Corian vs Marble vs Granite

[fresco]

I'd have thought Corian was doomed to oblivion, simply because of their dumb, super-restrictive licencing and servicing policies. Is it even installed much anymore?

[KathyP]

I have Corian in my kitchen. Yes, it can scratch as I've already proven that. You must be careful with hot pots and pans, for sure. The counter is dark green with flecks of black and smoke. I did not get the integral sink; I went with a black Kohler sink to match my appliances. It looks beautiful and as long as I treat it nicely, it only adds to the value of our home. Would I do it again? No, in hindsight I would have gone with granite.

[beans]

When I first bought my house (about 12 years ago) I did initially give corian some serious consideration and am so glad I held out for black granite.

The worries of placing a hot pot upon a countertop has never been a concern as I spent much time in parents/grandparents/apartment rentals all with kitchens with formica laminate tops that cannot withstand being a landing spot for hot pots or pans or function as a cutting board.

Funny, my grandmother's house was originally built with wood kitchen floors and marble countertops (old farmhouse). She had them removed. They were in her opinion too old fashioned, in lieu of "easy care" laminate countertop and linoleum. My house, about the same age as hers, was gutted when I purchased it, except for the original wood flooring, fireplace and some moldings. I installed granite counters and almost considered keeping the wood flooring!

[Mottmott]

If I had an island (particularly without cutouts for sink or stovetops), I might consider one of these stones or manufactured stones for their appearance. After all, it becomes a focal point visually.

But for countertops, I like laminate formica. It's very serviceable and inexpensive enough that if you do damage it or get tired of the color, it's reasonable to make a change every few years if you care to. I don't have acres of counterspace and could afford whatever I surface I choose. But it seems so wasteful to put so many thousands of dollars into something that provides minimal benefit over formica. After using my (black) formica countertop for 20 years, it is just now beginning to show a trace of wear in the space between the sink and stove where it gets the most use.

The only thing about the stone counter that tempts me is that it might improve the resale value of the house. Does anyone have hard information about how useful stone is from that point of view?

[fifi]

The only thing about the stone counter that tempts me is that it might improve the resale value of the house. Does anyone have hard information about how useful stone is from that point of view?

I have seen information on the resale value of various remodeling projects and how they pay out but I can't find it right now. Maybe someone with better googling skills will help out. I think it was associated with some kind of remodeling contractors association.

When I was selling my house, my realtor told me that sometimes the value of something like that is not necessarily in the money returned but in a quicker sale. But she also said that something high value like granite can be a turn off if it is a particularly "striking" pattern because people are hesitant to rip it out and replace it. So... Who knows. I didn't look into it any further because my house was only about 6 years old when I sold it so I wasn't seriously considering changing anything.

[Marlene]

When we re-did our kitchen, we ended up going with granite. We considered Silestone, but had some trouble getting it here. We love the granite. You have to reseal it every couple of years, but you can cut on it, put hot pans on it and more.

[slkinsey]

I am actually surprized more people don't mention soapstone. I'm definitely going with a mixture of soapstone and end-grain butcher block when the time comes.

[fifi]

I saw the soapstone featured on Martha Stewart. When she built the new studio it had soapstone counters and even a REALLY big sink. She explained why she chose it, how she got it done and how to care for it. It was beautiful. It looks like one of those things that will acquire a distinctive "patina" with age and use. The only maintenance appears to be wiping down occasionally with food grade mineral oil. Does anyone know how the cost compares?

[Fat Guy]

In my entire life, I've never heard tell of anybody's granite countertop fracturing. I consider the likelihood of that happening to be about on par with the probability of Jason spontaneously combusting.

[fifi]

In my entire life, I've never heard tell of anybody's granite countertop fracturing. I consider the likelihood of that happening to be about on par with the probability of Jason spontaneously combusting.

That likely, huh?

[Fat Guy]

Granite has been with us for like a billion years. There's granite from ancient fucking Rome that has been sitting outside exposed to the elements every damn day for millenia and it still looks fine. Nobody sealed it every year and I refuse to believe the Coliseum would fracture if you put a hot pot on it. These are the same bullshit objections to granite that the lying scum who sold me Corian raised -- I was stupid enough to believe this once, but never again. My next kitchen is going to have tons and tons of granite in it and in the year 4000 they're going to find it and say, "Hey, this stuff is great -- we need to get it in our kitchen!"

[Varmint]

I will very likely use granite in my renovation, but it'll be large-ish granite tiles and a couple of solid pieces that a friend will pull from the scrap heap!

[Fat Guy]

There should be plenty of it around, given that something like a quarter of the damn planet's crust is made of it.

[fifi]

Knowing the chemical composition and structure of granite, I really don't get the sealing bit. We have a lot of red granite in Texas. The state capital was built with it. The jetties that stick out into the gulf at inlets to bays is made of big chunks of it. Then there are the tombstones that have been sitting out for 100+ years. I can't think of a "sealer" that would add anything to granite but goop. Does anyone know what granite sealer is? I can tell you that anything other than a siloxane of some sort is just stupid. (Still no need for the siloxane.)

[Dave the Cook]

If I had the budget for Corian, I'd do my best to stretch it far enough to get granite instead. (On the other hand, if I had that kind of budget, countertops would almost certainly lose out to a new car.)

