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Where can I buy a marble slab?


sygyzy

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Does anyone that *doesn't* have a marble countertop just use a slab of marble that they take out when needed? I'd like to purchase one large enough to do work on, but small enough that it can fit in the fridge to chill and one I can stow away when not using.

Where would I go to purchase such an item and how much can I expect to pay?

Thanks.

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The one I have is an 18 X 18 inch square that I bought at a kitchen store in Seattle called City Kitchens. It has feet to raise it up a little off the counter, and it was $50.

You could see if you could find a marble company and see if they have any scrap pieces.

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My cousins had a marble business and they always had plenty of kitchen cut outs from sinks. Call or go to a marble business and tell them you are a homemaker who likes to bake and could they give or sell you a small slab of marble. They will know what type will be the best for what you are doing. This should be had for well under $100. Remember some people are nice, and others are not!!

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Haunt charity stores and garage sales - that's how I found mine and have seen dozens of them for just a few dollars. Around here the kitchen stores are charging big dollars for sink cutouts.

Anna Nielsen aka "Anna N"

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When I had tile counters I just went to a stone yard and purchased an 18 x 18 piece. I think it was half an inch thick. These are pre-cut to use as flooring usually and I do not think I paid more than $5. I used it when I was making candy every week.

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This may seem odd/gross to some but, when they were renovating an old county building I stumbled on the bathroom stall dividers. All marble in sheets approximately 6'X6'. Took away one sheet from the demo contractor for $50 and had the counter guys cut it for $20 and passed them out to friends for the holidays. Check the used building supply stores.

"I drink to make other people interesting".

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A friend had been given a marble coffee table top and she kept it for years and years...until I knew she had it. Now I have it. :laugh:

Still I did pay in chocolates.

Darienne

 

learn, learn, learn...

 

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This may seem odd/gross to some but, when they were renovating an old county building I stumbled on the bathroom stall dividers. All marble in sheets approximately 6'X6'. Took away one sheet from the demo contractor for $50 and had the counter guys cut it for $20 and passed them out to friends for the holidays. Check the used building supply stores.

The huge chunk in my kitchen was the wall divider from the men's room at Union Station in Hamilton before it was torn down.

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One of my slabs was the top on a decrepit chest I found at a thrift store for $15.00. The chest was turned into firewood as it was beyond repair. The marble is a very pretty rose and white. There was a chunk broken off one corner but I just cut the end off to square it up.(with my rock saw)

As noted above, it doesn't cost much to get a slab trimmed to the size you want.

"There are, it has been said, two types of people in the world. There are those who say: this glass is half full. And then there are those who say: this glass is half empty. The world belongs, however, to those who can look at the glass and say: What's up with this glass? Excuse me? Excuse me? This is my glass? I don't think so. My glass was full! And it was a bigger glass!" Terry Pratchett

 

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About ten or more years ago I bought a marble slab (in person) from "Vermont Marble Museum" gift shop. It is 15" x 22" and JUST fits into my fridge. It's about 5/8" thick and has cork feet. For me, it is perfect and fits on my kitchen island when I need to use it. The company is seasonal, meaning they may or may not be able to service you in the winter. I went there in the fall and few people were around, though I was able to buy my slab for about $90 at that time. I have no idea about shipping.

Ray

Here is their website:

www.vermont-marble.com

Edited by ray goud (log)
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Wow - I haven't seen a marble stall divider in person in a while. As an architect, I can't imagine specifying marble dividers today (unless I was designing for Donald Trump, which isn't going to happen, regardless) Now that I think about it, it does make sense for the application - before modern plastic laminate and enamel/epoxy coated steel dividers became available.

As long as the surface of the "reclaimed" marble isn't too scratched, it should be quite cleanable. Watch out for scratches and naturally occurring cracks, holes and pockets, as pathogens can get lodged in there. If you're having a countertop installer cut it for you, ask if they can grind/polish a fresh surface for you, that should give you a "clean slate" to work from! (I'm so punny! :rolleyes: )

If you go with a marble floor/wall tile, ask at the store if there is a sealant already on the stone - it's good that it's sealed, but the actual sealant chemicals almost certainly aren't "food safe." As for counter scrap and sink cut outs - those countertop guys should be pretty desperate - the "good old days" of the housing bubble are long gone. Don't just ask about sink cut outs - slabs crack, get dropped, orders are canceled, etc. There are a variety of scraps that could work.

I assume that for chocolate in smaller quantities, it could be thin, but for working with good quantities of dough, you would want more thermal mass from a thicker slab. What would be the thinnest slab that should work?

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Wow - I haven't seen a marble stall divider in person in a while. As an architect, I can't imagine specifying marble dividers today (unless I was designing for Donald Trump, which isn't going to happen, regardless) Now that I think about it, it does make sense for the application - before modern plastic laminate and enamel/epoxy coated steel dividers became available.

