You can have painted b/s. Just be sure the paint you use is easily cleaned so you can remove grease, etc without peeling off the paint/drywall if you have to scrub it.

We lived for over a year with just paint. Took me a long time to design and decide on my BS.

I don't particularly care for backsplashes, especially tile. I like easily washed paint, and that's what I have. Too me, it's visual clutter. And I know that gwebbers love tile backsplashes. It's not all that easy to remove, when you grow tired of it. I spent many hours removing dil's 70's mosaic. But I like modern. just another voice.

I don't particularly care for backsplashes, especially tile. I like easily washed paint, and that's what I have. Too me, it's visual clutter. And I know that gwebbers love tile backsplashes. It's not all that easy to remove, when you grow tired of it. I spent many hours removing dil's 70's mosaic. But I like modern. just another voice.

Totally. Caulk the crack and be happy.

But...since this is new construction it may not be an issue, but sometimes there can be a gap. One can pay extra to have the counter scribed to a crooked wall or just use extra caulk. Probably not going to be a problem for you though...

What about behind the gas rangetop? We're getting an Electrolux icon designer series cooktop, and I'm pretty sure I need a fireproof surface behind it. What do I do for that?

Mom23Es- What does your kitchen look like? What kind of cabinets, countertop, style, etc? It would be easier (for me) to answer the question, if I had more details :)

My neighbor has a nice glass mosaic tile just behind her cooktop, and paint everywhere else. It looks really nice. Would it work to put in a temporary tile area just there, something inexpensive that you like? I don't know how easy it is to remove later. You may also be able to get a sheet of stainless for a backsplash.

Lavendar_lass- This would only be a temporary situation. I plan on using plain white subway tile with a herringbone accent behind the cooktop. I'm just furious about how much they're charging us for the tile an installation. I don't even have a final quote back that includes the accent, but I know they were changing over $800 extra to install the tile on a running board pattern. I could handle a little bit of an upcharge, but I just can't believe my "simple" white subway backsplash is going to cost so much. We just want plain plain plain subway tile. I know it shouldn't be expensive because I've seen it in several spec homes around us - ones being sold at a much lower price point. What a racket! I'd rather take my business elsewhere.

We didn't have a backsplash for 37 years. Our laminate counter had a 4"(?) backer, but the rest was painted including behind the stove. Splash on the wall was never really an issue, even with the several years I made baby food in a food mill, and all the years I canned tomatoes and jams; not on the wall or that 4" dealie.

Are you at all handy? Putting in your own backsplash isn't all that difficult. The herringbone part might be a bit tricky, but still. Give it a thought. This was one of our reno "togetherness activities" and it worked out quite well. I've actually become fond of the tile saw we rented from HD.

A lot depends on how many square feet you have. Rule of thumb in my area (mid-west) is $15 a sf for ceramic tile, $20 a sf for natural stone... and any decorative accent requiring a pattern or clipped corners (i.e. more cutting, measuring, etc) may be extra. We had a customer who wanted a 3 x 6 marble in a similar pattern as you, with an inset frame above the stove... and had 45 sf of space to cover. 45 x 20 = 900. (not even counting the herringbone which the installer was going to "throw in".) Customer was shocked. But it is what it is.

St_judys_comet- Thank you! that's really helpful to read those stats. We are in the Midwest as well, and my best estimate is that we also have about 45 square feet of backsplash. Our builder has included a base tile and installation, but I have no idea what that sum of money actually is. To install the cheapest subway tile with a running board pattern is what is costing us hundreds more.

We have an island cooktop so cooking splatter isn't an issue but we didn't do a backsplash around the perimeter. I used BM aura matte paint (I think that's what it is called) and it cleans off very well. I've found no issues but I remember at our first house years ago we had a corian 4" lip behind the cooktop and I had to scrub it often. I'm sure we didn't have premium paint so that might have been the problem. It stained bad. Search GW bc I know there have been lots of threads on this and there are several GW kitchens with no BS behind the range or cooktop.

Plenty of us around here live for a long time (1, 2, and even 3 years) before choosing and installing tile. I'm working on seven months now. The drywall behind my rangetop has been splattered with grease and doesn't look the best, but I haven't tried to clean it knowing tile will eventually cover it. It's only primered though. No paint.

You'll be fine! Good luck with the rest of your build!