Metal Backsplash
If you are considering a metal backsplash for your kitchen, you have a much larger selection to choose from than was possible just a few years ago. Metal tiles come in many different shapes and sizes as well as materials. One of the earliest forms was the stainless steel backsplash that was usually a flat piece joined with T strips and used commercially.
Although stainless steel is still widely used, other materials include tin, aluminum, copper, and plastics that resemble metal. Different finishes have a lot to do with the appearance of each. Aluminum pieces are very versatile with brushed, anodized, and black finishes to name a few.
Stainless steel tiles come in brushed, copper, brass, smoked, and even a stucco texture. With the technologies available today, any metal or plastic material can be made to appear like another. The basic decision to make is whether you want true metal or a plastic look a like.
If you are the do-it-yourselfer type, a metal backsplash is much less mess and bother to install when compared to a ceramic tile backsplash. Panels or tiles are usually interlocking and installed with a few nails and some construction adhesive. The easiest by far is the plastic panel because of the ease of cutting it to fit.
Installing the backsplash on a long wall is better accomplished by centering it in an area that has the highest backsplash area such as a sink or cook top. This is the central point of attraction when someone looks at the backsplash. If using individual square panels, the six-inch size works well in most kitchens.
If you have a cook top that is thirty inches, you probably have the same size opening below the wall cabinets behind it. It is then a simple process of centering a tile in the middle. With interlocking pieces, it is important to work from one end to another rather than starting in the middle.
After you determine where your tiles should be in relation to your central opening, loosely set a row in place across to the starting corner or start of the wall cabinets to see if the first panel has to be cut.
A metal backsplash comes with all the trim pieces you need. A starting j channel, or inside corner, sits on the countertops seated in a good bed of sealant. The panels drop in with a bead of construction adhesive under the leading flanges. Nails or screws are used to hold the panel in place until the glue sets.
You should be able to find receptacle covers to match your panels if you desire. Receptacles will need to be replaced if they clash with the panels. For example, white receptacles would look out of place with a copper backsplash.
Because of the selections and finishes available, a metal backsplash provides a great addition to your kitchen. Installation is not that messy, they are easier to keep clean than those made of rough tiles, and it is easier to remove metal tiles in the future if you want a change. Not the least of the positives is the great look you get from the finished product.
