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[2014] upgrade kitchen counter tops

Patri

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Just starting to think about upgrading our counter tops. What do you think of granite, marble or quartz? Would love to hear your opinion on quality, maintenance, cost etc. I have not begun researching.
 

Passepartout

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Funny you should post this now. We have solid surface (think Corian, but ours is Silestone). We are in a very nice freshly redone TS right now. It has granite counters in kitchen and baths and shower enclosure. Not 10 minutes ago I said to my wife, " Boy, I'm glad we didn't go with the granite." It is so hard, cold, needs sealed, breaks ceramics and glasses that get dropped (you may not drop stuff, but I do).

I will take my solid surface with quartz sink, thank you. Oh, there is granite in our bath. It's OK under the glass vessel sink.

Jim
 

WinniWoman

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We are redoing our kitchen right now and I have researched this to death. Bottom line is Silestone (quartz) is best and most durable, but we are going with granite because it is "included" in our kitchen contractor's price and because I like the look of it better than Silestone, which looks almost too perfect to me...The Silesstone I think was just a couple of dollars more per ft.

I actually picked out the granite from the samples my contractor had and I am not bothering taking a whole day off from work (and using my precious vacation time I need for my timeshares!!) to drive 2 hours away to the granite yard to pick out the actual slab. As long as the granite is close enough to the sample, I will be happy. I actually have to sign a waiver that I understand the granite might be a little different from the samples in design and color..I am using 2 different colored granites (and 3 different colored cabinets)- one for the counters and one for the island...

I really wanted soapstone- I like that look- but it was much more expensive. Does scratch easily, but can be buffed out easily as well..Only comes in like 2 collars- a gray/greenish and a blackish that lightens up over time to gray...

We changed out a Formica counter for granite in an upstairs main bathroom, but we rarely use that bathroom. It does look nice. I picked that one from a photo...

We just put marble in our Master Bath- Creme Marfal Zappa-(again- just picked out from a photo) a marble with not much integrity- it has been outlawed in Spain, where it originates- but I love the look and we are just very careful with it- no kids and I definitely wouldn't put it in a kitchen. Other marble is ok for a kitchen, but you have to be willing to let it age and tolerate the changes (chalkiness/staining) in it like they do in Italy, which I don't think most Americans would want in their kitchen.

Then, there is always butcher block...and I have to say- the Formica we have had for over 26 years has held up spectacularly!

It is true- granite is hard and cold- other surfaces if you drop a wine glass or something like that, it might not break. I don't think sealing it should be a big deal- it is like waxing a car- and you only have to do it like once a year. I know someone who has never waxed hers and it it just fine...I also have another friend who has Silestone and she loves it as well.
 
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mrsstats

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I have Silestone and while I do like it I like the shiny look of the granite which I don't get with the Silestone.
 

elaine

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we have corian. We are replacing with granite in a few years. Realtor told us buyers want granite. We are getting either granite or marble for masterbath.
 

Phydeaux

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We have bamboo, and love it.
 

WinniWoman

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I have even seen pictures of stainless steel counters and concrete counters in magazines.
 

MRSFUSSY

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counter tops choice

Hi, Corian here and absolutely love it. Several years old, scratches here and there which don't bother me. My choices of granite were not wonderful when we had the change over. I didn't want black and most of the lighter colors had a line thru the middle in an off red that kinda looked like a "blood" line, so the sales people explained. Not thrilled with stainless steel appliances, glad I didn't succumb to those.
 

Paumavista

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Granite is in the builders package

We are building our first house - in upstate South Carolina.

Although we designed the house and bought a special lot I know us well enough to know that it probably won't be our home forever.....someday I want to travel ALOT (and we'll just need a little place to come back to).

Anyway, everyone around here wants hardwood floors, a light kitchen, and granite - that's what we'll need to sell the house and appeal to the widest market so I'm not even bothering to look at much else....just pick nice colors and I'll be happy....
 

VegasBella

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We have granite in our current home. Pros: great for cooling hot items straight from oven, very strong, many people love it so it's good for resale. Cons: needs to be sealed, I don't love the look, requires mining thus not Eco-friendly.

In our new home we're putting in recycled glass. It's beautiful, durable, and Eco-friendly. Requires less maintenance than granite but may crack more easily.

Quartz is most durable with less maintenance but it's less Eco-friendly than recycled glass.


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ricoba

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we have corian. We are replacing with granite in a few years. Realtor told us buyers want granite. We are getting either granite or marble for masterbath.

Yup, I have heard Realtor's say the same thing, as well as the counter top guy @ the Home Depot. Oh, the horror, we have Formica now:eek:! But have looked at a quartz upgrade in the not too distant future.

I am also flummoxed on appliances. Again, Realtor's say people want stainless, but we have white. Being a contrarian, I'd like to get avocado or pink and go retro (not sure my wife would like it) but I want something that expresses us and not what others want, though I do consider resale value since we are considering trading the house up.

Then again, all the Realtor's and the home shows show people dissing popcorn ceilings, which we also have, but I am sorry, some of these things are just not a big deal to me! ;)

Our house was the epitome of cool back in 1972, but just doesn't cut it with today's buyers.
 

artringwald

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We did granite when we remodeled 3 years ago and love it. We really should seal it again, but haven't had any problems cleaning up spills or breaking anything. The granite we picked has character. It has streaks of different colors and even has some flecks of gold. It sure beats the Formica that it replaced.

