You can do it either way as there’s no set standard.

There are benefits to running a separate toe kick underneath the bar back. This allows you to add a toe skin and a strip of shoe molding, which helps the molding conform better to uneven flooring. It also tends to be more durable since the toe skin can absorb wear and tear from sweeping or, heaven forbid, mopping close to the island. Over a 20–30 year lifespan, this setup may result in less visible damage compared to a full-height bar back that touches the floor directly.

On the other hand, I believe a full-height bar back gives the island a more custom, polished look, especially when finished with base molding around the back. You can run it full height, add base molding, and then a strip of shoe molding to give it some added dimension. That’s how I did mine. The corners are a bit of a toe-stubbing hazard, but I prefer the look overall and I’m happy with the appearance.

• This reply was modified 11 months, 3 weeks ago by ChadBarker.

I’m trying to decide whether my bar back for island should go all the way to the floor or not. I have shaker style cabinet doors from citycabinets. In this picture it looks like when it goes all the way to the floor the rail of the panel is taller at the bottom than on the side and the top. Is that true? Would the panel rail thickness match the thickness of the Shaker cabinets?

It looks like we would need to add the panelized version with squared outside edges and larger top and bottom rails to the Island Bar Back Multi Panel product on the website. That option is not currently available.

If you want to use that style for the back panel, the best approach is to order multiple finished end panels and place them side by side across the back of the island. Combined, they create the full width needed for the bar back multi panel. This is essentially the same method we use for the existing version that has the standard 2 5/8 inch stiles and rails.

This would be the exact same product that we sell over on barkercabinets.com.
https://www.barkercabinets.com/Island-Bar-Back-MULTIPLE-SEPERATE-APPLIED-DOORS-p/barbackpanelizedsquared.htm

Personally, I usually advise not taking the bark back panels all the way to the floor. It looks better in my opinion, but the portion that touches the floor takes a lot of abuse from cleaning and foot traffic, which can lead to noticeable damage over time.

If you do order the bar back panels full height, I strongly recommend adding base molding to the face and sides of the island. The molding protects the panels and can be replaced easily if it gets damaged, whereas the bar back panels are trapped under the countertop and are much harder to repair or replace.

Alternatively, you can order the standard panelized bar back and hold it up about 4 inches from the floor, then run a toe skin or base molding underneath. This visually ties the panels into the floor while keeping them out of the high-wear zone.