Has anyone used modular granite? I want an undermount sink, so formica is out

[finz2left]

but I can't afford full slab granite or corian.

 

[pixie921]

Do you mean the material that is billed as a "granite alternative"? It's like a composite with some granite in it?

If so, my parents had it installed a few months ago. They're relatively happy with it, but the edges are quite rough and had to be sanded down quite a bit. There were also some pits on the surface, and edges don't have a really nice finish. At first glance, it looks pretty nice, but I don't think I'd want it myself.

We were redoing our kitchen at the same time and got granite, for not much more than my parents paid. We were able to find a remnant slab at a granite shop and got a relatively good deal on it. So if you really do want granite, you might be able to find a deal by being a little creative.

 

[Schachteles]

Check out all the granite places, there is a HUGE price difference from one place to another on the SAME granite. We looked at some at Home Depot that was like $88 installed, went to another place and got the SAME thing for $66 installed plus a free sink.

 

[savannahcat]

If you mean 12" granite tiles, we have that in our kitchen. We've had it for 7 years and I don't like it all. Like you, we went with it because we didn't want to pay the price of slab granite or synthetic stone. We couldn't have laminate because we have one stretch of countertop that is 16 feet long without a break.

I have a green/black color with black grout. The grout always looks dirty, no matter what I clean it with. It tends to look gray instead of black. Also, the tile has settled over time, leaving an uneven surface. If I had some money to burn, I would rip it out and replace it right now. (Well, who am I kidding? If I had money to burn, I would buy DVC! )

I do love that I can put hot pots and pans directly on it, though. That is a definite advantage of granite.

 

[Chicago526]

Granite has come way down in price, and if your kitchen is smallish, you may be able to get a deal on a remnant left over from another job. It may be worth your time to check it out.

BTW, I never understood the big deal about under-mount sinks until I saw a DIY show and the host mentioned that with under-mounts, you can sweep crumbs, liquids, etc. straight into the sink because there is no lip to try and get over. I never thought of that! So now I want one!

 

[mistysue]

I agree about really shopping around for granite. Look at all the ranges of product. Just changing your edge can be HUGE. If you look at the yellow pages online, you should be able to find at least a dozen (usually a couple dozen) places that will get you a quote. Important to note- if you are redoing anything in the area of the top, they will not officially measure and make your top until everything is ready for it. Even if they are existing walls with new casework, they will wait for the new casework so you might be stuck with no top for a bit.

But if that still doesn't work and it helps you feel any better, undermount sinks can create serious leakage issues. Leaks that would destroy your cabinets are much more common with undermounts than a regular drop-in.

Solid surface prices have been rising while natural stone has been decreasing so in at least many markets granite is now a better deal than a solid surface.

 

[Debbie7452]

Granite is actually pretty inexpensive now. I did my whole fairly big kitchen, including an island, for about 2500. I used a flooring place and got to pick out my slabs and everything. I knew I couldn't get "exotic" colors for that price but I was amazed at the variety that I could choose from.

Undermount sinks are awesome, BTW! Silestone and Corian are actually more expensive than the cheaper granites. Also Home Depot and Lowe's were not competitive on price when it came to counter tops.

 

[a1tinkfans]

but I can't afford full slab granite or corian.

Did you look at Silestone...it is QUARTZ...BEautiful, easily maintained, NO toxins (you'd have to read about that, regarding granite) and we love it........
Good Luck!!! Oh, you can definitely do under mount, get edging etc etc....

 

[finz2left]

Thank you all very much. Even 60 sq. ft. is way out of my budget! I appreciate the the naysaying...seems to reflect what I'm seeing about modular (large tile) granite.

I think I'll just go new formica with a drop-in or keep looking at the butcher block countertops from Ikea. I've heard great things, but I don't know about resale in a few years.

Thanks!

 

[simplybusy]

Another vote for checking into a quartz option. There are several different brands and they all have different color options. We did a lot of research on Granite and we're SO glad we looked into some alternative options. LOVE the quartz. We settled on the Cambria Nottingham selection.

 

[KarlaG4Kids]

Thank you all very much. Even 60 sq. ft. is way out of my budget! I appreciate the the naysaying...seems to reflect what I'm seeing about modular (large tile) granite.