More practical and affordable, I think, is a mix of materials appropriate to specific areas: wet, hot, cool, work, etc. I think Fat Guy once posted about a friend of his that used both granite and tile to this effect. I'd happily employ these plus stainless steel and laminate to make best use of each material -- and my money.

[KathyP]

Good points all on resale or 'value.' Our house is 1963, custom built from plans by the original owner. We're the second owners. While I still loathe the kitchen floor which is some type of vinyl (underneath is old asbestos tile) and will be gone by the end of the year, the original countertops were the white formica with gold stars. I'm sure you know the ones. The cabinets, however, were Schierich. Birch. And lots of them. They are still in great shape and I couldn't see pulling them out just because they were original. Rather than go with more formica, I opted for the dark green Corian. I probably could have replaced all the cabinets and countertops with moderate priced ones for the same amount of $. However, aside from the ugly-assed floor, the kitchen looks great and is very functional. Now, if only I can decide on a floor. Any ideas?

[slkinsey]

Granite has been with us for like a billion years. There's granite from ancient fucking Rome that has been sitting outside exposed to the elements every damn day for millenia and it still looks fine. Nobody sealed it every year and I refuse to believe the Coliseum would fracture if you put a hot pot on it.

Um... the Coliseum in Rome is made of concrete, with travertine for the piers and arcades.

Point well taken about the durability of granite, though.

[marie-louise]

The only thing about the stone counter that tempts me is that it might improve the resale value of the house. Does anyone have hard information about how useful stone is from that point of view?

Today, it will improve the value of your house. Ten or twenty years from now prospective buyers will be whining, "oh my God, the kitchen is SO dated, we'll have to rip it out immediately..."

I am planning to redo my countertops at some point, too. I'll tell you why and what I was thinking of switching to, and hopefully someone can steer me in the right direction.

I live in a new Craftsman home. It is a pretty faithful replica of one of those 1920's bungalows, although it does have a few modern touches like a good foundation and sufficent wiring. The cabinets are vertical grain Douglas fir, and they match the cabinetry, woodwork, and box beam ceilings in rest of the house. So they are staying. The counters are currently a very nice dark grey concrete w/ little flecks of colored stone in them; the same concrete was used for the fireplaces in my dining and living rooms. The sink is stainless steel overmount. Why do I want to replace them? I hate how I can never tell whether or not they are clean. I have white formica cabinets/ countertops at my beach house, and I like that the counters look CLEAN when they are. If I roll out pastry, I know I'm starting on a clean surface just by looking. The concrete is so patterned that I never feel like it looks clean. And I hate cleaning that sink seam.

So... I was thinking of replacing it with one of the off white plain Corian countertops and an integrated sink that is bullnosed. I saw it in a showroom and thought the idea of having a no seam at all into the sink was amazing. I don't want anything flecked, so granite, Silestone, et al are out. The house really does look old, so Formica just wouldn't look right. Black soapstone would work, too, and even if the sink couldn't be integrated as well, it could still be undermounted. Subway tiles or nice handcrafted tiles on the backslash would also fit.

Other suggestions for the look I want? You've made me think twice about Corian...

PS I have to seal the concrete every year or so, but it just takes a few minutes. I pour something on, spread it around, and let it dry for a half-hour.

[KathyP]

Marie-Louise, I would take a cast iron sink over an Corian sink any day. The flow of the Corian may look good, but for durability you can't beat cast iron.

[fifi]

Silestone looks a lot like the Corian to me. But the soapstone idea sure seems to be a fit with your architecture.

[Stone]

Anybody seen concrete countertops? My friend has one, and it gets water stains. He's always yelling about wiping up any spills immediately. What's the point?

[fifi]

I have an archetect friend that has one. It is more susceptable to acid than marble. It has to be sealed and the sealer flakes off. It is a PITA and she is going to replace it. She said it seemd like a good idea at the time. And it ended up not being cheap, either.

[Blondie]

Sam is right on about soapstone. I would have a hard time choosing between that and slate if I were redoing my own kitchen. Kirkstone, an English slate, is beautiful too.

And as long as we're at it, Liscannor stone would be my first choice for stone flooring. It's a riven sandstone from County Clare in the west of Ireland, and has beautiful swirling patterns formed by fossilized marine life. If you've ever been to the Cliffs of Moher you may have noticed the Liscannor flagstones on the pathway up to the overlook.

[fifi]

Vermont Soapstone is where Martha got hers. This is a site to drool over. Go to some of the pictures to really appreciate it. I am beginning to weaken. Countertops are $77 a sqft. But they have tiles for $12.10 a sqft. HMMMM...

edit to add: DUH! I am a real dummy. I know where I have seen this stuff before. Laboratory bench tops! In some of the older labs I have worked in. I plead temporary amnesia.

[Hest88]

Back when I thought we'd be re-doing our kitchen, I did a whole bunch of research on countertop materials. As I recall, I'd concluded that the most durable, maintenance-free materials are engineered quartz (such as Silestone), the darker granites (the lighter ones need to re-sealed every so often), and New England or Vermont slate (slate from other area is of inferior quality and is quite a bit more porous).