Farm Sink Base Cabinet Modification in Chicago

A farm sink (apron-front sink) doesn’t fit a regular sink base: the cabinet front has to be cut to your sink. We do that cut in our shop before delivery, so your installer doesn’t have to modify anything on site.

Price: $180 per farm sink base, done in our shop before delivery.

Which sink base size to choose

We recommend a sink base the same width as the farm sink: a 30″ base for a 30″ sink, 33″ for 33″, 36″ for 36″. Some sink manufacturers’ install guides also recommend the cabinet size for their sink.

We can fit a 33″ sink in a 36″ cabinet, or a 30″ sink in a 33″ cabinet. But with full-overlay doors you see the cabinet frame on both sides of the sink, and it doesn’t look as clean.

Stock or custom farm sink base

Some cabinet lines have a stock 36″ farm sink base. When yours doesn’t, we make one from a regular sink base and the doors from an 18″-high wall cabinet in the same style. That means a custom farm sink base needs one extra item on your order: an 18″-high wall cabinet the same width as the sink base. We use its doors on the sink base.

How we do it

1. Install a 4-1/2″ filler in the cabinet face frame.
2. Cut the top of the face frame and the cabinet sides to fit your sink.
3. Hang the 17″-high doors from an 18″ wall cabinet.

How the numbers work: the cabinet front is 30″ high. The doors start about 1/2″ above the bottom of the face frame and are 17″ high, so the door tops are at about 17-1/2″. A farm sink apron is usually 9″ to 10″ high, so the bottom of the sink sits at 20″ (10″ apron) or 21″ (9″ apron). That leaves about 2-1/2″ or 3-1/2″ between the top of the doors and the bottom of the sink.

What we need from you

Send us the link to your sink or its spec sheet before we cut.

We don’t install the sink support (cradle) in the cabinet. It’s better for your installer to build it after the cabinets are installed and leveled, so the sink sits right.

Real Chicago kitchen

Here the customer sent us the link to the farmhouse sink, and we cut the 36″ white-oak farm sink base in our shop to fit it exactly. The installer didn’t modify anything on site. See the whole kitchen on our Projects page, and the Slim Shaker White Oak and Slim Shaker Dove White cabinets.

Questions we get

What size sink base do I need for a farm sink?

The same width as the sink. A smaller sink in a wider cabinet works, but you’ll see the cabinet frame on both sides.

How much does the farm sink base modification cost?

$180 per sink base, done in our shop before delivery. See sink base prices.

Does my installer need to cut anything?

No. The cabinet arrives cut to fit your sink.

Do you install the sink support in the cabinet?

No. It’s better for your installer to build the sink support after the cabinets are installed and leveled, so the sink sits right.

Do I need to order anything extra?

Sometimes. If your cabinet line has no stock farm sink base, we add an 18″-high wall cabinet of the same width and style to your order. Its doors go on the sink base.

See also: cabinet organizers and inserts and buying kitchen cabinets in Chicago.