Exploring the Perfect Splashback Options for Your Kitchen
Splashbacks in the kitchen are more than just an eye-catching design feature; a splashback’s purpose is to protect the walls and panels around your kitchen from food and water splatter. It should also be heat resistant to safeguard behind hobs and benchtop appliances. Your splashback can be plain or a work of art – the choice is yours!
Image of a Lucy G splashback design www.lucygsplashbacks.co.nz
We have a Lucy G splashback in our Kitchens R Us showroom that receives a lot of attention!
While splashbacks provide a service in your kitchen, that doesn’t mean they have to be dull necessities. Nowadays, splashbacks are an important design feature, and the right splashback can enhance your kitchen’s look in a spectacular fashion. There is a range of materials to choose from, and the colour and texture possibilities are discussed here.
A splashback has the purpose of protecting the walls and providing a fire-resistant surface behind hobs and appliances. This limits the range of materials you can choose from.
It is worth noting early on in any kitchen renovation that if you are going to have a gas hob, installing a fire-resistant gib on the wall behind the hob before your new kitchen is installed is a wise move.
Your builder can advise on this, and some splashback materials specify fire-resistant gib lining to meet building regulations.
The most common splashback materials for kitchens in New Zealand are toughened glass, Laminam, stone, stainless steel, and tiles.
Glass Splashbacks
Painted Glass Splashbacks: Colours are an exciting part of designing a glass splashback – the colour options for glass are unlimited!
Whether you are after a subtle blend with your splashback or the introduction of a colour that you want to continue throughout the home, the depth and vitality created by the back-painted glass offer you endless options with a surface that is easy to clean and very durable.
Glass splashbacks are made with toughened glass to withstand heat and create a very strong surface suitable for everyday food splashes. They can withstand heat and are suitable for most cleaning products.
Glass is an easy-to-clean surface and relatively easy to install, and it is probably the most common splashback material in New Zealand currently.
Some of the types of glass splashbacks available are as follows:
Digital Print Glass Splashbacks: Digital images printed onto glass offer you the opportunity to have a stunning piece of artwork in your kitchen or bathroom, with its versatility acting as a splashback as well as the artwork. Printed glass creates a beautiful and inspiring focal point for kitchens, bathrooms, and commercial interiors.
Glass Effects: Effects Glass combines a variety of colours and finishes painted onto a range of textured and obscured glasses for a truly original glass finish. Glass effects textures include wood grain and a stone look, along with uniformed lines and patterns, all offering the benefits of a smooth glass face.
Digital Print Pictures on Glass: For something a little different with amazing colours and depth, high-resolution pictures and photos can be printed directly onto the back of the glass, which, when looking through the front of the glass at the picture, the depth and the colours are portrayed vividly.
Laminam Splashbacks
Laminam is a full-body porcelain tile and is an attractive and versatile product that comes in a variety of finishes, ranging from an industrial stone look to a textured tile finish. Laminam comes in big sheets that enable minimal joins, leaving a sleek finish that is very easy to keep clean. It comes in 6mm and 3mm thicknesses, and the thinner layer requires a fire-resistant gib behind a gas hob to meet regulatory requirements.
Laminam is becoming a very popular alternative to glass, as it has a very natural unique look with a textured surface that reflects the colours and light in your kitchen.
Tile Splashbacks
There was a time when tiles were pretty much the only option available to homeowners when selecting something to create a kitchen splashback.
There are literally thousands of tile design and style combinations to choose from, with popular trends including a herringbone or subway-style layout. Replacing old or outdated tiles is usually a fairly cheap and simple process if you want to change up the look, but keep in mind that grout can be more difficult to clean and can stain over time – especially behind cooktops.
Tiles can give a very traditional look to a kitchen. The latest kitchen trend is to carry the tiles across the complete wall and to the ceiling, giving a spectacular look to your kitchen.
Note that the grout needs to be sealed and regularly cleaned to keep your beautiful tile splashback looking new.
Stone Splashbacks
With the benefits of colour continuity, toughness, and an easy-to-clean, grout-free finish, a stone splashback is an elegant and practical option. Choosing an engineered stone or granite splashback also streamlines the installation process as the benchtop and splashback are fabricated and installed together by your stone supplier, meaning fewer trades to deal with and quicker completion.
A stone splashback is the ultimate luxurious finish for new kitchens, and taking the stone across the wall and to the ceiling in one sheet creates a seamless, spectacular finish to complement the look of your kitchen.
Products available for this purpose are:
Pacific Quartz: Pacific Quartz is an extremely durable and practical man-made stone that can be used anywhere in your home. It is modern, low maintenance, and a good aesthetic choice for any commercial or residential application.
Caesarstone: Combining the beauty and strength of quartz – one of nature’s strongest minerals. It’s beautiful, and resilient, with subtle soft colours for a timeless effect.
Eurostone: Eurostone benchtop surfaces are also made from quartz, one of the earth’s hardest, most resistant, and abundant minerals. Eurostone stone benchtops and splashbacks are one of the hardest surfaces for kitchen application.
Silestone: This is an excellent surface for kitchen benchtops, bathrooms, floors, and wall cladding using the minimum number of joints. It offers beauty and a wide range of colours, extraordinary textures, and outstanding properties.
Granite: Granite is the hardest building stone available, with a particularly dense grain, making it very difficult to stain. It takes a highly polished finish that will endure even in severe environments. It can also be finished in a variety of other ways like honing or leathering. There is a broad spectrum of granite colours ranging from nearly pure white to black. The rich colours of granite make it an ideal choice for benchtops and splashbacks.
Dekton: Dekton is the new ultracompact surface of Cosentino. A material made of porcelain, glass, and quartz. Given the zero-porosity, it has become a versatile and high-resistant option for kitchens and bathroom surfaces.
Choosing your kitchen splashback is as important as any other decision in your kitchen, and the advice of your kitchen designer is invaluable.