As long as the surface of the "reclaimed" marble isn't too scratched, it should be quite cleanable. Watch out for scratches and naturally occurring cracks, holes and pockets, as pathogens can get lodged in there. If you're having a countertop installer cut it for you, ask if they can grind/polish a fresh surface for you, that should give you a "clean slate" to work from! (I'm so punny! :rolleyes: )

If you go with a marble floor/wall tile, ask at the store if there is a sealant already on the stone - it's good that it's sealed, but the actual sealant chemicals almost certainly aren't "food safe." As for counter scrap and sink cut outs - those countertop guys should be pretty desperate - the "good old days" of the housing bubble are long gone. Don't just ask about sink cut outs - slabs crack, get dropped, orders are canceled, etc. There are a variety of scraps that could work.

I assume that for chocolate in smaller quantities, it could be thin, but for working with good quantities of dough, you would want more thermal mass from a thicker slab. What would be the thinnest slab that should work?

Don't worry - I had mine polished to get rid of the nicks etc.

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If you're in Manhattan there's a stone contractor literally under the West Side highway at 125th St, right by Fairway. They let me have a beautiful sink cutout, 1" thick marble, and trimmed it for me just two weeks ago for almost nothing (I tipped the cutter and the office worker, that's all)

I.

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  • 2 years later...

Does granite serve equally well, or is there something magical about marble? It seems like there are more granite odds and ends than marble out there.

It depends on where in the country you are located. Check with the places that sell and install custom counters.

There are often mis-measured and cut slabs of granite or other stone that you can bargain for, usually getting it for a fraction of the usual cost.

You don't need a super thick slab of marble - check with places that do marble facing on walls in commercial buildings. They often have left over pieces that are sold cheap and it is in larger dimensions than floor tile.

Common sizes are 2 x 3 feet and 2 x 4 ft.

"There are, it has been said, two types of people in the world. There are those who say: this glass is half full. And then there are those who say: this glass is half empty. The world belongs, however, to those who can look at the glass and say: What's up with this glass? Excuse me? Excuse me? This is my glass? I don't think so. My glass was full! And it was a bigger glass!" Terry Pratchett

 

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. . . . check with places that do marble facing on walls in commercial buildings. . . .

Aren't these sometimes treated with protective coatings/chemicals (marble is actually a rather vulnerable material, and can even burn) that may make them unsuitable for using with food?

Well I suppose one should ask. I have always gotten mine from the marble yard - generally 18 x 18" and about 3/8" thick. Quite inexpensive. During one remodel I had the tile guy set it into the ceramic tile countertop and found it handy.

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. . . . check with places that do marble facing on walls in commercial buildings. . . .

Aren't these sometimes treated with protective coatings/chemicals (marble is actually a rather vulnerable material, and can even burn) that may make them unsuitable for using with food?

Not till after they are installed.

"There are, it has been said, two types of people in the world. There are those who say: this glass is half full. And then there are those who say: this glass is half empty. The world belongs, however, to those who can look at the glass and say: What's up with this glass? Excuse me? Excuse me? This is my glass? I don't think so. My glass was full! And it was a bigger glass!" Terry Pratchett

 

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Why not just go to a business selling headstones - they often have or can acquire or can cut slabs of marble to your needs. Using a headstone supplier will allow for cutting to your required size and also they can give you the thickness you desire. One thing about thicker is that there will be less heat buildup if you are using it for hot items like peanut brittle or candies. Remember though, any stone whether it be marble or granite is most fragile in the horizontal so take care in picking it up and moving it. Storing on an edge vertically is always prefered.

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That, gentlemen, is the whirlingest dervish of them all." - The Professionals by Richard Brooks

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Does granite serve equally well, or is there something magical about marble? It seems like there are more granite odds and ends than marble out there.

Here's one difference: What's Lurking in Your Countertop?

Indeed, health physicists and radiation experts agree that most granite countertops emit radiation and radon at extremely low levels. They say these emissions are insignificant compared with so-called background radiation that is constantly raining down from outer space or seeping up from the earth’s crust, not to mention emanating from manmade sources like X-rays, luminous watches and smoke detectors.

But with increasing regularity in recent months [the article was published 24 July 2008], the Environmental Protection Agency has been receiving calls from radon inspectors as well as from concerned homeowners about granite countertops with radiation measurements several times above background levels.

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I'm in Seattle, and I think there are probably plenty of sources, but I'm looking for something pretty big, probably about 30 x 48" for the restaurant kitchen. I actually do have a smaller square of granite left from a friend's kitchen counters that I had trimmed up to about 18". Not big enough to temper any real amount of chocolate on.

So... granite is fine if I can't find marble?

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So... granite is fine if I can't find marble?

I think so. Once I got granite countertops (which I did not seal or put any sort of chemicals on) I just worked straight on the counter. So easy. I think granite is less porous than marble?

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