topic Re: ? about counter top material in Home

? about counter top material

wagirl — Mon, 31 Dec 2018 16:01:22 GMT

I will be shopping for new counter tops soon as well as many other things----big, huge, tree dropped on my upstairs and destroyed all the bedrooms and bathrooms-----so my? is----granite, corian, quartz--absolutely NO formica----wondering about prices, upkeep. My house is nothing fancy just a big box with smaller boxes inside. Won't be doing anything fancy as we will sell---great for starter home. Will prob go with designer of the contractor but was just wondering.

Re: ? about counter top material

Carmie — Mon, 31 Dec 2018 16:21:55 GMT

I have granite in the kitchen and in two bathrooms and quartz in the other two bathrooms.

Both materials are easy to clean and require very little upkeep. I buy a stone spray cleaner and just spray and wipe.

I would suggest that you choose a light color. Dark stone shows water spots, which can be a problem in the bathroom area.

Re: ? about counter top material

Bri369 — Mon, 31 Dec 2018 16:30:47 GMT

I have marble counter tops in my bathrooms. They're a light color. I just wipe them down.

I have granite in my kitchen.

I have had no problems with either.

My old house had corian counters and sinks in the bathrooms. I didn't like it at all. It had no personality.

Re: ? about counter top material

Fressa — Mon, 31 Dec 2018 16:44:31 GMT

I have corian countertops in the kitchen and bathrooms and love them. They last, look like new all the time and are easy to clean. Sure I love the look of marble but not the expense and care.( I have a marble floor) I watch a lot of the HGTV shows and they have been using cement and resin for countertops. That might be my budget choice if I couldn't have the corina. I would not break the budget with your long list of repairs/replacements. There is always something unexpected that happens and more $ to add to the total.

Re: ? about counter top material

VaBelle35 — Mon, 31 Dec 2018 18:12:10 GMT

I just did new countertops and did quartz. I wanted plain white and my options were quartz or formica, but the company I was using didn't do formica.

Like you, my house is nothing special and I did go to Home Depot and looked at formica as my mother has it in her kitchen. It's definitely not your grandmother's formica anymore.

Quartz is easy to clean.

Re: ? about counter top material

ItsME — Mon, 31 Dec 2018 18:18:52 GMT

If I were remodeling, I'd go with a white or light quartz. That said, there are some stunning granites, and I'd consider one in a light color if it was beautiful and unusual. I don't like dark counters. Corian is easy, but not as striking. (I have corian in my kitchen and cultured marble ... man-made ... in my bathrooms.)

Re: ? about counter top material

Laura14 — Mon, 31 Dec 2018 19:33:37 GMT

We've had granite for years. No issues at all. In fact, I just picked out black for the new space downstairs and I can tell you I've had zero issue with water spotting either light or dark in the bathroom or kitchen.

Very easy to keep clean and I've sliced, diced, and baked all over it and you'd never tell. My niece and I baked and rolled and spilled and sprayed every kind of marshmallow and chocolate and food coloring you could find yesterday and it wiped up beautifully on the black.

Re: ? about counter top material

Rockycoast — Mon, 31 Dec 2018 21:14:22 GMT

We have had our granite kitchen counters for over 13 years. Love them! They are durible, easy to maintain and don't require sealing. I have raised an active family with these counter tops, no scratching, chipping or cracks with heavy use, still look fantastic. If we were to move, I would put in granite again.

I have had formica, Corian and granite counters in places we have lived. Granite wins hands down.

Re: ? about counter top material

Nuttmeg — Mon, 31 Dec 2018 21:48:49 GMT

Please find a local stone dealer. I found a company SMC Stone in NYC. The granite in my bathrooms and kitchen still look great.You have more options when you buy from dealer. you can find leftover stone from larger job to use as countertops for a bathroom vanity.

Iowe’s installed a countertop in my home office. A quartz product would have cost me $ 4100. I went with a regular laminate top for $1600.

Re: ? about counter top material

ScrapHappy — Mon, 31 Dec 2018 23:51:14 GMT

@wagirl wrote:
I will be shopping for new counter tops soon as well as many other things----big, huge, tree dropped on my upstairs and destroyed all the bedrooms and bathrooms-----so my? is----granite, corian, quartz--absolutely NO formica----wondering about prices, upkeep. My house is nothing fancy just a big box with smaller boxes inside. Won't be doing anything fancy as we will sell---great for starter home. Will prob go with designer of the contractor but was just wondering.

I remodeled 3 bathrooms. Two I put in marble and the third a quartz. All light in color. I plan on doing more remodeling in the future and will definitely use quartz again. I like the marble (I went for the color) but prefer quartz.

Re: ? about counter top material

stevieb — Mon, 31 Dec 2018 23:56:49 GMT

Sorry, can't help. My choice has been, is and will be laminate... Not into stone counter tops for the kitchen... For the bathrooms, yes to stone, but have no preference for one over the other so would probably select from among those offering the best pricing...

