I'm loving it. The only thing left is the installation of the black glass splashback which should make it look even better but make it harder to photograph. The new machine/grinder is a huge difference over my Silvia / Sunbeam setup that I've used for the 7 years previous.
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Hello everybody,
I too am in a position of designing a kitchen, with coffee high up on the design brief.
My question fits into this thread, but takes a bit of a turn. It is really early in the design phase, colours an materials early.
I've had previous coffee stations on timber painted with white enamel, and another on stainless steel. The white enamel is no longer white, which brings me to the reason for this post.
Can anyone add any pro's and con's when it comes to maintaining their bench tops in general, and more specifically at the espresso machine?
concrete
white ceasar stone
timber
acrylic
and if there is any "stay away at all costs" I would really appreciate the feedback.Last edited by highlands; 18 January 2016, 10:31 PM.
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G'day highlandsOriginally posted by highlands View PostHello everybody,
I too am in a position of designing a kitchen, with coffee high up on the design brief.
My question fits into this thread, but takes a bit of a turn. It is really early in the design phase, colours an materials early.
I've had previous coffee stations on timber painted with white enamel, and another on stainless steel. The white enamel is no longer white, which brings me to the reason for this post.
Can anyone add any pro's and con's when it comes to maintaining their bench tops in general, and more specifically at the espresso machine?
concrete
white ceasar stone
timber
acrylic
and if there is any "stay away at all costs" I would really appreciate the feedback.
Some pointers that may help.
1) Always power it and plumb it in from below. At least one "computer hole" for the plumbing (amazing how much quieter my 2 group La Pavoni was when the rotary pump was under the bench!) and another quite separate one (or two - I hate messy cords on a bench) for the power. The only working alternative I have seen is to have a gap all along the back - and then watch everything fall down there... In my case I had the extra plumbing for a second machine added at the time - and needed it far more often than I thought I would.
2) Have a sink nearby or (ideally) integrated into the setup. That was my main mistake at that time... ouch! Ditto a bar fridge near / underneath the setup for the milk (I got that right).
3) The best finish I used was granite with a Lamipanel backdrop (the thick version of Laminex) which you could write on with a whiteboard marker and rub off with a single wipe from a rag. Looking at JamesM setup, I reckon Caesar Stone and glass would be at least as practical if not better looking.
4) Always allow plenty of space above the setup. It is amazing how many times I needed to fill some new bit of gear up from above and lacked adequate "top access" to do it. I am tall enough to have a high, narrow cupboard next time or perhaps a narrow "open display" setup. I will never have deep cupboards just above the setup again: a constant PITA plus the odd bruised head...
5) I had full width, quite deep (150mm) drawers directly under the setup: They really worked well for spare baskets, tampers, cups, glasses etc. I used dividers, however that is simple to add later.
6) Allow more width than you think you need. Even if nothing else, there is always a fellow CSr who drags in their new xxx machine for you to try.
7) An island bench works well if you wish to converse with your guests and (perhaps, or is that hopefully) show them how to make better coffee.
Good luck with whatever you decide.
TampIt
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