Kitchen Counter

For many years Lori and I have needed to have the section of our kitchen counter around the sink rebuilt due to water damage.

Several years ago I had prevented the water damage from getting worse by applying liquid rubber behind and to the left of the sink.

I had also used black gaffer's tape to hold in place the tiles in front of the sink.

This is the story of how we came to have our kitchen counter rebuilt.

Paul and company NYCXYZ

In December of 2025 I had Paul (not his real name) from company NYCXYZ (not its real name) install new grout and caulk in our shower after I had removed the old grout and caulk. Paul did an excellent job in the shower so after he finished I asked him to look at our kitchen counter that needed to be rebuilt. I asked him how long the project would take if I removed the old tile and plywood and had all the materials ready to use. Paul said it would take him two half days, the first half day to install the new plywood and tile and and the second half day to apply the grout and seal it.

The first week of January 2026 I called NYCXYZ and scheduled Paul to build a new kitchen counter on February 18th and 19th (Wednesday and Thursday). I chose those days because Lori planned to be away February 14th through the 22nd. I would do the demolition the weekend of the 14th and have Monday and Tuesday to communicate with Paul and NYCXYZ about any possible additional materials I might need to buy. One week before Paul was to arrive I emailed NYCXYZ with several questions for Paul. Giordana (not her real name) from NYCXYZ replied the next day that she would show Paul the questions when she saw him. The following day, Friday the 13th, Giordana emailed me the following message:

I know we have scheduled this job but we are going to politely decline this work at this time.

I didn't think there was anything polite about canceling, and without explanation, a job that had been scheduled six weeks prior. But a few days later I received this explanation:

After carefully discussing your situation internally, the company has decided that it would not be appropriate for us to move forward with this project for the following reasons:

1 - We typically handle projects with a clearly defined and complete scope of work under our team’s full responsibility, meaning we handle the project from start to finish to ensure quality and consistency.

2 - We understand that you prefer to work with Paul, however, Paul is currently assigned to ongoing projects for our maintenance clients, which limits his availability.

Although those two reasons might seem plausible, I don't think they are the actual reasons for the canceling. With regard to reason 1, in December NYCXYZ sent Paul to do work for me after I had done the prep work, and in January they had agreed to send him after I would do the demolition. With regard to reason 2, Paul had been scheduled for the two half days six weeks prior.

I'll tell you what I think were the actual reasons for canceling at the very end of this post.

Finding a new contractor

I wondered where I could find someone else to do the work, and thought that Adam of KDM Hardware a few doors from where I live might be able to make a referral. Adam told me to call Edmond, who had done work in both his home and his synagogue.

I called Edmond and told him I'd like to have the work start the following Wednesday. He sent his cousin Zef to take a look at my counter. Zef said the work would take three full days, not two half days as had been promised by Paul of NYCXYZ. Zef also said he liked having the customer on site during the work. We got on quite well. But Zef said he would need to find someone to work with him, and the short notice made that difficult.

My meeting with Zef happened on Friday the 13th. I had planned to do the demolition over the weekend, but I wouldn't start the demolition until I knew that the counter would soon be rebuilt.

On Monday the 16th, still not knowing whether the work would be done that week, I ordered two 4'x8' pressure-treated sheets of 3/4" plywood to be delivered the next day. When they arrived JJ (my upstairs neighbor) and I carried one of the sheets of plywood (weighing 100 pounds) up two flights of stairs because the plywood would not fit in the building's elevator. It took us about an hour to negotiate the narrow staircase, taking many rests. We decided to leave the second sheet of plywood in the lobby to be dealt with later.

It would not be until Tuesday evening the 17th that Zef told me his cousin Alfons would help him, and that they could do the work Friday, Saturday, and Sunday (the 20th through the 22nd). I had still been thinking (obviously not clearly) that the work might start Wednesday, which would have given me no time for demolition. With Friday as the start date I would now have Wednesday and Thursday for that task.

Wednesday - Demolition

I started the demolition about 8:00 Wednesday morning. While the tiles that had suffered water damage came off easily, many of those that had not suffered water damage were stubborn. The work was so much more difficult than I had expected. The picture below shows my progress as of 1:00.

By the end of the day I had removed all the tile except for that to the far right of the sink, and some of the plywood around the sink.

Thursday - More demolition

Thursday morning I started to remove the plywood, which was two 3/4" layers. I soon discovered that the lower layer had been both glued and screwed to the cabinet, and the upper layer was glued and screwed to the first layer. Do you see the problem? In order to get to the screws holding the lower layer to the cabinet I had to not just unscrew but also pry away the upper layer from the lower layer. After an hour of work I had made some progress on the plywood at the far left end of the counter.