Re: ? about counter top material

Lilysmom — Tue, 01 Jan 2019 20:21:23 GMT

@wagirl, I agree with @Fressa on the colour. I have had Corian for13 years in kitchen and bath. I have the colour Linen in the kitchen and it looks like the day it was installed. I have a black stripe as a sandwich color along the front edging to match my black appliances. I like to be able to see that the counters are clean and it is easy with this color. I had dark countertops prior to this and wouldn’t do it again.

I went more organic looking in the bath with a colour called thyme or rosemary which is a beautiful soft green with ginger contrast to match my natural cherry cabinets. The great thing about Corian is that scratches can be buffed out if necessary.

Good luck with your choices! LM

Re: ? about counter top material

jubilant — Tue, 01 Jan 2019 12:39:20 GMT

We have granite kitchen counters. They are beautiful but very expensive (went with a grade 4). I have a small kitchen and it was right around $4000. The one thing I have really had to get used to is you have to be more careful with your dishes or you will be breaking them! You can't be clanging anything glasswear down hard on them. Just keep that in mind. With that said, I have gotten used to being more careful (after breaking a few cups). I originally had Formica picked out but when DH saw this big slab of granite.....well, he just had to have it so I caved. We do get a lot of compliments on it. Have you looked at a finished Formica countertop? I think you would be surprised. DD just put one in last week and it is beautiful!

Re: ? about counter top material

SilleeMee — Tue, 01 Jan 2019 12:58:04 GMT

I would choose stainless steel. That is indestructible.

Re: ? about counter top material

Hayfield — Tue, 01 Jan 2019 13:31:01 GMT

If you go with granite or quartz, you have to be careful what level it is, when we redid our kitchen 15 years ago I didn't know there where different levels of quality and got the cheaper level and it didn't hold up. I also picked a dark color which showed everything. When we built our retirement home I picked quartz and a higher grade level and I'm very happy with it. It's a lighter too, which makes a difference, for me anyway. It's all about personal choice and as long as you do your homework, you'll be fine. I think soapstone and concrete are also beautiful choices but I think they're even more expensive than granite or quartz, not sure since I never priced them.

Sorry about the tree falling on your house, that must've have been a really terrifying experience.

Re: ? about counter top material

wagirl — Tue, 01 Jan 2019 15:31:52 GMT

A huge thank you for your input-------exactly what I needed to hear! Yes I am prob jumping the gun and will wait until the much more pressing things get addressed, you know---like a whole new roof, ceilings, sheetrock, electrical, lights-----oh my head hurts----

Yes this whole "adventure" has been very stressful as I was in the room that the 110 ft tree fell on---and I was injured by the falling debris but not the tree itself----duh who would be writing now????

1---Yes I would go with light colors for a counter top.

2---NO---never in a milion years will go for any formica/laminate---been living with that for 32 years and HATE it.

thanks to you all

Re: ? about counter top material

drizzellla — Tue, 01 Jan 2019 15:58:01 GMT

I know my opinion will be laughed at but I don't care. When we bought our house, we had a designer come in and completely redo our kitchen. At the time I did not cook much. We ate out or did take out most nights.

I really liked the choices of formica. So we got formica counters. Well, years have passed and we are looking into having the kitchen redone. The flooring needs replacing and the cabinets are still in great shape but the style is dated. And I will definately check out formica for the counters. My counters are in excellent condition. They look as nice today as the day they were installed.

And after seeing the troubles my friends have gone through with their high end counter tops. I will stick with something that is durable and easy to clean.

Re: ? about counter top material

Boehm Collector — Tue, 01 Jan 2019 16:07:33 GMT

@wagirl We have granite in our kitchen. We seal it once a year. I just use a stone cleaner for daily cleanup. In the bathroom we have corian countertops. Love them both,

Re: ? about counter top material

Twins Mom — Tue, 01 Jan 2019 19:43:13 GMT

If doing granite us over improving for the area, Formica always looks nice. My Formica was installed over 30 years ago and the kitchen designer suggested something light in color but with a slight marbling effect so any imperfections down the road wouldn’t stand out. I think that was good advice. It looks clean, can clean easily, and a few knife point boo-boos aren’t standing out.

Re: ? about counter top material

wagirl — Wed, 02 Jan 2019 15:32:22 GMT

@Twins Mom--I really don't know if granite would be over doing---still no idea what will be re built as the holidays have put a crimp in things by people not being around. But no way will I do formica any where---as that is what I have on all my cabinet fronts as well as the shower surround and all counter tops. I HATE it !!!! Have had the same ones for 32 years and I am done with it. think I will go with a designer that works with a contractor to pick his/her brains. Did this all on my own when we built this place but won't do that again.