I don't know anything about marble, but my granite is to be installed tomorrow at which time they'll put in the holes for the faucet. I made sure I had the faucet when they came to measure thinking they'd need to know where to put the holes ahead of time, but apparently they'll do it when they get here.

It will be fine. They do install marble all the time, especially if you're dealing with 4cm thick slabs, and they aren't in the business of upsetting customers who pay thousands of dollars for counter tops. (we have marble too)

Second, it's not likely you have drawer glides inside your sink cabinet for dust to get on.

Third, your drawer glides are going to get dusty no matter what you do. I don't know what your cabinet maker is concerned about specifically, aside from getting a call from you about a sticky drawer slide and not wanting to be bothered by the work of other trades. Drawer glides are not so sensitive that they're going to get gummed up by some dust. But you don't want them caked in it, that's for sure.

So let them come drill the holes. Just pay close attention, and take pics while they do it. You don't want to find a crack or chip in 2 weeks that you hadn't noticed which they then will blame on your cabinet maker ;)

I don't know, Breezy-I was warned about this (or alerted to this) here on GW. We have soapstone, only 2 holes needed to be drilled, but I was paranoid and taped things (drawers) up to protect them (the glides). MY GC hadn't heard about this as a problem, but he was all for trying to protect things so he helped. He was also here for the install, because he hadn't done (or seen) a soapstone counter installed before so he wanted to watch. For what it's worth, our cabinet guy also thought it was a good idea. Everything went fine, and I'm sure yours will too.

Congrats! The Big Day is almost here. Make sure to post photos while they are installing. So exciting for all of us.

My granite was drilled on site. They also brought a shop vac with them and cleaned up really well when done.

so excited for you!!!!

Bee

I was worried about that also when my granite was installed, so I put painters tape over the drawers to seal them. I don't know if it was really needed, but I felt better.

Two installers worked together on our granite counters. One did the drilling for faucets and polishing of seams while the other held a vacuum hose up close. We have lots of construction dust in our major remodel, but the granite install was about as clean as it gets.

Why don't they drill the holes back at their shop? That's what was done with my granite. They did need to trim an edge after they got here - they were going to take it back to their shop but my GC set up a place for them in my garage so no work was actually done in the kitchen.

Wow.....you're getting closer and closer!

Our granite was templated onsite by laser. He took my sinks with him to the shop and also took the specs for the faucets, air switch and soap dispenser. Nothing was drilled at my house. I think I would have been freaking out too if they needed to drill anything here. By the time the granite was installed I was sick to death of any and all dust and dirt!

I remember reading here so many moons ago about the potential issues of drilling over the cab, too. That's why I asked about it now. This fabricator is the best in my area with 20 years experience so they aren't fly-by-night. Matter of fact, one of the reasons I chose them was their CNC machine. Turns out my marble is too thick for the machine. :(

I don't have glides under my sink, but nearby. They said they use a vacuum and have been doing this as standard practice. It still makes me very nervous.

DH is out of town (yes, again) so I'd have to drag the youngens over tonight if I'm going to tape the glides. I won't have time in the morning.

Thanks for the excitement! I AM getting close!! Hard to believe. ;)

how exciting!!!! i can't wait to see pics.

they drilled mine once installed and it went fine. what i would caution you on is to be sure you are super clear on the placement and the exact spot they need to drill and don't count on the worker to figure this out for you. i had an anxiety attack given it was counter #2 and had my GC worker come over and approve location before they drilled. They also ran into a bit of the "rebar" they had embedded in stone for support when they drilled which made it harder so the holes were not exactly precise but my faucet setup covered it fine. this may not be an issue for you as your stone is 2x thickness of mine.

congrats - post pics!

Breezy, they did ours on site and it didn't cause any trouble. We didn't do anything to protect the drawer glides in adjacent cabinets and there are no drawer glides in our sink cabinets. As sierrahh described, one person drilled while the other held a vacuum hose which gets most of the dust (especially since there is no hole in the bottom until the very end of the drilling. Sometimes they also spritz the surface with water to cool the drill bit, which also keeps the dust down.

