New Countertops, opinions.....

[clh2]

We put quartz (specifically Cambria) in the kitchen in our previous house. Just remodeled the master bath in our current house, also with Cambria counters. Looking at updating our current kitchen, and are excited about getting rid of 21 year old laminate counters in favor of Cambria! Can’t wait!

 

[tvguy]

Our last house had Corian and I absolutely hated it. You could scratch it with anything, even plastic. It was just awful. Older daughter once accidentally touched a hot pot onto the island and it left a burn mark.

Sorry to hear that. You did know those sand right out? That is the beauty of Corian, damage is easily fixed.
https://www.amazon.com/Micro-Mesh-C...ocphy=9032424&hvtargid=pla-569742025600&psc=1

 

[BayouQueen]

Over the years, in various places, I've had tile, Corian, granite, marble, and Caesarstone (which is a manufactured Quartz.) Hands down my favorite is the Caesarstone. It is very carefree and always looks good. DH was really opposed to the idea of putting it in. He wanted granite. Now he is really happy with our choice.

 

[tzolkin]

Sorry to hear that. You did know those sand right out? That is the beauty of Corian, damage is easily fixed.

Yes, I did know they could be sanded. But I felt that they got scratched constantly— literally every plate, bottle, and even some plastic containers could scratch the counter. And the color we had (not my choice) also accentuated the scratched surface.

Having to sand and refinish my countertops weekly is not something that is appealing to me. I would rather have another countertop material that does not scratch to begin with to avoid that maintenance.

 

[tvguy]

Yes, I did know they could be sanded. But I felt that they got scratched constantly— literally every plate, bottle, and even some plastic containers could scratch the counter. And the color we had (not my choice) also accentuated the scratched surface.

Having to sand and refinish my countertops weekly is not something that is appealing to me. I would rather have another countertop material that does not scratch to begin with to avoid that maintenance.

The Corian dealer steered my wife away from darker colors for that reason. Haven't had an issue yet in 8 years.

EDIT: And you really shouldn't be putting hot pots on most counter top materials, and cutting boards are your friend. The custom cabinets we put in have 4 cutting boards built in.

 

[goooof1]

Very happy with our quartz countertops !

 

[AppleDumpling]

I like the look and functionality of granite in a kitchen. Ours has a bit of movement, and with the size and layout of the room, the fabricator was able to use three slabs with no seams. It’s a personal preference. We have older quartz (Silestone) in a bathroom that also looks good and was more costly than granite.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

We love the granite we put in about ten or eleven years ago. We haven’t had even one problem with it.

Quartzite is great. Not to be confused with quartz, which is a manufactured material. Quartzite is natural stone, like granite. And you can get a quartzite that's white with gray veins, like marble, only it has a look all its own. Gorgeous, to me. I don't like the look of most granite countertops.

And just a personal opinion here, do not get dominantly brown granite counters. I mean, brown. Not a good look for a kitchen or anywhere.

I'd advise against marble. Yes, it looks beautiful . . . in the beginning . . . but it's no fun to take care of, and unless it's triple or quadrupled sealed, it's going to need a heckuva lot of taking care of.

Interesting, to the bolded. I suppose it can be dark for some kitchens. It probably depends a lot on the colors of the cabinets and the lighting. We have white cabinets, black hardware, [Mickey Mouse] yellow walls, undercounter lighting, natural light, recessed lighting and hanging lights in the kitchen area, so our granite has a beautiful glow, especially at night. (I thank the electrician for suggesting undercounter lights.) When the installers came to put our granite in, which was the last step in our kitchen renovation, they really loved it with the white cabinets. It suits our style very well and goes perfectly with the rest of our house, which has a lot of color and warmth. So never say never! Some of today’s kitchens are a little too sterile for my liking, but to each his own!

OP my best suggestion: Go with what you really like!! (And what works for your budget!)

 

[TCRAIG]

Silistone countertop in our kitchen - love them!!

 

[QueenIsabella]

We have quartz in our kitchen. Love it! Doesn't need to be sealed, stands up to messes, kids can't wreck it. That last is important because two of mine, in particular, love to cook and bake--I need something "fuss free".

Our contractor liked our countertops so much, he tried to get the exact same for his kitchen remodel, but they were out of that specific color.

 

[TwoMisfits]

Yes, I did know they could be sanded. But I felt that they got scratched constantly— literally every plate, bottle, and even some plastic containers could scratch the counter. And the color we had (not my choice) also accentuated the scratched surface.

Having to sand and refinish my countertops weekly is not something that is appealing to me. I would rather have another countertop material that does not scratch to begin with to avoid that maintenance.

AMENx1000. My suggestion would be to find the material on the market that needs practically zero upkeep and is virtually indestructible and go from there.

That's how I renovated my bathroom and the tack I'm taking as we work to fix/update the rest of the house over the next decade. If it's gonna be easy to break or needs time for upkeep, it's not coming in this house. I don't have the time or energy for it!

