Corian vs Marble vs Granite

[robyn]

After careful consideration of all the opinions, I decided to do a granite island with Golden Flower granite ( but I wished I had thought to ask where it comes from), possibly a honed surface and sealed to prevent oil staining.

The perimeter countertops will be a light tan Corian with a tiny gray fleck and an undermount SS sink -large, single bowl serviced by a Chicago high arc faucet with wrist blades.

Back splash is 4x4' ceramic plain tile and will be as unobtrusive as possible since I want a utensil rail running the length of the counter near the cooktop.

There will be a floor to ceiling open grid style pot rack at the end of the counter, just to the left of the cooktop.

I haven't put my signature to any of this yet but D- Day is next week. D for doubt decision, demolition.

Think what a back splash is. Do you really want to splash stuff over something that has grout? I like solid back splash surfaces for ease of cleaning. Even a semi-gloss finish paint which can be wiped down is better than tile with grout in my opinion. Robyn

[robyn]

Fat Guy, WHAT were you drinking... er... I mean thinking? 

I don't think I was even 30 years old at the time, and I assure you it was the totally "in" product and we were the envy of our peer group. You could have opened up any design-and-decor magazine at the time and found this material and color used in kitchen and bath renovations. I hadn't quite figured out at that time that following trends is kind of stupid when you're buying something you have to live with for decades.

That's why I stick with my "white on white". Discovered I really liked living with it when I did my first kitchen in my first condo (it replaced a brand new kitchen with harvest gold appliances so I guess that kind of dates me). After you live long enough - just about everything passes into and goes out of style - and then it comes back again (usually just about the time when everyone has tossed whatever they had in that style in the junk heap ).

Another consideration with kitchens is stuff like dishes and glasses and accessories. People have taste in those things too. And once you assemble enough of that stuff - it's nice to have it at least most of it go with your kitchen/dining decor.

So find something you really like - and think you can live with for a reasonable period of time. Robyn

[Betts]

I have had tile backsplash for the last 8 years and not a bit of trouble - even behind the cooktop. It's the narrow grout line plain type and this replaced the "washable "paint. It is the one thing I do like about my current kitchen.

I have had laminate countertops for my 30+ years of cooking and thus have not developed certain habits that might impact my choice of countertop material. I do not put hot pots on countertops, nor do I cut anything directly on them. I have some tolerance for light scratching etc - just does not bother me.

Apparently soapstone has a lot of oil absorption problems and that is one issue that would be a problem for me. Also, got info that I'll pay a premium because I live a long way from the Northeast where it's quarried.

[fifi]

I have had tile backsplash for the last 8 years and not a bit of trouble - even behind the cooktop. It's the narrow grout line plain type and this replaced the "washable "paint. It is the one thing I do like about my current kitchen.

I have had laminate countertops for my 30+ years of cooking and thus have not developed certain habits that might impact my choice of countertop material. I do not put hot pots on countertops, nor do I cut anything directly on them. I have some tolerance for light scratching etc - just does not bother me.

Apparently soapstone has a lot of oil absorption problems and that is one issue that would be a problem for me. Also, got info that I'll pay a premium because I live a long way from the Northeast where it's quarried.

I am with you Betts. I have never found tile to be a problem and I have liked my laminate just fine.

The soapstone is treated with food grade mineral oil after it is installed, so oil staining is not a problem. Upthread, I remembered that chemistry laboratory benches and sinks used to be made of soapstone because it was indestructable. I haven't checked out the prices here in the Gulf Coast. I may consider the tile if I can make the look work for me.

[marie-louise]

As promised, the picture of my kitchen and a reminder quote of why I want to replace it. I was thinking of Corian, but now I'm not so sure. I am planning to replace the floor w/ some sort of Marmoleum. If I went w/ plain off-white Corian, I was thinking of black & white tiles, but if I leave the counters alone I could use one of their more colorful sheet floorings.

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.

Last but not least, a close up of the counters. They are almost 10 years old and I'm sure many of the cracks are due to the fact that I live less than a mile from the Hayward fault. I haven't sealed them in years...

Edited January 25, 2004 by marie-louise (log)

[Katherine]

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!"

Actually, granite is a mixture of crystals of varying durability. Quartz is forever, but feldspar will tend to etch (or weather, if outdoors), in the presence of a weak acid or even just constant moisture, eventually turning into clay, which makes a lousy counter surface.

I have a couple of etched spots on my blue pearl. They don't show, but you can feel them when you wipe the counter.