Our quartzite is only 2 cm, but super hard - harder than granite so they kept having to stop to let the bit cool. They should have a much easier time with your marble.

Weissman, they did ours on site with us and the plumber present. That way you can be sure that you all agree exactly where the holes should go and avoid any issues of correct placement.

How exciting!!

We had to have our faucet and soap dispenser when they came to template and had to decide at template where we wanted the holes for faucet and dispenser. They did the holes at their shop. They installed granite y-day and came back today to grind the granite on one side next to the range that wasn't perfectly straight. It made a bit of a mess, but they shop vac'd and it wasn't too bad. We don't have anything in any of our cabs - we are planning this weekend to wipe down all cabs inside and out before unloading our kitchen boxes back into the new cabs.

Our holes were drilled most of the way through at the granite yard and then bonked out when everything was set in place. They made an impressive thump when they landed in the sink base (suitably covered with stray cardboard).

I'm expecting pictures tomorrow!

Babushka--They actually asked me to be there to place the holes. And since I'm the GC, that makes me doubly responsible. Thanks for the heads up!

Cloud swift--thanks for relating your experience. I didn't realize your quartzite was 2cm. Makes sense.

Heidi-- I had my faucet and dispenser on hand also expecting them to take them or look at them or something. Nothing. Good luck unpacking. I want to see pics of YOUR kitchen! :)

Suzanne--now that you mention the word bonking, I think I remember hearing something at templating about "punching" holes out. Maybe they aren't completely drilled while on the sink cab. The description of the process I got today didn't mention punching. I just heard drilling, dust, vacuum, in-place, drilling, drilling.... ;)

I will definitely post pics! At last it's my turn to post pretty counters!

Breezy, you may have read some of the same horror stories I did about excessive dust, but those were fabricators who cut the entire countertop onsite.

Ours did drill the faucet hole onsite with the vacuum and it was fine. Far less dust than my sheetrock guy--that's my husband;)

Enjoy your new countertops!

Breezy, I don't have any advice for you since I'm still pre-reno, but I can't wait to see your countertops! Just wanted to say I hope your install goes smoothly tomorrow!

Breezy- I might be too late to help, but they should use a shop vac as they drill. One guy held the drill and the other helper vacuumed as he was drilling. We didn't have any issues. HTH! Yay! So excited for you!

Colorfast--yes, I think we read the same stories. Thanks for helping to allay my fears.

Flwrs--thanks!!

Briana--you're not too late. I'm west coast. Install begins in about 4.5 hours! I will be watching them like a hawk when they drill. My shop vac is handy, too. Thanks!

Breezy - we have a 36" CC rangetop in a 7' island. They installed the granite about 3 weeks ago. The installer did not want to risk transporting the stone with that much material removed, so he cut the rangetop cutout on site. Beside their shop vac, I was there with mine as well. One thing is the stone dust is much heavier than wallboard or wood dust so it does not float as far. As a precaution I removed my drawers and glides from my rangetop cabinet, but did not remove from cabinets on either side. We had no issues with either of the side cabinets. I know I was extremely worried but everything went OK.

They drilled on site, on cabinet - there was SO little dust, they used a vac and I just used a damp papertowel to wipe out the cabinet after they were done. (Vac catches most of it!) ps.. I wish I had measured to have faucet, soap pump and filtered water holes evenly spaced. It is the ONLY thing that bugs me of the entire remodel. Soap is just a bit to close to the faucet. (only I noticed it, DH almost smacked me when I pointed it out LOL ) SO Excited for you!!!

Tim - maybe you should get a bit more experience under your belt before dispensing advice.

Sheetrock dust and stone dust from cowboy stone installers can get into undermount drawer slides and wreck havoc. It'll get into the runners between the ball bearings and or nylon guides/wheels and it trapped there by the lubrication. It becomes like sandpaper and makes a huge racket. It will lead to premature failure even if you can stand the noise and feel.

Cutting on site has it's advantages and so does doing it in the shop. If done onsite, it has to be done with a waterdam which has it's own drawbacks -or- with a powerful vacuum to eliminate or cut dust to an acceptable level. In the shop is the best way in my opinion though. Many stone guys find there is too much risk doing it at the shop which is why it's done on site.

