Kitchen Splashback Decision Checklist

Watch where water actually reaches on the wall around the sink over a spell of ordinary washing up, and mark the highest point.

The real splash zone around a sink is usually higher and wider than people assume, especially with a tall tap.

Note where splashes land around the hob, including on the wall to either side rather than only directly behind it.

The wall beside a hob is frequently left unprotected because nobody watched where the fat actually goes.

Record any part of the wall that gets repeatedly wiped, since that is where a finish wears first and most visibly.

Wear from wiping is gradual and predictable, and it is worth knowing which stretch of wall will take it.

Note whether a tap sits close to a wall and throws water at it, and how far up that reaches when the flow is strong.

Taps close to walls produce a fine spray that finds every joint, which is a strong argument for fewer joints there.

Consider whether a boiling water or filtered tap is planned, and ask what that means for the wall and the space behind it.

Taps that need equipment beneath or behind them change what the splashback has to accommodate.

What any tap requires behind and beneath it should be confirmed with the manufacturer and the installing plumber.

Note whether the wall behind the worktop is currently marked, stained or damaged, and record exactly where.

The existing damage is a map of where the previous arrangement failed, which is useful evidence for the new one.

Decide whether the splashback runs the full height to the wall units or stops at a lower line, and note what that line relates to.

A line that relates to something else in the room reads as deliberate; a line that relates to nothing reads as a mistake.

Note where wall units stop and start, since a splashback that ends in the open is far more noticeable than one that meets a cupboard.

The end of a run is where splashback decisions become visible, and it is rarely considered until it is being fitted.

Consider whether a low upstand alone would leave the wall above it exposed to the splashing you actually observed.

An upstand suits some walls and simply moves the problem upwards on others, depending on what happens in front of it.

Note what happens where the splashback meets a window reveal, and whether it stops short of it or wraps into it.

The junction at a window is the detail most often left undecided until somebody is standing there with a cut piece.

Consider whether the splashback continues behind a tall unit or an appliance where it would never actually be seen.

Continuing behind fixed items adds material and sometimes avoids awkward stopping points, which is worth asking about.

Record whether the height is being chosen for appearance or for protection, since the two rarely arrive at the same line.

Being explicit about which is driving the decision makes the conversation with a designer much shorter.

Ask the appliance manufacturer and the installer what the wall behind and around the hob has to be able to take.

This question determines whether a material is even a candidate, so it belongs before samples are gathered.

Requirements for materials behind a heat source come from the appliance manufacturer and installer and must be confirmed with them.

Note whether the hob sits against a wall or in an island, since that changes what a splashback is doing there at all.

A hob in an island may need no splashback, or may need something quite different, such as a raised upstand.

Consider whether the material you like is intended for use behind a heat source, and ask the supplier that question directly.

Many attractive materials are perfectly good along a worktop and not intended for the area behind a hob.

Whether a material is suitable behind a hob must be confirmed with the material supplier rather than assumed.

Note how the splashback would meet the extraction unit above the hob, and whether an awkward gap is left between them.

The gap between a splashback and an extractor collects grease and is very difficult to clean once it exists.

Consider whether a different material behind the hob from the rest of the run would read as deliberate or as accidental.

Changing material at the hob is a common solution, and it works most convincingly when the change lines up with something.

Ask what happens where the splashback meets the hob itself, and who is responsible for finishing that junction.

This junction sits between two trades and is the sort of detail that gets left to whoever arrives last.

The junction between a splashback and an appliance is for the installer to advise on and should be agreed with them.

Ask where the joints in the splashback would fall, and whether any of them sit directly behind the sink or the hob.

A joint in the wettest or hottest place is the one most likely to cause trouble, and its position can often be moved.

Note whether the material comes in a size that covers your run without a joint, and ask before assuming that it does.

Assuming a seamless run and discovering otherwise at template stage forces a hurried decision about joint position.

Consider how the splashback meets the worktop, who seals that junction, and with what.

This line is wiped more than any other in the kitchen, and its detail decides how it will look after a long spell of that.

Note any internal or external corner the splashback has to turn, since corners are where most splashback problems begin.

Corners are rarely square, and how the material deals with that is a question worth asking before ordering.

Consider whether the wall behind is flat enough for the material you have chosen, and ask what happens if it is not.

Rigid materials show every deviation in a wall, and the remedy usually has to be agreed before templating.

Whether a wall is suitable to receive a particular material is for the installer to assess before anything is ordered.

Ask what would be involved in replacing a damaged section later, and whether it could be done without disturbing the worktop.