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296568_1893899271732_6053783_n.jpg
 

BJRSanDiego

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Art, nice looking kitchen!
 

DaveNV

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They say if you're remodeling for resale, go with whatever will sell best. If you're remodeling for yourself (or if you'll be in the house at least five years), go with what YOU like.

We remodeled our kitchen last year, after living in the home ten years. We went with slab granite. It's is so much nicer than the laminate we had before, and when we're ready to sell, I know it will be popular with buyers. We chose a reasonable color and pattern that isn't too trendy, so it won't be "dated."

As for appliances: I seriously dislike stainless, because it is SO over used everywhere, and there is no standard of quality anymore (which was how stainless started out - by being "commercial grade" in the home, implying "quality.") It also shows every fingerprint. So we went with matching high-end appliances from Whirlpool's "Ice" line, in white. They look great, and the stainless handles on white appliances gives a nod to the stainless lovers who see them.

Overall, I'm very pleased with how things turned out.

Dave
 

artringwald

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Nice picture. :)

Are those the same cabinets?

No, but some of the cabinets went to my son's house for their remodel. The contractor gutted everything and even tore down the wall between the kitchen and living room (the new wall is only 1/2 as long). Cooking with a microwave in the in the family room for 45 days was like living in a college dorm, but it was worth it.
 

spirits

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Went with the tradesman

I too was going around and around regarding countertop choices. Dh really liked our old Formica (beige and in still good shape we thought) but I wanted to renovate while I was still working.
I found a great guy who worked out of a granite place and because our kitchen was on the smaller side we were able to piece together outcuts from commercial jobs.
Got our granite for 1/2 price and he did a wonderful job installing it. Old school tradesman.
Our granite is top grade and after two years still does not need resealing since it was not porous to start with.
On another note my DH was shocked to see how the old countertop had rotted away near the sink due to faucet leakages over the years. Our old old countertop was on plywood but this one we put in over 30 years ago was only on particleboard. It looked ok on the surface but was rotten underneath. Yuk. Glad we went with stone...looks beautiful
 

Patri

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Thank you everyone! Very nice to wake up and see so many replies.
This could be our forever home, but if we choose to sell won't be for about 15 years. I got to thinking we may as well enjoy the counters before we sell. A neighbor has her house on the market and decided to lower the price rather than upgrade kitchen. I'm sure that includes her countertops.
We actually have a stone countertop in our master bath. The builder just put it in during construction (don't remember picking material and color) and it is beautiful. It is white and about an inch thick, so I'm guessing marble?
We also want to carpet master bedroom this spring. Dreading the chaos of that (moving out furniture). Did living room last year. One thing at a time, now that the kids are gone!
 

Big Matt

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I'd give a few thoughts on this one.

We moved in to our current home about 18 years ago. Back then, the all white kitchen was the rage. We got all white cabinets, appliances, formica, and tile floors. Blonde hard wood was the rave then too. Fast forward to today and we have hardwood floors, granite, stainless steel, and the same white cabinets. It looks great.

Figure out what you want your kitchen and the rest of the house to look like from a design perspective (traditional, modern, country, etc.) and use materials that fit your design.

My only comment is that granite looks "real" and silestone looks "man made" if that makes sense. The natural variation of real stone means that no one piece of granite looks the same. That can be a curse too if you have a ton of surface area and need to match granite from multiple larger pieces.

Concrete is probably the best solution of all, but it isn't for everyone and requires a very specific design to pull it off.

The good news is that anything you pick will look great.
 

SMHarman

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And we are planning a walnut countertop.
With mayonnaise colored shaker cabinets.
And yes, stainless steel appliances.

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artringwald

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Those are beautiful before/after pictures - love what you did!!

All I did was bring the checkbook. DW made most of the choices, but I like the result much more than I thought I would.
 

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We replaced worn Formica countertops and refronted our cabinets, moving from the "blond" look popular when we purchased back in the early nineties. We have lots of countertop and a good sized island. Put in granite with lots of color and pattern and love it! Also did a neutral tile backsplash with an inset of glass tile,and changed the cabinets to a quarter sawn oak front with a darker stain. Amazing how much the look changed our home! We looked at several options but loved the granite for its natural distinctive look. Have had not issues with caring for it over the 3 years since installed.
 

WinniWoman

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Whatever you do- do not make the mistake we made by putting very expensive synthetic berber carpet in our Master Bedroom. After 2 years it looks horrible- a dirty oil from the manufacturing process shows through in spots and can't get rid of it. On top of that, the loops smash down, so you cannot see the original texture of the carpet and it looks worn out-like we have had it for 20 years! And- we cannot use a carpet vacuum on it- the loops get caught and one time an entire line our carpet ripped off and we had to get a repairman that, thank goodness, was able to work some magic taking some carpet from my closet. Worse thing we ever bought. Have to use a dust buster stick vac only on it now - with no rotors...What a rip off this carpeting was...and we only walk in the bedroom with slippers or bare feet....hardly ever in the bedroom except to sleep!:eek:
 
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