Kitchen Counter Tops
 

I'm not posting this in the contractor's services section because I am not asking for contractor suggestions (yet).

I am going to start the process of looking at different options for new kitchen counter tops. I would like to know what people have and whether they like the product. I know there is granite, solid surfacing, quartz and concrete (laminate is not an option for me).

What do you like and dislike about what you have?

I appreciate you taking the time to provide feedback.

We have granite, and love it. Had man made granite back up north, and it was very nice, but the real granite has its own unique personality. We were fortunate enough to be able to build a custom house and to actually pick out the exact piece of granite (actually 2 pieces) that would be used for the kitchen. It has neat gold colored flecks in it, we love the effect.

Granite. Liked that I was able to go to the yard and pick out a specific piece so that it really is mine. Able to have different pieces for different bathrooms so that each room was unique.

We have corian and I love it. I hope women do not get upset with me but a friend of mine had kidney cancer and her Dr told her no granite I have no idea what is in it but some may want to research that prior to purchasing it. Again I have no idea and was surprised to hear this

We had quartz in out last house for 10 years and loved it. No sealing, no staining, an very durable. Having it installed in our TV house which will be done in August.

"Granite might be the next abestos" Interesting....this was the only article I could find on it???
Granite Causing Cancer | Exposure to Radon Causes Lung Cancer

We have granite and I love the look of it. Its very durable, I can place hot pots on it without a problem. The only thing I find different than the laminate we had before, is that when I wipe off the counter with a wet rag, it leaves noticeable streaks unless I dry it with a towel, I guess because it is so shiny. Our contractor also said not to stand on it, because it might crack. I used to stand on my previous counters occasionally when replacing a ceiling light bulb. Now I have to use the ladder. That said, I love the look of it and would do it again. We also looked at quartz, but it wasn't as shiny, and I happened to prefer shininess and the randomness of the pattern in granite. Quartz is all the same. But you can always add a fancy backsplash to balance it out.

Love my quartz countertop. There is zero maintenance. You can do whatever you like with it other than use lye on it. I stand on it, cut on it, put hot pots on it.

Nothing beats the look of granite.

I agree that nothing beats the "look" of granite, but it is not maiantenance free.

We have had granite in our last three houses, including right now. We were borderline this time but I can tell you the next kitchen will be quartz. The other posts above are right on the money. No, you can't get the veining and patterns you can get in granite, but you just can't kill quartz.

Granite does need care and down the road will need repolishing. It also naturally emits radon which up until now, has not been a big concern, however, everyone should be aware of this.

Silestone, Zodiak, etc., all have made great improvements in the quartz patterns available. So next time -- it's quartz for us!

Question, I have heard that granite ,cement and marble countertops need , at some point, to be resurfaced or coated. True? Also that some of theses products are actually unsafe ( for various reasons) to be used as food placement surfaces, such as in restaurants .
Any comments?
We are looking for a seamless look. I would like to be able to put hot pans on it and also not worry to much about scratching or staining ( think spaghetti sauce or berries) which of the surfaces would best meet my expectations ? Suggestions?

How do you keep the corian looking good? Mine is dull and you can see rings on it from glasses, etc. Can it be polished? Tried a couple products, nothing works.

Granite, love the look and the fact I got to pick out exactly what I wanted. Easy care.

You are totally right. We were equally divided on quartz and granite. The granite won out because of personal preference on looks, but either one would be a great choice. I haven't found the maintenance to be a big deal. You are supposed to seal it once a year, which is really easy. Just wipe the stuff on, let it sit for awhile, when wipe it off. Our contractor also recommended a granite polish to be used occasionally which is kind of like pledge dust wax. You spray it on, let it sit for a few minutes then buff off with a soft dry cloth. I've used it once in six months, just to give it a little extra shine. We do put hot pots on it with no problem.

There is radon, by the way, in all natural products. You are hundreds of times more likely to be at risk for radon emanating from the soil beneath your home. For a good read on radon in granite, try this: Granite and Radon and this: snopes.com: Granite Countertops and Radon

One recommendation I happened upon when researching granite was to be careful that your granite does not come from a third world country or Russia.

As in most things, there are different qualities of granite. the top two quality stones will not water stain. There is a 15-year sealer that can be applied ($300 for our Begonia countertops). We've never had a staining or any other problem with our Level III granite from Ultimate Granite.

Up north, we had Level I granite. It was sealed normally, and any water left standing on it would cause a dark stain that lasted till it dried out. Not permanent.

You are supposed to be able to put a hot pan on it, but I don't. One granite company up north said theoretically you can do that, but on a rare occasion you could hit some kind of seam that could cause the granite to crack.

Our corian countertops in this new house were a scratched-up mess within a year. Yes you can sand them down, but the scratches tend to occur in the same places where you use the counter a lot. So after a while, you'll have an indentation from continued sanding. I found I couldn't even put a UPS box down on it without protecting the counter. It was a nuisance.

Look at soapstone as well. More expensive than granite, but totally impervious. Some beautiful blacks with green or white veining. Martha Stewart has them. The slabs are not as wide as granite slabs, so you might end up with a seam in a designer kitchen.