I think I'll just go new formica with a drop-in or keep looking at the butcher block countertops from Ikea. I've heard great things, but I don't know about resale in a few years.

Thanks!

I have the granite tiles and I love them. THey are a grey speckled tile and there is grey groute. I have sealed them and I have no problems with discoloration of the groute. The costs for my countertops was WAY LESS than my daughter who got a slab granite in an identical sized kitchen to mine. Mine was about $600 vs $3000 for hers. We used to have formica and I wouldn't go back for anything!

 

[3boymthr]

My parent's are in the process of putting in 12" Marble Tiles for their counters. My aunt has it and loves it. It looks great and my parents are doing their counters for about $300 (back in the 60's my dad used to install tile for a living so he's installing himself). They've saved so much by doing the marble tile that they're putting in glass tiles as a back splash.

 

[KarlaG4Kids]

My parent's are in the process of putting in 12" Marble Tiles for their counters. My aunt has it and loves it. It looks great and my parents are doing their counters for about $300 (back in the 60's my dad used to install tile for a living so he's installing himself). They've saved so much by doing the marble tile that they're putting in glass tiles as a back splash.

I want the glass tiles for a back splash too!!!!!

 

[ColoradoMom!!]

We are starting the very first steps of a kitchen remodel. We've had our appt. with Home Depot for cabinets - but you all have me thinking I should look around for granite. Do you just wait until the cabinets are installed to bring the granite co. you choose out to your house to measure?

Our kitchen and budget are very small, and I have to pinch every penny.

 

[virginiamama]

We love our Silestone and the undermount sink is my favorite part! We had Silestone installed in our previous home and I think it helped a lot with the resale versus the laminate. There wasn't anything wrong with the laminate, it just made the kitchen look outdated. We were in a nicer starter-home type neighborhood. As our appliances wore out, we replaced them with all black. For the countertop we didn't choose a fancy edge, went to Home Depot on a holiday weekend and got it for a decent price (small kitchen) including the free sink. When we put it in at our new house (medium sized kitchen) we went straight to the contractor that Home Depot had hired to put it in at the old house. The price directly from that contractor was WAY cheaper! If you have plans to sell any time soon, I'd definitely try to get some kind of stone. We could have kicked ourselves for not doing it sooner at the old house - mainly did it for resale and didn't get to spend much time there and enjoy it. I sure am enjoying it now! In this economy, there should be lots of companies out there competing for your business and you could get deals now that they are not willing to make in better financial times.

 

[pixie921]

I want the glass tiles for a back splash too!!!!!

Oh, we just put these in and I LOVE them!! They look so pretty!! I actually bought half multi-colored tiles from eBay and half solid from the Great Indoors and combined them in a pattern dh and I liked. It was time-consuming, but it turned out great.

 

[3boymthr]

Oh, we just put these in and I LOVE them!! They look so pretty!! I actually bought half multi-colored tiles from eBay and half solid from the Great Indoors and combined them in a pattern dh and I liked. It was time-consuming, but it turned out great.

They're also going to put them in their bathroom. They are going to cut the squares into strips and top the tile in the shower with them. (yeah, they've torn down and rebuilt half their house - no bathroom, no kitchen no dining room and no laundry room for going on 7 months )

 

[finz2left]

Oh, we just put these in and I LOVE them!! They look so pretty!! I actually bought half multi-colored tiles from eBay and half solid from the Great Indoors and combined them in a pattern dh and I liked. It was time-consuming, but it turned out great.

ohhhh...would you be willing to share pictures?

 

[JennSaint]

Check into the quartz option. We have it and love it! The brand we have is Cambria.

 

[pixie921]

They're also going to put them in their bathroom. They are going to cut the squares into strips and top the tile in the shower with them. (yeah, they've torn down and rebuilt half their house - no bathroom, no kitchen no dining room and no laundry room for going on 7 months )

Wow! I almost went crazy not having our kitchen for 3 months ... can't imagine losing all the rest of that for twice as long!!

ohhhh...would you be willing to share pictures?

I'll see if I have anything I can upload.