01How high, and why the number is not free
Three heights cover most jobs, and the choice is usually made by the appliance rather than by taste.
| Height | Where it goes | What sets it |
|---|---|---|
| 100–150 mm | A benchtop upstand | The joinery convention; closes the wall junction |
| 450–600 mm | Behind a sink or a prep area | Splash zone, and wall finish protection |
| To the underside of upper cabinets | Full-height panel | Cabinet line; needs the cabinet height confirmed |
| Behind a hob | Per appliance data | The appliance maker's clearance to combustibles, not ours |
The hob case is the one to read twice. A stainless panel behind a gas hob is metal, and metal conducts; the clearance figure belongs to the appliance, and no fabricator should be inventing it. If the number on your drawing came from a showroom conversation rather than an installation manual, it is worth checking.
02Folded from the top, or a separate piece
Two ways to build it, with different failure modes.
A fold is a formed feature, so it is not held to the ±0.05 mm edge number — that belongs to a machined edge. What a fold does give you is an inside corner with no gap at all, which is the detail an environmental health officer runs a hand along. We fold the upstand from the same sheet as the top wherever the layout allows it, because it removes both the joint and the seal in one operation.
03Corners, returns and the end of the run
Where two walls meet, a splashback either butts with a visible joint or has a welded internal corner dressed flush. On a food premises the welded corner is the one that passes; in a domestic kitchen it is a cost decision.
- Butted corner — two parts, a sealed joint, and a line that collects dust at eye level.
- Welded corner — dressed and re-grained so the grain runs around the corner. Hand work, priced as such.
- Radiused internal corner piece — a formed section for a coved detail.
We weld and dress internal corners in a No.4 grain rather than leaving a mitre and a seal, because the dressed corner is the one that survives an inspection and a decade of cleaning. At the end of the run the panel needs a decision too: an open machined edge, a folded return, or a closing trim. An open 1 mm sheet edge at shoulder height is a cut waiting to happen, and it is the kind of thing that is invisible on a plan and obvious on site.
04Ordering a splashback with the benchtop
Give us the finished height, the length of each wall run, whether the ends and corners are returned, and the hob or appliance clearance if there is one. If the splashback is folded from the benchtop, it is one part and one drawing — cheaper than two orders and better fitting.
Sheet thickness for a splashback is 0.9 to 1.5 mm, or plate if it has to match the top's edge. We hold both in 304, and 316L where a chlorinated sanitiser is used daily. Tolerance on a machined edge is ±0.05 mm; a fold is a formed feature with its own tool radius, and we will say which number applies to which feature rather than letting one number stand for both.
Lead time is 15 working days from a confirmed drawing. Parts are cut, machined, folded, grained and inspected in one building, packed with the edges protected and shipped with the inspection sheet — which is the record the warranty is settled against. The grade and the heat number are on the mill certificate that travels with the same shipment.
Benchtops, AU and NZ · Kitchen benchtop guide · Finishes and grain · Send a drawing