Almost everyone who makes concrete countertops for a living got started as a do-it-yourselfer. I did. I simply wanted to make a countertop for my own kitchen, and I never dreamed I would do this as a business or teach others.
I now have training programs, both free and paid, designed specifically for do-it-yourselfers. They use the same fundamental, sound concreting practices as pro programs, just simplified to minimize the specialized equipment and materials required.
Here’s a success story from one of my DIY students, Willis in Denver, that really “cracked me up” (despite the fact that he couldn’t crack his countertops):
Willis’ first concrete countertop
My counter tops turned out pretty great! See photo. Just what I imagined. They are rustic, but that was what we were looking for.
I was flabbergasted at how hard it was to make them. No wonder they cost as much as granite. The materials were relatively cheap like $250+/- here in Denver for everything, but the sheer amount of labor involved was totally unexpected.
Also, they are really f-ing heavy. Holy cow I couldn’t believe how much a slab could weigh. The corner slab weighs almost 400lbs. Yikes.
Thanks for the info it was invaluable and made my first attempt a success….errrr…..I actually made the first ‘L’ mold upside down so when I pulled the mold after three days the counter top was backwards.
This sent me through the roof. I tried to smash the slab with a sledge hammer in frustration, but only hurt my hands as the sledge bounced right off and reverberated up the handle, shaking my bones.
This infuriated me so much I tipped the slab up on end and pushed it out of my garage and succeeded in badly damaging my driveway.
Clearly the formula you provide for making very solid counter tops is correct. I literally could not demo the slab. I couldn’t even crack it ‘throwing’ it around. I was then suddenly very pleased that the next ones would be super strong and do what I needed them to do.
I think they look pretty cool.
– Willis
This made me laugh hysterically, but it also made me very happy that the DIY concrete countertop training did exactly what it was supposed to do, and Willis now has a very strong, durable countertop that he can be proud of.
I hope your first concrete countertop is as successful. Do you have any funny concrete countertop stories to share?
