Guide · East Sussex · BN3
Hove Microcement kitchen splashbacks — cost, spec and build programme
Most of our microcement kitchen splashbacks enquiries in Hove come through interior designers or homeowners already halfway into a phased refurbishment. The brief is nearly always continuity — no tile joints, no threshold trims, one poured surface reading across the space. The Hove catchment we work across covers BN3 — reached via the A259 Kingsway, 3 min from our workshop along the a259 seafront. Nearby coverage includes Brighton (2 mi), Portslade (2 mi), Shoreham-by-Sea (5 mi). Site conditions matter here: salt-laden onshore wind — sealer specification matters. That shapes the primer and sealer specification below, not just the visible finish.
Common install-time pitfalls
- ✕Applying over MDF or standard plasterboard — moisture cycling will lift the finish.
- ✕Under-priming plaster — the base coat delaminates.
- ✕Domestic-grade sealer — tomato and turmeric will stain within months.
- ✕Trowel marks over-worked into the finish rather than left as texture.
What we're actually installing
Substrate and preparation
A splashback sits on a moisture-tolerant substrate — usually 12 mm cement board or existing sound plaster with a bonding primer. The build-up is thinner than a wet-room wall (2 mm total) but still needs mechanical bond and a hospitality-grade sealer to survive daily cooking splatter.
Detailing notes for your designer
A splashback that runs continuously from worktop to underside of the wall units reads as one surface. A colour drawn from the worktop veining (rather than a contrasting slab) knits the kitchen together. Consider a matt sealer — kitchen splashbacks look best matt.
Working in Hove
How the install actually runs
- Substrate prepDay 1
Cement board fixed and taped, or plaster made good and primed.
- Base coatDay 2
Fibreglass mesh embedded in reinforced base coat, ready for colour.
- Colour coatsDay 3
Two thin passes hand-trowelled to the required colour depth.
- SealerDay 4
Two coats polyurethane kitchen-grade sealer, satin or matt.
Common questions from Hove clients
Other guides for Hove
Microcement kitchen splashbacks — other Sussex towns
Related products & services
The short version
For kitchen splashbacks in Hove: expect a £900–£2,400 per installation budget, a build programme of about 3–5 working days on site, and a survey-to-install window of 4–6 weeks. The finish is one continuous mineral surface — no joints, no trims, no visible transitions.