Repairability varies enormously between materials and is almost never discussed at the point of choosing.

Mark on a sketch every socket, switch and control that falls within the splashback area, including any you plan to add.

A cut-out missed at template stage is a serious problem, because the panel is usually made before anybody notices.

Ask whether cut-outs can be made in the material you have chosen and who makes them, on site or in a workshop.

Materials that must be cut in a workshop have to be fully resolved before manufacture, which changes the order of decisions.

Cut-outs in some materials must be made by the fabricator rather than on site, which the supplier should confirm.

Note anything else that would be fixed through the splashback, such as a rail, a shelf, a bracket or a tap.

Fixings through a splashback are easy to forget and often impossible to add afterwards without damage.

Consider whether outlets could sit somewhere that avoids cutting the splashback at all, and ask what the options are.

Moving an outlet is usually easier than cutting a panel, and the conversation is worth having before positions are fixed.

Where electrical points may be positioned in a kitchen is for a qualified electrician to advise on.

Note where the extraction unit, any control panel or a tap fixing passes through the splashback area.

These pass through the same wall as the splashback and are frequently drawn on a different sheet by a different person.

Consider whether any cut-out falls close to an edge or a joint, and ask the fabricator whether that presents a difficulty.

Cut-outs near edges are where rigid materials are most vulnerable, both in making and in use.

Look at the sample against the actual wall in the room itself, at the times of day the kitchen is genuinely used.

Showroom lighting flatters everything, and a splashback is looked at in daylight and under task lighting instead.

Note whether the material is reflective, and consider what it would be reflecting back into the room from that position.

A reflective splashback shows the whole room behind you, including whatever is on the worktop opposite.

Consider how the splashback colour behaves against the worktop and the cabinet fronts rather than judging it on its own.

Colours that work separately can sit badly together, and the splashback is the smallest of the three surfaces.

Note whether the material varies from piece to piece, and ask whether what is delivered would match the sample you were shown.

Natural and patterned materials vary, and expectations are better set before anything arrives.

Any variation between a sample and delivered material should be discussed with the supplier before an order is placed.

Ask for a large sample rather than a small one, since colour reads differently across a long run than it does in the hand.

Small samples consistently mislead on both colour and pattern scale, particularly for anything with movement in it.

Note whether the splashback is meant to disappear quietly or to be the thing you notice, and decide which before choosing.

This single decision resolves most disagreements about splashback material far faster than comparing samples does.

Ask how the material is cleaned day to day, and whether anything ordinary in a kitchen cupboard would damage it.

Cleaning requirements are the part of a material specification most often skipped and most often regretted.

Cleaning requirements come from the material supplier and manufacturer and should be confirmed with them.

Note whether the surface shows water marks, fingerprints or a grease film, and ask to see one that has been in use.

A used example tells you far more than a new sample about what you will actually be looking at.

Consider any grout or jointing the material needs and how it is likely to behave behind a hob over a long period.

Jointing behind a hob discolours before anything else does, and its colour choice matters more than people expect.

Note whether the splashback needs any periodic treatment, and be clear about who would be doing it.

A maintenance requirement that nobody has agreed to carry out is effectively a maintenance requirement that will not happen.

Whether a surface needs sealing or treatment must be confirmed with the supplier, along with exactly what that involves.

Consider what happens at the line where the splashback meets the worktop when that junction is wiped repeatedly.

This is the first place a splashback shows its age, and the detail chosen decides how gracefully it does so.

Note whether the finish can be touched up if it is chipped or scratched, or whether the whole piece is affected.

Knowing this before choosing lets you weigh appearance against the reality of a kitchen that gets knocked.

Ask at what point the splashback is measured or templated, and what has to be in place in the room before that can happen.

Templating too early produces a piece that does not fit; too late holds up everything that follows.

Ask who templates, who makes and who fits the splashback, and whether those are the same party.

When three parties are involved, responsibility for a poor fit is exactly where disputes arise.

Note the order in which the worktop, splashback and appliances are fitted, and who is coordinating that sequence.

Sequence decides which trade has to work around which, and it is agreed far too late on many kitchens.

Ask what happens if the wall or the worktop turns out to differ from what was assumed at template stage.

Knowing the answer in advance turns a problem into a process rather than an argument.

Record the material, finish and edge details you have agreed, so that they can be checked against what actually arrives.

Details agreed in conversation and never written down are the ones that arrive differently.

Ask whether any spare material is kept and whether a piece can be left with you for future repairs.

A spare piece is worth very little at the time and a great deal when something is damaged later.