Why don't you speak to your granite guy. Maybe he could recommed a contractor that could do something with it. I'm sure he has probably seen things like this happen, either with sinks or cooktops, after he installed the granite.

I did talk to the fabricator, while his installers were here. He just kept saying that cabinet issues are the carpenter's problem. I thought he might know of someone, too. He's going to talk to his co-owner in the morning, so maybe she'll know of someone.

He must work with different carpenters or at least seen their work. He's right it is the carpenters problem and not his, but I would think he would know of a good carpenter, if he is installing granite. I'm sure you're not the first that this happened to, and you'll find someone to fix it. What about the cabinet dealer, they would definitely know the carpenters that are good.

Try to get some sleep, and I'm sure you'll find someone tomorrow.

---" It needs to have a bit more than 1/4" removed on the full length of each side, to a depth of 3"."

Don't panic, there is always a solution in woodwork.

This sounds like an easy job for a power planer tool. If I understand your predicament correctly, the planer could be guided vertically right through the granite cut out, to do the job in series of deeper cuts.

This might not work all the way to the bottom if there is a fixed shelf under the cooktop space, because the shoe of the tool extends several inches in front of the cutting blades. To finish the job, the outline of the cut should be scored with a knife and the core removed with hand planes and chiseling. It doesn't have to be pretty, since the cooktop will hide the rework.

Visit some local custom cabinet shops to find a competent finish carpenter. If they are lacking work, someone will come out and solve this problem for $200.

If i'm picturing this correctly it can easily be done with a trim router using a straight bit set to 1/4+ and a guide stick horizontally along the bottom for a straight cut then freehand the rest. Depending on the clearance you might have to clean up the corners with a sharp chisel. I'd do this under a sheet or trap with a light to keep the chips and dust contained. You can also jig saw a notch out of both sides but it wouldn't be as pretty. Again using a guide stick for a straight cut. Without seeing it this is my best advice. It does come with 30 plus years building high-end custom furniture and cabinets behind it. Any questions just ask. John.

Joann23456,

First off I am so sorry you are going through this.
I imagine you have cried and cried but don't give up.
There were some great ideas on the post responses.
Have you spoken with the Cook Top maker? Do they make
an attachment of sorts? Can they suggest a way to
support your cooktop so that you can put some trim
around the cooktop for beauty and support.

My first thought is that there are many people who
move into a kitchen with a cutout for a cooktop that
is not the right size. How do they solve this?
There must be a way. I am not sure what brand of cooktop
you have but I will try to find out for you.
Just post which it is.

Meanwhile here is what others do that have a smaller
cooktop than the cut out in their kitchen.

http://www.microtrim.com/cooktop.htm

{{!gwi}}

http://www.dacor.com/Our-Products/Accessories/Finishing-Touches/Range-and-Cooktop-Trim-Kits.aspx

Instructions for the GE install again not sure which
kind you have but this will help you understand
an option
http://products.geappliances.com/ProdContent/Dispatcher?REQUEST=ITEMID&itemid=31-10615_adapter+ring+kit

http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=48536-46-AO918&lpage=none

http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=18243-46-K71FILLB&lpage=none

Don't give up Joann23456, this will be solved
and you will be in your dream kitchen soon.

Another kitchen friend who does understand,
Boxerpups

Dremel with a cut off blade would do as well as the router.

The countertop guy should have not installed the counter once the problem was discovered.

There is another forum member who had a similar problem and used a small trim of granite to solve the problem. I think his was that the cutout was too big too. He was able to keep teh cooktop. You may have to replace the cooktop but I hope not. Have the cabinet guy give it a good study and check with other cabinet/furniture makers to see what they suggest.
I hope the gentleman with the too-big-cutout sees the post.

Thanks so much, all of you. You know, my carpenter said several times, "I'm sure there's a solution to this. I just don't know what it is. Why don't you call a cabinet shop - they must have seen this before." I think I couldn't hear it because I was too upset.

The cabinet company won't work - it's Ikea. (That's another reason why I've been upset about this. I see money flying out the window, and my budget is very tight already.) But there is a custom cabinet shop nearby that does gorgeous work. (I would have gone with them had I been able to afford it.) Maybe someone there will be willing to take the job.

Bmorepanic, I agree with you - they shouldn't have installed the counter. Unfortunately, the installers relied on their templater's measurements, and had the counter installed before they discovered the problem. It was my own fault that I ordered a cooktop that's too large for the cabinet, but if the cooktop cutout had been made correctly, I would have discovered the issue during dry-fitting, when there was time for my carpenter to fix it.

Boxerpups, I discovered that Microtrim site, but it specifically says that the trim is just aesthetic - it supplies no support. Footballmom, I had the same idea. If I can't find a finish carpenter who will try to remove the excess cabinet, I will ask the granite people if they'll glue some strips on to make the opening smaller.

