An 8 foot bar gives you 96 inches of underbar run, which is enough for one complete bartender station: a hand sink, an ice bin, a three compartment sink and some drainboard. It is not enough for two full stations, so the layout comes down to choosing which pieces earn their inches.
Next to the bar sink, a stainless steel bar drainboard gives glasses a place to drain.
For holding ice at the bar, see this drop-in stainless ice bin with sliding lid.
Start with what has to be there
Most health departments expect a hand sink at the bar and a way to wash, rinse and sanitize glassware, which means a three compartment sink unless a glasswasher is approved in its place. Some also want a dump sink. Find out which sinks are required before you plan anything else, because they take most of the run. Your local health department has the final say on which sinks a bar needs.
Equipment lengths to work with
These lengths are taken from our own product pages. The length is the measurement that runs along the bar.
- Three compartment under bar sink, bowls only: the product page lists the sink at 38 inches wide and 18-3/4 inches deep
- Three compartment under bar sink with a right drainboard: 48 inches long, 19 inches deep
- Stainless steel ice chest with sliding lid: 24 inches long or 36 inches long, 19 inches deep
- Freestanding ice bin with cold plate: 24 inches long, 18.5 inches deep
- Underbar drainboards: 18 or 22 inches deep, in lengths from 12 to 48 inches
- One compartment under bar sink, often used as a dump sink: 12 inches long, 19 inches front to back
- Underbar hand sinks: listed in sizes from 18 x 12 to 22 x 18. On our underbar drainboards the first number is the depth and the second is the length. Confirm the same on the hand sink page before you order.
- Underbar trash module: 24 inches
Layout 1: the full station
Hand sink 12, ice bin 24, three compartment sink with drainboard 48, extra drainboard 12. That adds up to 96 inches. The ice bin sits where the bartender stands, the hand sink is at one end and the washing is at the other. This is the most complete setup that fits, and it leaves no slack, so it only works if your clear run really is 96 inches.
Layout 2: room to breathe
Hand sink 12, ice bin 24, three compartment sink without drainboard 38, drainboard 12. That adds up to 86 inches and leaves 10 inches for a trash can, a gap at a post, or walls that are not square. For most 8 foot bars this is the safer plan.
Layout 3: more ice
Hand sink 12, ice chest 36, three compartment sink with drainboard 48. That adds up to 96 inches. Choose this for a high-volume cocktail or frozen drink bar where running out of ice is the bigger risk. As with the first layout, there is no slack.
Things the arithmetic does not show
- Measure the clear length between finished walls or bar ends, not the length of the bar top. The top usually overhangs.
- Leave some slack. Pieces that add up to exactly 96 inches need a run that is truly 96 inches, with no pipe, post or trim in the way.
- Match depths. A drainboard should be the same depth as the sink beside it so the tops line up.
- Check where the floor drain and water lines are before you fix the order of the pieces.
- Speed rails mount on the front of the ice bin or sink and take no length from the run. Ours come in lengths from 22 to 72 inches.
- Refrigeration goes on the back bar. Back bar coolers come in 48, 60 and 72 inch widths, so one fits behind an 8 foot bar with room left for a display or a register.
What to buy
Pick the sinks first from our bar sinks and hand sinks, then size the underbar ice bin to your drink volume and fill the remaining inches with an underbar drainboard. Add bar refrigeration on the back bar. The full range is under bar equipment. Express KitchQuip stainless steel underbar equipment is NSF certified, and freight to the 48 contiguous states is included in the price.