Interesting - we had a lot of granite in our last kitchen. I put hot pans and skillets all over the place. Never had a problem. No one ever told me hot stuff was s problem. You learn something every day.

It's not supposed to be a problem. But after the one granite installer told me that (maybe he pulled it out of his hat!), I was afraid to tempt fate. I was used to not putting hot pots on countertops anyway, so I just continued not doing it.

Granite. Lovely. Good for resale too.

Thanks, all! I do appreciate the feedback. I never thought of soapstone. I think I'll add that to my list when I go look.

Kitchen Counter Tops
 

When you ask about soapstone ask about the weight difference between granite and soapstone. We have a buffet that suffered a broke granite slab during a move. We had it replaced with a soapstone slab of the same size By itself, it weighs more than 350 pounds - much more than the original granite. Soapstone is gorgeous and I would love to have it in my kitchen. Before doing so though I would want to make sure that the contractor assured me that soapstone counter tops can be supported.

And if you get granite be sure not to spill vinegar on it. Any acid will immediately discolor it.

I've had Silestone and loved the look and durability

qUARTZ
 

Had Quartz up north, granite here. I tired to get the Villages to put in Quartz, but they would not. I like Quartz MUCH better than granite.....no scratching, no sealing, etc. Quartz is just a little more subdued, but I like the less shiny look (it is still shiny). If there is a 'next' time for me, it will be Quartz.

Huh, DB... I've never had a lick of problem with either of our granites, including spilling vinegar. And does nail polish remover count? 'Cause I've done that too! Guess I got lucky.

There was enough support from our kitchen cabinets up north to hold the extra weight of the soapstone countertops (second level, tile floor), but they were solid oak cabinets. The problem was the slabs were smaller, and we would have had seams. We went with granite for no seams.

Silestone looked a bit too manufactured for our taste. But my former neighbor was able to put quartz (or is it quartzite) in her Premier, and it really looks good.

We have black granite and love the granite but hate that dust and smears show so much. We had Granite Transformations (composite) in Ohio and loved it. Brown, tans, and off white. Dust and smears did not show.

We have Corian at a rental unit we own. The cleaning people use Pledge on it and it always looks great.

I sanded Corian with very fine steel wool and it looks great.

Vinegar will discolor granite, even if the granite is sealed. I learned that the hard way. I don't know about nail polish remover. I usually just leave nail polish on until it comes off itself.
::jester::

You are so funny! Did the vinegar sit on the granite for some time before you discovered it?

I agree with BigGuy that the color of the granite makes a big difference. The black is beautiful, but it does show fingerprints and smears. Ours here is in browns, tans, golds and rust, and the pattern is not allover the same. It's in swirls. Smears don't show. My husband says part of it looks like the picture he saw on the monitor when he woke up in the middle of a colonoscopy. Thanks a lot, R.

Our Corian countertops in this house were a very pretty beige and cream pattern. We both like to cook and use the kitchen so much. Unfortunately, they had to go. You couldn't put a plate down without having something under it. But maybe Corian comes in different qualities.

Still like the old stand by Formica. Scratch it or what ever just replace it easy to do and cost effective. Stone is over rated.

They have some very pretty Formica out now. It's worth looking into.

But I disagree that stone is overrated. Our stone is durable and will never need to be replaced. It doesn't scratch or dent. It has a 15-year "cast-iron" seal on it. In 13 years it will get another 15-year seal, for a cost of $300. It looks gorgeous; really makes our kitchen pop.

I have had Granite, Corian, and High Res Laminate. I did not like the Granite - I agree it is NOT maintenance free - I found it scratched pretty easily. It is VERY expensive also. And what do you do when it goes out of style (yes, it will, everything does - can you say Avacado green, Harvest Yellow, shag carpet, Gold fixtures, Wall paper). Corian is very durable, cheaper than granite. You can also sand it if it scratches. However, I have to say I really like the new High Res laminate. It looks great and is cheap to buy and install. When styles change, you can change it and not feel bad that you spent 10 grand when you put it in.
Just my thoughts - I think you will be happy with anything you put in. I have heard good things about quartz also.

Ed

We had Corian in Orlando and we have granite here. I love both, but the good thing about the Corian was the seamless Corian sink. Not so crazy about the drop-in stainless steel sink here.

Cquick, our installer put an under-mount composite granite sink in with our granite. Or you can get any kind of unde-rmount sink. Was your granite already there when you bought your house? I can't imagine going to the expense of granite and using a drop-in sink.

I have never, ever, ever scratched any of our granite. I even (rarely) use my chefs knives on it for a quick cut of something. I can slide boxes, and plates with rough under surfaces, and anything else across it; it doesn't scratch. That wasn't the case with our Corian. Just our experience. Maybe we were too rough on it.

Granite and Corian have continued to be "in style" at least since the '80s. Doubt granite will ever go out of style. Maybe not Corian either. Both are completely different looks. I like them both, but the ease of granite maintenance suits us best.

We have the undercount granite composite sink as well. I personally don't like the stainless sinks. I haven't noticed any scratches either.

Best granite cleaner: this formula was given to us by man who installed our granite:
1) get a 32 oz spray bottle
2)20 oz distilled water
3) 1 TSP DAWN
4) 10 oz denatured alcohol

shake before use