 

[_19disnA]

What you use as a countertop is mostly a matter of budget and personal preference. We had Corian several years ago before granite was popular at a previous home and really liked the look/finish. Never used it as a cutting board, so we had no issues with scratches some others are describing. I would never put hot items directly on ANY type of countertop regardless of what it is made from. Always use a cooling rack/trivet to keep hot items from directly contacting the surface.

We currently have granite and really like how it looks. All that talk about needing to constantly seal the surface seems to come from companies trying to sell competing products. Clearly, you should wipe up spills of red wine or grade juice when they happen, but that is true of any surface material. There is a spray-on/wipe off product we occasionally use to seal the surface but it is really no different then using furniture polish on a wood table. Just not the big deal you sometimes read about related to sealing granite and certainly not a reason to avoid choosing granite.

Marble tends to be very expensive and wouldn't recommend it in a kitchen where various types of acids in common food items can damage the surface. Things like vinegar, tomato juice, lemon juice or soft drinks are examples of things that can etch the marble if not immediately wiped up.

Make sure to actually pick out the slabs you will be using for your countertops since anything that is a natural product will have color variations you may/may not like in your kitchen. Choose a color that you like and matches the rest of you kitchen. I wouldn't decide what to get based on any of those home design shows who always seem to pick the most expensive or trendiest option.

 

[tvguy]

. All that talk about needing to constantly seal the surface seems to come from companies trying to sell competing products. Clearly, you should wipe up spills of red wine or grade juice when they happen, but that is true of any surface material. There is a spray-on/wipe off product we occasionally use to seal the surface but it is really no different then using furniture polish on a wood table. Just not the big deal you sometimes read about related to sealing granite and certainly not a reason to avoid choosing granite.

The Granite suppliers were the one's that disclosed the need to seal the granite in my bids. But even Bob Villa talks about the need to seal Granite. https://www.bobvila.com/articles/how-to-seal-a-granite-countertop/

 

[_19disnA]

Apparently sealing granite is a bigger deal on some types of granite then others. Even the B. Villa article talks about seeing if some water gets absorbed as a first step. My point was that I see no need to avoid using granite simply because some may need to be resealed in the future. Sealing, if required, isn't that big of a deal or that hard to do.

 

[mmouse37]

This is a timely question as we redid two bathrooms recently and I was questioning if we should go with granite or something else. I always liked granite but a few places were encouraging me to look at quartz or marble. Ultimately decided on granite again and I am very happy with our choices.

The kitchen granite is about 15 years old and it is still going strong with no issues. We had laminate before that.



Our upstairs bathroom was a green soapstone (that I hated) which we replaced with granite:



The new upstairs granite:





Our downstairs bathroom was granite and replaced with granite:



And our new downstairs granite:






I love that I can put hot pans on the kitchen granite. I have a small kitchen with not much counterspace and need every surface sometimes to put things that come out of the oven.

On a side note I always wanted a Mickey themed bathroom so am very happy I was able to do that....and I LOVE it!







Good luck on your decision.

 

[shelly3girls]

We have quartz and I wish I had gone with quartzite. Our quartz is almost all white with gray veining. I am constantly scrubbing marks off of it. I have scratches everywhere from the original install that I am still waiting for the installer to return to remove. Even wine glasses leave marks that need to be scrubbed off. It's beautiful but much more maintenance than I expected.

 

[SandyinMonterey]

Quartzite or quartz. I agree with previous poster....stay away from brown and beige.

 

[emilymad]

We went with honed marble. We absolutely love it but you do have to be able to live with the imperfections. We have had it for 3 years and there are way less mishaps then I was expecting. Most things kind of blend in to the marble and you don't really see them. We looked at quartz but couldn't get over the plastic feel. Our marble was half the price of the quartz so we figured worse case we could refinish or replace it if we had to. In my area, granite is very "out" at least at the lower price points so we didn't want to go with something like that for resale values.

 

[tvguy]

Apparently sealing granite is a bigger deal on some types of granite then others. Even the B. Villa article talks about seeing if some water gets absorbed as a first step. My point was that I see no need to avoid using granite simply because some may need to be resealed in the future. Sealing, if required, isn't that big of a deal or that hard to do.

Another consideration for some is, they want to remodel on a regular basis, so if something doesn't work out, you replace it with something else the next time. Google indicates the average person remodels their kitchen every 10-15 years. Our kitchen was built with contractor grade materials, particle board cabinets, vinyl flooring, tile counter tops and was 35 years old when we remodeled. We plan to live out our lives without another remodel. My parents house, other than the flooring in the kitchen, and the dishwasher, was 53 years old with original cabinets, tile counters, oven and stove. But I realize others have the desire and money to remodel more often.

 

[WDWEPCOT]

Cambria - no upkeep - beautiful - holds up great
In case you don’t know about Cambria
Durable: Cambria is stronger than Granite with diamond-like hardness. This means that you never have to worry about chips, breakage or visible wear and tear. Maintenance Free: Cambria is one of the only natural stones that require absolutely no sealing or polishing.