Gluing granite slab to wood

[brycegoeking]

I need to glue a granite slab (17" x 30", 3/4" thick) to the top of a rolling cabinet that we had a cabinet maker build for us.  We bought the slab separately from a local granite/marble company.  The bottom of the slab is un-polished (the side facing the cabinet), and the top of the cabinet is a hardwood veneer plywood with a finish on it (maybe I should sand it to make it stick better?).  My question is, what glue should I use to attach the slab to the cabinet?  Thanks.

[Mark D.]

I would use 100% silicone on it. Thats what the fabricators use to glue a piece of granite to a cabinet. If there is a substrate (a solid deck), zigzag the silicone across it. If there is no substrate and you are gluing it to the ribs of the cabinet which are uppermost and will be touching the underside of the granite then you should run a bead of silicone all the way around. Silicone takes about 72 hours to cure. Once cured it is an exceptionally strong adhesive.

Do NOT use liquid nails. The bond will be no better than silicone and you run the risk of it bleeding through the stone and staining the granite. It can make the stone look like it was stained with oil.

Just to be clear, I am talking about 100% silicone in a regular sized caulk tube. We sell it for less than $3 a tube, but that is in bulk for American made stuff. You may pay a little more, but you won't finish 1 tube on that size counter.

One more caveat, you said it was a rolling cabinet. I would make sure to weigh the bottom down so it is not top heavy. You are talking about a top that weighs 40-60lbs depending on the thickness. If it overturns, the granite could break..if it lands on someone...well...just make sure it isn't top heavy, OK?

Mark

[brycegoeking]

Mark,

Thanks very much for your extremely specific response.  I will use the silicone for sure.  And definitely weight the bottom of the cart (though it seems very stable already -- you'd have to give it a major shove to tip it at this point).  Thanks again.