Splashback
A splashback is the wipeable wall surface behind a kitchen bench or cooktop. Tile vs glass, the right substrate, and the gas cooktop clearance rule.
Ask Chalkline about this →A splashback is the finished, wipeable surface on the wall behind a kitchen bench, sink, or cooktop (and behind laundry tubs and vanities), there to protect the wall from water, grease, and heat and to give a cleanable face. Common materials are ceramic or porcelain tiles, toughened glass, and stone matched to the benchtop.
Where it sits in the build
A splashback is a second-fix finish, installed after the cabinets and benchtop are in:
- Tiled splashbacks are set by a tiler onto a sound substrate, usually cement sheet or a tile backer board rather than bare plasterboard in a splash zone (see wet-area substrates).
- Glass and stone splashbacks are templated off the finished benchtop, fabricated to size, then fixed with neutral-cure silicone. Because they are measured to the installed bench, they go in late.
Things that catch people out
- Gas cooktops. A splashback behind a gas cooktop has to meet the clearance and material rules in AS/NZS 5601.1 and the cooktop maker’s instructions, so the material and distance must be checked against the standard before glass is ordered.
- Measure after the bench. Glass and stone are cut to the real benchtop, so they cannot be ordered off the plan; building them in early causes rework.
- Seal the joint. The bench-to-splashback joint is siliconed, not grouted, so it can move without cracking.
Also known as: kitchen splashback, splash back, glass splashback.
Category: Finishes / kitchen
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Last updated: 2026-05-26. Verified: 2026-05-26. Quarterly review for currency.