Granite Benchtops

[rod1949]

To those of you who have Granite benchtops. How have they performed in terms of marks, scratches, joint movement etc etc??

Thanks Rod W

[HappyHammer]

Rod,

I have black granite benchtops and splashbacks in my kitchen which were installed almost tow years ago and they still look as good as they did when they were put in. We have a large island with the cooktop within it and an overlap that acts as a breakfast bar. The kids eat all their meals at the island and as they are 3.5 and 2 years old they make quite a mess which is easily wiped away for the shine to return. Given a wipe with a sponge and then a soft cloth you can see yourself in them. We have put hot and cold pots on them although we keep this to a minimum just in case and they are double thickness and bull nosed around the edges and none of the joins have moved. Apart from where the splashback meets the top the only other join we have is in one corner where the slab of granite to get the L-shape out of one piece wouldn't have been possible. They joined at a right angle rather than a 45 mitre and it hasn't moved either. Very happy.

We were also really lucky with the granite we ended up with we ordered a grade 2 granite, I think there are 3 grades, at the last minute they couldn't get it so upgraded us to Grade 1 for no extra cost.

HH.

[arms]

granite as a top is satisfactory but requires maintenance to maintain the sheen,this requires a yearly coating of silicone based polish to seal the grains,it will stain,it will crack,it will look crappy ,but that only will happen if you dont look after it as you would with a timber top this requires looking after and care,i know that i will get responses saying that they havent maintained theirs and it still looks ok but thats not the point of your question ,i say to customers that if you want granite you will never go back to laminate

kind regards
tom armstrong
www.kitcheninabox.com.au (http://www.kitcheninabox.com.au)

[bitingmidge]

Wot Tom sez!!

If I had a dollar for all the complaints about granite benchtops from people who believe because it is stone it is indestructable.....

It can be abused, and will develop a lovely 100-year old abused stone look with time..the problem is that process takes 100 years give or take, and in the meantime you have a top that looks like a shiny granite bench with stains and scratches on it!

Ours is one of the light colours, and shows watermarks if a wet glass or other object is left on it. Yep! Most granites are quite porous (hence the need for sealing). Of course if you leave some oil overnight......

Citrus and fruit acids also tend to stain if they are not wiped in a reasonable time (thirty minutes or so) and we have a small pink etching from a strawberry sliver which was left stuck to the underside of a plate overnight.

Soaps and shampoos will also get into the darker colours.

Although I have concentrated on the negatives, I do agree with Tom, once you have had a stone surface you probably won't go back to laminate.

We have granite only because we couldn't afford Corian!! (Now there's a durable surface!!)

Cheers,

P

[Peter36]

Rod

We have had black granite for 3 1/2 years now and have no stains scratches and SWMBO just gives it a wipe with metho now and then to bring back the shine . The longest section of our kitchen is L shape , approx 4.5M x1.7M with just one join under the sink in the long section and we have grnite splashback on the long section with a raised bar on top of the splashback . If the granite is properly installed and supported where the cutouts are then the possibility of cracking is remote . Wipe up any spills of oil and softdrink and beetroot juice straight away and you wo'nt have any problems .
Peter

[PuppyPaw]

Could any one of you guys tell me what the cost is for 1m2 section?

[Grunt]

If I was doing a kitchen I wouldn't use anything but granite. Looks and feels great. A little care and it'll last longer then you will.

Grunt

[Cassandra]

We just put granite in our new kitchen (photos are way back in the threads). It looks great and feels wonderful. No problems. I was wondering where do we get that silicon based seal for it? Does anyone know?
We have 8 people living here, all adults and although it is still new, it looks as good as I expected. I will never again have laminate.
Cassandra :)

[Fat Pat]

We looked at Granite when building the house, and found a product that is better. It's called Silestone.