[robyn]

As promised, the picture of my kitchen and a reminder quote of why I want to replace it. I was thinking of Corian, but now I'm not so sure. I am planning to replace the floor w/ some sort of Marmoleum. If I went w/ plain off-white Corian, I was thinking of black & white tiles, but if I leave the counters alone I could use one of their more colorful sheet floorings.

Only you can say whether you hate your counters. But if you decide to replace them - much as I like white corian in my kitchen - I don't think I'd like it in yours. The gray you have now works well with the stainless appliances - and the cabinets.

By the way - what do you dislike about your current floor - and what do you think you'd like about Marmoleum (I have Marmoleum in my kitchen).

Finally - how do you upload pictures here (I've been looking and trying to figure it out for a while - and I can't)? Robyn

[tommy]

as i continue to "remodel" my kitchen in a completely back-asswards way, i'm now considering countertops as well.

does anyone have an estimate on the cost of granite vs. silestone on a square foot basis? i'm assuming they're about equal (well, at least for my 26 sf of counterspace).

[marie-louise]

By the way - what do you dislike about your current floor - and what do you think you'd like about Marmoleum (I have Marmoleum in my kitchen).

Finally - how do you upload pictures here (I've been looking and trying to figure it out for a while - and I can't)? Robyn

What I dislike about my floor is that it shows every speck of dirt-plus the grout WAS off-white-and unsealed-when we moved in. My favorite quote from one of my books is, "Have a kitchen counter that shows the dirt and a floor that hides it." I can live w/ the counters hiding dirt, as they do match the fireplaces in two adjoining rooms. I'm sick of the floors always looking dirty. This is my first tile floor; it is harder on my back to stand on than I could have ever imagined.

I was thinking of one of those bone or vanilla Corians, but besides showing the dirt, I wanted them because they I thought they were no maintenence. Who needs the grief if they're not? My concrete has developed a nice "patina" of age, so I never worry about hot pots or spills of any kind.

To upload images, go to ImageGullet (top left hand corner of the screen), upload your pictures onto this site & cut and paste the IMG link into your post. If you have trouble, go to site talk-there's a whole discussion or two on it.

[robyn]

By the way - what do you dislike about your current floor - and what do you think you'd like about Marmoleum (I have Marmoleum in my kitchen).

Finally - how do you upload pictures here (I've been looking and trying to figure it out for a while - and I can't)?  Robyn

What I dislike about my floor is that it shows every speck of dirt-plus the grout WAS off-white-and unsealed-when we moved in. My favorite quote from one of my books is, "Have a kitchen counter that shows the dirt and a floor that hides it." I can live w/ the counters hiding dirt, as they do match the fireplaces in two adjoining rooms. I'm sick of the floors always looking dirty. This is my first tile floor; it is harder on my back to stand on than I could have ever imagined.

I was thinking of one of those bone or vanilla Corians, but besides showing the dirt, I wanted them because they I thought they were no maintenence. Who needs the grief if they're not? My concrete has developed a nice "patina" of age, so I never worry about hot pots or spills of any kind.

To upload images, go to ImageGullet (top left hand corner of the screen), upload your pictures onto this site & cut and paste the IMG link into your post. If you have trouble, go to site talk-there's a whole discussion or two on it.

Thanks for the information about the picture uploads.

I agree with your thoughts about counters and floors. I have Marmoleum now - and it does hide dirt. But that's because it's basically black (with some other colors). Last floor was black vinyl with raised circles (a knockoff of similar rubber floors) - and it also hid dirt. So perhaps it's more of an issue of color than material. Robyn

[tommy]

as i continue to "remodel" my kitchen in a completely back-asswards way, i'm now considering countertops as well.

does anyone have an estimate on the cost of granite vs. silestone on a square foot basis? i'm assuming they're about equal (well, at least for my 26 sf of counterspace).

ta hell with all of ya. i already decided on granite.

[Fat Guy]

I wanted to show you all a photo of one of Ducasse's kitchens, so I went to the Ducasse Web site and filled out a request. I thought they had ignored me but today an envelope arrived in the mail from France with a slide and a nice note in it. Since we happen to have a slide scanner, I was able to capture the image. I believe this is the kitchen in France that Ducasse uses for teaching and training, but the restaurant kitchens don't look all that much different. You can see, of course, that the predominant feature is the black granite counter.

[Betts]

Beautiful - thanks for the pix