Antss,

I agree with you 100%.

Breezy, had my marble installed yesterday and faucet holes were placed and drilled on site, on cabinet similar to experiences stated here. I was so anxious about the install that I couldn't take a decent picture during the process. I think I may actually have running water in my kitchen (1st time in over 6 months) within the next week-- Yeah!

Good luck, the marble it will transform your already lovely kitchen.

p.s. I had 5 separate holes--one at Center, two each 5" off the center (one for the faucet handle, one for the air swich, then two each at 12" off center(one for soap, one for hot water dispenser).

the time to drill a hole is measured in seconds.

This assumes the drill bit is the right one. I think that 99% of men with drills will be proud of their tools and drill as fast as can be done, as long as it's safe. Not "too fast". The drill can turn slow, or slower, or faster. But thinking of a normal hole being drilled in a mere matter of seconds causes a problem. The problem is that this mindset does not slow down the process to include a low-dust result. Getting water to be present = lower dust.

the time to drill a hole is measured in minutes, many minutes) if you go slow enough to ensure that water gets into the groove as it is being drilled.

Dust is minimized when water is present at the point of contact where the drill bit meets the material being ground down by the drill bit. You might have to back out the drill and go back in. Wasted seconds, if you are thinking of doing it relatively fast. A total waste of effort if you think it's dumb to have to repeat the up and down operation again a mere second later, and again, and again.

I guess the only way to get the guy to drill slow is to make him feel pride in reducing dust. This new pride takes time to develop. Lots of talk, beginning early in the day. Like shar-az said in another thread today, sometimes you have to say things more than once.

the time to drill a hole is measured in seconds.

This is nothing, or almost nothing, when you add up all the time it takes to get to the job site, get set up, measure things out right and do everything else right. So, it stands to reason that a worker holding the drill could adopt the attitude that he is going to do 20 or 30 passes up and down to "go get water" and get water into the grooved notched ring as it gets drilled. It is a hassle if you think it's a hassle. It's a pleasure and a source of personal pride if you think of it that way. It is whatever you say it is.

Hth.

breezy - I am having the faucet holes drilled on site too. I was not aware of the drawer slide concerns and I do have drawers in the sink cabinet. I guess I will be taking some precautions.

What kind of precautions are we suggesting - is taping the drawers sufficient?

Can't wait for you to have counters!! I may have some counters in a week too!

I second (third, fourth???) the recommendation to cover (tape/plastic) your drawer glides (esp if they are Blumotion).

When they did my Quartzite I had the exact experience as Cloud Swift (ours was done on site, and they used water/vacuum). I planned on taping up our Blumotion based on what I read here, but the granite guy said no need and we never had any issue. We did however remove our top drawers ahead of time. Then while they were installing, I put one back in on a finished section and it HIT the counter and didn't close. Easy fix with some shims though. BUT thank goodness I put back every single top drawer before he left. I can't imagine if he left and I tried to put them in after everything was dried. We had 3 holes drilled and it took maybe 5 minutes?

"we've never had a problem before, ma'am."

"we've never done it like that before, sir"

How many times have we all heard that ????

Don't answer that,

all of that is fine and dandy EXCEPT if your job IS the first time they encounter a problem or their poor/incorrect practice(s) produces a problem.

DO you really want to underwrite their learning experience ?

Answer that one!

Marble install was Friday. They did indeed drill the faucet holes in the house after they put the sink in. One installer drilled while the other sprayed water and held a shop vac to capture dust. My cab maker was there at the time, and wasn't overly concerned. There are no drawer glides under the sink.

The finished product.

I appreciate all the advice.

Breezy- It looks so good. you are going to LOVE your sink. Mine is the same except I went with an offset drain. I was shocked when the granite guy commented on the size of the sink because it was so big. I LOVE IT! It is so awesome. I have yet to find something that doesn't fit with ease and I love the depth which easily hides everything in the sink until I cleanup.

^^^

obviously those aren't "cowboys"

no boots, chaps or hats !

Funny, I was in this situation just yesterday. Worried about the dust but there was hardly any that I saw. Your kitchen looks great btw!