After two more hours I had made some progress removing plywood to the right of the sink.

But by the end of the day much plywood remained...

...along with 80 tiles.

Friday - Final demolition, lower layer of plywood

Friday morning I continued the demolition in an attempt to complete as much as I could before Zef and Alfons arrived. By 10:00 I had removed half of the remaining tiles.

At 10:30 there was still much demolition to be done.

When Zef and Alfons arrived about 10:30, they told me they needed to go to their car to get some tools and would be back in ten minutes. I was looking forward to seeing them carry up the second sheet of plywood (which Edmond had told me would take about five minutes) after they returned with their tools. After no more than five minutes they knocked on my stairwell door, carrying the plywood. I wish I could have watched them going up the stairs.

About 11:00 I managed to remove all the plywood to the left of the sink by separating it from the cabinet.

Zef and Alfons began by removing the plywood and tiles that remained.

About 1:00 the demolition was complete. The wood remaining in the picture below is part of the cabinet.

An hour later Zef and Alfons had cut and installed the lower layer of plywood.

Saturday - Upper layer of plywood, RedGard, tiles

By 12:40 Zef and Alfons had cut and installed the upper layer of plywood.

By 1:00 they had painted the plywood with RedGard, which creates a waterproof membrane.

About 3:00 they started laying the tile.

By 6:30 all the tile was in place.

I started this post by writing that for many years Lori and I have needed to have the section of our kitchen counter around the sink rebuilt. I had bought the tile eight years ago, but never knew whom I might hire to do the work.

Eight years ago I had also made a plan for how the tiles would be placed. I must have made that plan before I ordered the tile, so that I would know how much of each type to order.

Sunday - Grout

Alfons returned by himself on Sunday, maybe about 10:00, to apply the grout. He spread the grout all over the surface and then used a tool to force it into the gaps between the tiles. He completed this task by11:30, at which time the counter appeared as in the picture below.

Note that on each tile there remained some grout. Alfons expected to be able to easily wipe away all that excess grout with a damp cloth, but instead he had to scrub each tile. He had used the premixed grout I had bought and which Zef had approved when he first came to scope out the job. Alfons said he had previously always used powdered grout which he mixed with water, and that he had never had the problem of grout adhering to the surface of the tiles so strongly. He decided the grout would need to be redone, and sent me to Home Depot to buy a bag of powder. Fortunately it was available in the same color as the mixed grout, but only in a 25-pound bag. As I got close to Home Depot, about a third of a mile from my home, I realized I could have brought a rolling cart to bring the bag home. Instead I alternated between carrying the bag one shoulder and the other.

By 5:15 Alfons had completed the second application of grout, the installation of the sink which included sealing it with silicone, and the connection of the drain and faucets to the plumbing.

The instructions for the grout sealer I would use said to let the grout cure for 72 hours before applying the sealer, so I covered the tile with towels to protect it until I would seal the grout the following Wednesday.

The picture below includes the counter to the right of the stove. None of that tile has had any water damage, and so did not need to be replaced.

Third application of grout to complete the project

The day before I planned to do the sealing I noticed tiny holes in the grout throughout the counter.

Alfons guessed that the holes were a result of applying the powdered grout over the premixed. He returned the next day for a third application of grout.

I'm grateful to Zef and Alfons for doing such a great job building a new kitchen counter for Lori and me. I'm also grateful to Edmond for getting Zef and Alfons to do this work on such short notice, and to Adam Greebler of KDM Hardware for referring me to Edmond.

Our kitchen is back in operation!

While Zef and Alfons were building the counter, I started to work on repairs of our kitchen cabinets, dishwasher, refrigerator bins, and the storage under our kitchen sink and other sinks. Watch for forthcoming blog posts about those repairs, and more!

* * *

Cancelation by NYCXYZ

I wrote above that one week before Paul was to arrive I emailed several questions to NYCXYZ for Paul to answer, including how many hours did he think he would need each of the two half days. If it would be less than four, I would look for other work for him to do. I think that either Paul or someone higher up in the organization saw those questions and realized that the estimate of two half days was much too low. Remember that when Zef first met with me he said the work would take three full days, not two half days. I think NYCXYZ did not want to tell me that Paul had given me a ridiculously low estimate, and instead gave me two reasons that would sound plausible.

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