Anyone have Corian Countertops?

[JandJ]

We are re-doing our kitchen - countertops, walls, tile backsplash, a couple appliances, and cabinet hardware (the cabinets are gorgeous 50 year old solid oak so they're staying!). We cannot afford granite or marble, and don't want to wait and save for it because the walls are literally down to the concrete in some places and it's been that way since July! We finally have a contractor to repair the walls but we have to have the countertops in first. So we are looking at Corian. Anyone like it/hate it/had any problems with it? How much should we be looking at? We got an estimate for Corian countertops through Costco. They said $50/sq. foot for the color we chose, which comes out to ~$2600 and then we get a free integrated sink. That's IF we rip out the current countertops ourselves; if they do it then it's ~$350 more. Just not sure if that's a good deal? I really didn't want to spend more than $2k on countertops!

 

[Andrea_loves_Disney]

We have Corian countertops and I love them. We've had them about 4 years and have not had any problems with them, no scratches, chips or anything like that. I LOVE the integrated sink too. It looks so seamless - and you can brush all the crumbs from the counter right into the disposal!

 

[HappyTrouble]

I do not have Corian but we just recently had a new product called LG Hymac installed in our kitchen with an integrated sink. It is like Corian but looks more like granite and we love it!!!!! $2600 sounds like a good price that is about what we paid but we went ahead and had then rip out the old also but we did our own backsplash with wainscoting and it was only $33.00 plus our own labor!! My husband didn't really see anything wrong with our old countertops, old white laminate that curved up the wall which I hated, but he even says what a difference it has made. Believe it or not it has even given us more counter space and I cannot rave enough about the integrated sink!!!!!!!

 

[gonemousin']

You can check into another solid surface product - Silestone. I looked into it a few years ago and it was much cheaper than granite, had the look of granite, more durable, and also sold at Home Depot. Good luck with your project!!

 

[redshoes]

We built our house a year ago and put in Corian Countertops in the kitchen and bathrooms. I debated between Granite and Corian, but ended up not being able to find a Granite color that I liked as much as Corian. A drawback is that Corian will scratch and the darker the color you pick, the more the scratches will show up. We have a dark grey color with brown, black, and white flecks in it. I love it, but it does have two very minor white scratches (that I know I can easily buff out if I get brave enough) from my DH throwing his keys on the counter when he gets home. Our countertops ran a little over 3,000 not including the sink, that was new construction but not directly through our builder so I don't know if the cost would be less or more for an already existing kitchen.
Our installer said you have to very careful not to slide dishes across it and never ever put hot appliances or dishes directly on top of it. The installer told me a horror story about a lady who had just had her countertops installed and less than a week later left a crockpot on high on it and it melted the countertop.
Sink wise we went with a Moenstone black granite sink, because it doesn't scratch or stain and it has a great warranty with it. It was pricey compared to the Corian sinks, but had some features that impressed us more than any other sinks that we looked at.
I really love my kitchen, the countertops look great and they are pretty low maintance once you get use to them. I spend alot of time in the kitchen and I wanted to make sure that I was happy with things now and 10 years from now.

 

[Jen_in_NH]

I looked at both Corian and Silestone, but ended up with granite. The granite was a bit more expensive than the Corian, but less than the silestone. What turned me off of the Corian was all the reports of scratching. Apparently the darker colors show scratches quite a bit, and we were planning on a darker color.

Honestly, our granite only cost about $2300 for the kitchen and pantry (off the top of my head, I don't know the square footage). Corian was going to be about $1800-$2000.

Jen

 

[TAEMom]

I would sit down and really compare the Corian estimate to the cost of granite. We have black corian, with some small grey and white flecks, and a beveled edge, and I was horrified to realize a few mos. ago, that we would have paid LESS to get granite (granite was not an option through the builder though)! I happened to be at Home Depot in the kitchen design center, and the cost of the "upgraded" Corian was more than some of their granite. My Corian does have scratches on it, and at our last house, we also had Corian and my DH set up a warmish iron on it and it melted an area (looked "cloudy" in that spot). For your money, I think you'll have less headaches with granite.

 

[HM]

We remodeled our kitchen three years ago and went with Corian countertops. We bought at Lowe's when they had some colors on sale...and got the free sink (deep double). Loved it.

When we had a house built for us (moved in about a 14 month ago) we could choose granite or corian and went with corian again. We have a beige color with flecks of other colors. It does not show scratches and can be buffed if you do scratch it (there are instructions and materials to use that come with the countertop). We didn't like the granite color choices, didn't like that you have to seal the countertop, and didn't like that there would have been a large seam showing (corian's seams don't show).

 

[Kimmumum]

We got Corian last March during a sale at Home Depot. We went just to look at laminated countertops and they were having a sale. The Corian was cheaper than the Silestone and laminate. We got the integrated sink and countertop and our was about $2100. The granite was around $3500. I love my Corian. Mine is not scratched or discolored. I use my crockpot all the time and it hasn't affected it at all. Good luck

 

[bettydau]

We love our Corian. We have it in the kitchen, and both bathrooms. Our colors are not really dark, and we have had minor scratches, but it's easy to care for and looks great. I didn't look at granite, but when I see it in homes, it looks beautiful.

 

[gottaluvdis]

You can check into another solid surface product - Silestone. I looked into it a few years ago and it was much cheaper than granite, had the look of granite, more durable, and also sold at Home Depot. Good luck with your project!!

We did silestone for our kitchen remodel about 1.5 years ago and love it. I consider it a step up from Corian, and a step below granite (although not much - it's very similar to granite without any of the upkeep needed). It's very durable, still looks brand new and doesn't stain, crack, chip, or peel. You can even cut on it (although it would dull your knives). I think we paid about $3500 for the counters, installed, but we had a large counter area to replace, including a buffet area that we made on the other side of the kitchen. I'd highly recommend it if you can afford it.

