Kitchen Countertops??

[jrmasm]

We're building a new house and for the life of me I can not decide on the kitchen countertop material. It's a smallish L shaped kitchen with an island. I would like an undermounted stainless sink but I realize that this is not an option with laminate.

I love the look of granite but am afraid of staining.

Corian is nice but not as visually appealing to me.

Laminate is cheap!

I looked into Zodiac and a contractor friend said because it is so expensive, we might as well just go with granite.

I've thought about mixing materials but I have no idea how to do it!!

Help!!!

 

[antkim]

We just put Corian in our kitchen and I love it!We have the Corian sink also so it blends nicely-no lip on the sink-just wipe everything right in!We went very neutral.The color we chose is beach.We looked into Granite but because our kitchen is sort of small I thought it would be overwhelming.
Kim

 

[olena]

I've got crappy ones that were damaged by previous owners. I want granite so bad, but we're having to put the big bucks into the home's exterior.

 

[Mishetta]

Granite staining? I've never heard of that! Granite is like ROCK, nothing can damage it, right? Here's my 2 cents, go Granite all the way! It's cheaper & less of a headache if you do it now, than later on & have your kitchen all torn up. Not to mention, if you'll have a tile backsplach (like I do), then you'll be worried about the tile being broken if you want the counter replaced down the road. Just my opinion!

Good luck with the house building! That's always fun (& very stressful!)

 

[JuliaEeyore]

I voted "other" because we are in the same situation as you and can't decide. But if we had all the money in the world available to us, we'd go with soapstone.

We like the look better than Corian, it's more duarble than granite, limited range of colors but looks better with age.

One can only dream though. We're shooting for Corian but will most likely go with laminate. It's probably a smaller space that yours!

Julia

 

[RitaZ.]

When we remodeled our kitchen, the last thing that we decided on was the countertop and there wasn't much $ left. So, we picked laminate. We have had it now for 5 years and it does have some scratches (minor), but it's held up really well. I want to do something nicer, though.

My friend has granite and it looks beautiful, but she said that you have to be careful not to drop a pot/pan on it, as it could crack.

I would like Corian. Isn't there another type that it's like Corian, but cheaper? Anyone know?

 

[Meriweather]

My house is 16 years old and I have tile...........I actually like it.

 

[zurgswife]

I'm looking into Concrete.....they seem to be a little cheaper then granite...and hard...

 

[Boo'sMom]

Originally posted by Mishetta
Granite staining? I've never heard of that! Granite is like ROCK, nothing can damage it, right?

Granite IS rock.....

just a friendly service reminder from "The Granite State"

 

[AZKathy]

Originally posted by antkim
We just put Corian in our kitchen and I love it!We have the Corian sink also so it blends nicely-no lip on the sink-just wipe everything right in!We went very neutral.The color we chose is beach.We looked into Granite but because our kitchen is sort of small I thought it would be overwhelming.
Kim

Ditto here. We got the sink with Corian in our new home. We have a dark blue color with a white sink. I love not having the metal bands around sinks that get gunky after a while. One thing you have to watch is not putting hot pots on the Corian.

 

[sgtdisney]

Have you taken a look at Avanza? It is a natural quartz countertop made of imported Italian stone. It is supposedly 5 times more durable than Granite (but really kind of looks like it) and is very easy to maintain and comes with a 10 year warranty. It is non-pourous so spills don't turn into stains and you can even put hot things on it. My father recently redid his kitchen and was considering granite and corian, but really liked this Avanza. It isn't cheap, but I don't think it is as much as Granite. Check it out and see if it may work for you. Here is a link to their webpage.

http://www.avanzausa.com/

 

[Pig Pen]

I think it's marble that can stain.

 

[Serena]

Granite is porous too if I'm not mistaken. It needs sealed occasionally.

 

[JuliaEeyore]

Originally posted by RitaZ.
I would like Corian. Isn't there another type that it's like Corian, but cheaper? Anyone know?

Since we're researching like crazy too, YES!!!!!

Avonite. http://www.avonite.com/Consumer/consumer_home.html

Julia

 

[jrmasm]

Keep it coming!!

Granite is porous and does need to be sealed periodically. I have read every six mths, once a year, once every two years. Not sure what the real answer is. I have read that that acidic materials (o.j. etc.) can actually bleach the stone. Oils (grease) are also bad for staining. I'm not sure how easy this is to do.

I'll have to check out soapstone!

I think that Avanza is the same type of product as Zodiaq.

We did consider the possibility of Corian with Corian sink (one solid piece). Just not what we want. I really prefer the look for stainless.

Uggghh why is this is so hard!

 

[Serena]

Just keep subracting things and eventually you'll have what you want.

 

[jrmasm]

Bumping up for the morning crowd!

 

[Jeafl]

If you like the look of granite without the upkeep, check out Cambria.

 

[RUDisney]

We are waiting for our Zodiaq countertop to be installed. I currently have a temporary sink and am working on plywood as a countertop.

I chose Zodiaq because my friend, who is an interior designer, suggested it to me. I trust her completely because she's taught me so much and has helped me with most every other room in our house. The things that put Zodiac over the top for me are that it is non-porous and doesn't need sealing, and that it will have no seams to collect crumbs, like granite would. The seams can be sanded flush like with Corian. The only difference is that the seam is somewhat visible with the Zodiaq and it is invisible with the Corian.

We were told that Zodiaq cost more than granite, but when push came to shove, they came in at exactly the same price.

Once our countertop is installed, they will scribe the backsplash and we'll have to wait another month before that comes in. We're doing the Zodiaq all the way up the backsplash. We picked Astral Pearl for the these. I think it looks very much like granite.

Because my DH has the remodelling bug, we've elected to retop our bar with granite. Since I don't keep the number of things on my bar that I do on my counter, it will be easier for me to seal than the counter will... then, on to the basement...

 

[jrmasm]

RUDusney, is your bar in the kitchen? If so what granite are you picking to match the Zodiaq?

When I looked at Zodiaq the dealer showed me the scaling in the finish. We looked only at dark colors but I have decided to go light. Is the scaling noticable in the lighter colors?