I'm feeling so much better after reading the posts by people who think it can be done. (And after sleeping, of course!) I just wish I didn't have to go to work, so I could start calling around right now!

the granite strips might just work....provided the cabinet below is close enough to have wooden supports screwed to it. The back of my cut out for the slide in range is a separate piece of granite, and it is siliconed on each side, then siliconed to a wooden support.....What colour is your granite? Will it be easy to match up with smaller strips?

Look at installation instructions or call cooktop manufacturer. How is the cooktop supposed to be supported? Only by the countertop material on all 4 sides? How much is to be left all around (covered by flanges) for support? If your cutout is 1/16" too wide, that's only 1/32" each side and if front and back are right, seems to me it should be fine. Or if you have 1/32" gap showing on each side and cooktop is supported in another manner, you should still be able to provide the support and just caulk the 1/32" on each side with matching (cooktop or granite color) caulk.

The person I remember with the granite peices also had an island hood that was custom as it had to bee vented off-center. Perhaps someone remembers the kitchen? It had the most beautiful blue-green granite.... I would also post under a more specific subject line. You may get more insight if people see what the posting is actually about.

Joann,

I warmly encourage the idea of calling around to local woodworkers/cabinet shops. In fact, if you are anywhere near Portland ME, I have a trim carpenter friend who is capable of near miracles -- I have the kitchen to prove it! -- send me an email via the forum if that's the case.

Honestly, you should be able to find a skilled carpenter (look for "trim carpenters" who are specially trained for this kind of picky finishing and fitting work) who can come out and solve this for you in a couple of hours or less. It shouldn't cost more than $150/200 at $40-$90/hour, depending on your location.

Chin up! There is ALWAYS a solution. :)

Are you sure you need that extra space in the cabinet? With the math you posted, your IKEA 36" wide cooktop should have 34 1/2" interior space. The cutout might need to be bigger than the interior space of the cabinet. Is it possible that the cooktop will fit inside the cabinet anyway? Have you tried to fit it?

I would suggest you head over to IKEAFans.com and post this question in the modifications forum. There are very experienced people there who have likely encountered this situation before and would know specifically what to do about it with IKEA cabinets.

Here is a link that might be useful: IKEAFans

Joann,

Unless I'm misunderstanding completely, the fact that the granite opening is 1/16" larger than spec, is completely a non-issue. My induction cooktop called for a 35 7/8 maximum width opening in the granite, but I ended up with one that was closer to 36" than to 35 7/8" it wasn't a problem at all.

I also needed to remove a portion of the tops of the cabinet sides for the cooktop to fit in the cabinet. I realized this before the counters were templated (One benefit of doing it DIY is there is usually enough time to realize you've done something wrong, before you've too many more steps so that it'd too difficult to rectify.) however carving that portion out of an already installed cabinet would really not be a difficult task. Especially given that once the cooktop is installed you will never see the sides of the cabinet. So a highly skilled trim carpenter is not really necessary, a highly trained beaver could probably accomplish the job :-)

It will be easiest, and quite acceptable to remove the entire thickness of both sides for the width of the opening for a height of 3", and while many of the suggestions made above sound like they would work, I'd probably get out my rotozip type tool with a spiral wood cutting bit. Although the bulk of the horizontal cut may be able to be done with a circular saw.

So as others have said, in terms of kitchen remodel crises this is probably a 3 or 4 on a 10 point scale.

If you can post a picture others here may have even better solutions.

After thinking about this I would chose a simpler method which would be chisel it buy hand. First cut a horizontal line 3" plus down by 1/4+ deep with a skill saw (it's called a kerf cut). Get a NEW 2" wide chisel(home depot has inexpensive ones). Chisel straight down vertically past the granite to the kerf line. You can make additional kerf cuts closer to the top if you can get the saw in there. If someone can't do this they shouldn't call themselves a carpenter. The router method I explain earlier is a cleaner look but not needed here. When done, paint the exposed area to seal it.

If you need to make cabinet modifications, you could always call Ikea. Their installation services are contracted out to local contractors who really know their stuff (at least mine does). He's practically a professional Ikea hacker, coming up with all sorts of creative solutions to various problems.

Maybe if you call Ikea they can put you in touch with your own Ikea hacker who can solve your problem in a jiffy :)

Trixieinthegarden - yes, we need the space, we tried the cooktop. Too bad the specs weren't wrong!

The granite place called this morning, and they're sending over someone to try to fix the problem this afternoon. Please keep your fingers crossed! (Although I'm feeling much better reading everyone's ideas for possible solutions. And Circuspeanut, I'm just north of Boston. I suppose "near" is a relative term ...)