 

[*Susan*]

I don't have any firsthand knowlege of Corian but another option is www.granitetransformations.com. It installs directly OVER your existing counters so you save the time, $$ and mess of having your counters demolished. The best part is there is NO maintainance or anything special that you have to do to it to keep it looking nice.

It is heat safe to 600 degrees and you can cut right on it (although we don't - I'm a chicken). You can clean it with anything except acetone, we use 409, soap and water and you can even use pledge on it.

If memory serves it is 97% granite + 3% polymers which prevents it from being pourous like regular granite.

We love ours - it is beautiful and looks just like 'regular' granite without the headaches. They will come to your house, measure and give you a quote. Ours was about $5k less than granite through Lowes/Home Depot (we have a large kitchen).

 

[kldmom2000]

I have a Corian countertop in my kitchen w/ a stainless steel undermount sink and I have a corian countertop in my bathroom w/ an integrated corian shell shaped bowl

My DH owns a small solid surface countertop company (corian, silestone, Zodiaq (looks like granite but is man-made), Meganite, etc...) and I love the look of Corian...

Yes, dark colors scratch, but they can be sanded out by a certified corian fabricator....

Corian is non-porous so you won't have bacteria lurking in your countertops

Corian is also seamless (when done by a certified corian installer) and I love that look

It IS a plastic, so you cannot put a boiling hot pan directly on your countertop-I wouldn't recommend that for any countertop surface anyway

The resell value of your house goes way up if you replace laminate countertops with corian or most other solid surfaces It's well worth the investment!!!!

Good luck!

 

[srgibbs]

We built our house 7 years ago which is before Granite had really got popular. I do love our Corian countertops and they have aged well. We do have some small scratches but they would probably come out if we buffed them. No problems although I do like the Granite look better, but if money issue an issue I think you would really enjoy Corian.

 

[jrmasm]

unless there is a huge price difference, I would go with granite. With most of the popular stones, it is not necessary to seal so maintenance does not need to be an issue. And granite does not need to be babied. It can't melt or be scratched.

And the whole "harbors bacteria" arguement is bunk. No one believes that but solid surface salesmen.

The other reason I would go for granite is that in my area, Corian is considered dated and won't sell your house like granite will. So if you think that selling might be in your future, you might want to consider granite.

 

[mickeyfan2]

We have had corian counter tops with the integral sink for 15 years. They still look great. Now ours are different then what you get now. Our corian is 1 inch thick. They are now much thinner. At that time it cost ust $100/linear foot for our corian.

The granite arguement. It is "in" now but it will go "out" in the future and date your home. Actually the age of our corian makes it more desirable not less.

 

[JandJ]

Thank you so much for all of your information I really appreciate it. Because we have a very large island/buffet area, the granite is just too expensive. The customer service guy who came out estimated the granite at almost double the Corian, mainly due to the island. We can't afford that for countertops since we have to also do the walls, tile backsplash, and replace a few other things. My in-laws have granite in their kitchen. It's basically black and just not my style. I really prefer a "light and bright" kitchen. I really like the look of the Corian and we chose a very light color so I don't think I'll have the visible scratching problems of a darker color. DH wants to get one more estimate (probably Lowe's). I'm sure the free integrated sink offer will come along again, but right now it's only till March 11 and I'd like to start the work on the walls, so we need to make a decision soon. It's nice to hear from those who have had Corian for years and still love it!

Thanks for all the input!!

 

[jrmasm]

Actually the age of our corian makes it more desirable not less.

huh? You lost me. Were you saying that the fact that your Corian has lasted 15 years means that it's a durable product? I'd argue that granite should last forever since it's a rock.

Seriously, around here Corian is not a selling point and granite is.

 

[TupperMom]

We are replacing our countertops too and have decided to go with Corian. We went to a home show in our area and all the granite dealers stressed that the granite had to be sealed once a week with this speical spray or water could penitrate it. Not so with Corian. We are getting our countertop directly from a certified Corian dealer - he literally makes the countertops right in his shop which we have visited, and I love the sink!

 

[RockyMtnMaria]

We are replacing our countertops too and have decided to go with Corian. We went to a home show in our area and all the granite dealers stressed that the granite had to be sealed once a week with this speical spray or water could penitrate it. Not so with Corian. We are getting our countertop directly from a certified Corian dealer - he literally makes the countertops right in his shop which we have visited, and I love the sink!

WHAT??? They must have been solid surface sales people in disguise! That is absolutely rediculous! You'll spend more time sanding the Corian in a year, than you would staining the granite (IF your granite needs it, you would WIPE the sealer on once per year).

I completely agree with jrmasm. And you might want to get a few more granite quotes. It typically runs about identical in price to Corian, unless you picked some extremely rare piece of stone.

We are going with Benissimo granite tiles to save some $$, but it might not be a huge savings if you have a large island, because the outside pieces are expensive. An even cheaper solution is to use large granite tiles with an epoxy grout (1/16th of an inch) in between. You don't have the cleaning problems of the tile counters, and get the granite look for less than half the cost (not quite as good, but close, and better than the fake stuff!). http://benissimosystems.com/

Personally, I'd go with Formica before Corian.

You might enjoy checking out this kitchen remodeling forum. http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/kitchbath/

I'm planning to check out the Granite Tranformations website that someone mentioned, but from the photos, it looks like another form of solid surface, with the wierd plasticy pattern. I just don't like the looks of Corian or it's competition AT ALL, and neither does my dh.