It's man-made using quartz plus other goodies and some sort of baked-resin. Dunno what exactly is in the mix, but it is stronger and more durable than Granite (Fat_Pat can sit on a 500 mm unsupported piece without it cracking! - and within its specs), is almost impossible to stain (more dense than Granite)
and can stand to have hot pots/plates dropped on it! Other than that, it's installed in the same way as Granite (Bullnoses/Splashbacks etc etc)

It comes in a range of colours - much more extensive than Granite - AND ....... is about 20% cheaper than Granite. Have a look at it here... http://www.granitewarehouse.com.au/ (I have no association with this mob)

It probably won't appeal to Granite Snobs, but the WOW factor is pretty sensational when friends come to visit, and it looks just as fresh after 5 years of heavy kitchen usage.

[arms]

the silicone sealer can be brought from bunnins i beleive but it is far more practible and cheaper to use car polish with silicone in it ,works the same ,looks the same

kind regards
tom armstrong
www.kitcheninabox.com.au (http://www.kitcheninabox.com.au)

[HappyHammer]

We looked at Granite when building the house, and found a product that is better. It's called Silestone.

It's man-made using quartz plus other goodies and some sort of baked-resin. Dunno what exactly is in the mix, but it is stronger and more durable than Granite (Fat_Pat can sit on a 500 mm unsupported piece without it cracking! - and within its specs), is almost impossible to stain (more dense than Granite)
and can stand to have hot pots/plates dropped on it! Other than that, it's installed in the same way as Granite (Bullnoses/Splashbacks etc etc)

It comes in a range of colours - much more extensive than Granite - AND ....... is about 20% cheaper than Granite. Have a look at it here... http://www.granitewarehouse.com.au/ (I have no association with this mob)

It probably won't appeal to Granite Snobs, but the WOW factor is pretty sensational when friends come to visit, and it looks just as fresh after 5 years of heavy kitchen usage.
But can you cool your hands and face on it on a hot day, my granite always seems to be cool.:cool:

Another benefit is I don't have to explain what it is every time someone new comes around. :D

HH.

[Iain]

Could any one of you guys tell me what the cost is for 1m2 section?
Grays auctions often have benchtops for sale at about $100 for 1mx600, most tops I have seen are 2 to 3 m long.

[Fat Pat]

But can you cool your hands and face on it on a hot day, my granite always seems to be cool.:cool:


Another benefit is I don't have to explain what it is every time someone new comes around. :D

HH.
HammerMan, for all intents and purposes it IS Granite. Its cold to touch, if you look for that sort of thing. It is non-permeable (is that a word??) resistant to heat (though I use an off-cut for hot dishes - never can be too sure!) and much stronger that Granite.

As for explaining what it is, I just say "It's like a Man-Made Granite", but truthfully, people just say "Isn't that great!" If you want Granite, go for it, but this stuff is pretty spiffy.

[HappyHammer]

Fair Do's :D

[TSHSR]

Hi guys I have a customer who had a back granite kitchen done in 1985, it is a well used family kitchen that gets no special treatment, has never been "resealed".

It has that aged look that just looks great, the marks and scratches just ad to the character of the country style kitchen in a 105 year old house.
Their only comment is do not let Fat plumbers pull themselves up from under the sink holding the thin piece infront of the sink as it cracks. ( The plumber said what should they expect as it has no flex like a normal benchtop - he has never been asked back)

I ahve seen a number of lighter colours that seem to have a degree of uneveness in the colour or staining, this looks a little strange.

Tony

[namtrak]

For what it's worth, a mate of mine down the road was looking to put a granite benchtop in his homebuilt kitchen but he baulked at the $3,000 price tag. So, being handy like he is, he built up 80mm of formwork around the top of kitchen benches and duly filled it with concete!!! He then massaged it for 9 hours!!! with a steel float. The finish was baby butt smooth. He then sealed it with a black acrylic finish of some sort (not sure which) and he now has a stunning looking kitchen top which he reckons cost him around $80 and about 10 hours work!!

[HappyHammer]

I saw a guy on TV who makes kitchen benchtops using concrete with inlaid metal. When they're polished they look really good.

HH.