Granite countertops

[bgmny]

We(wife) are looking at getting granite countertops installed in our house. Anyone have opinions on where to start looking for them? Anyone from FM do countertops for a living or recommend someone that they have worked with?

[sparcebag]

Try the BOX stores for better prices,they most likely can give references get them then ask those installers for at least 3 of their install job references and contact them!! Ask about workmanship,cleanup,were they ontime,even if you could look at their work!!! Some newer people give relatives for references,just for referal reasons,so ask to see the final product.

When they come to install BE READY FOR THEM!! have a clear walkway,nothing in kitchen thats not fixed down,even get a roll of rosin paper and cover floors its cheap and stay out of their way.Good Luck!

[bigswede]

Dont always think that the box stores are going to have the best price. My brother is building and they are using silestone countertops. The big Orange box store here in Duluth was $1800 more than the other 3 quotes he had. Just beware.

[Barony]

I have a friend who makes concrete counter tops that are really cool. The perception of concrete counter tops is that they are like your sidewalk, but that is not the case. He likes to use ground up recycled glass and can do a number of things. We have these counter tops in our home and they are brown with brown glass in them. He can tint the concrete almost any color, add different glass colors, whatever a person wants. He has a space in the Swedish Box Store across from MOA and everything is custom made. Price should be a little cheaper than granite and is a great conversation piece.

If you want some info on what he does, shoot me an email and I'll send you a link to his web site. Have to see them to appreciate what they look like.

[Flinny]

You should be able find many differnt countertop companys in the yellow pages. I would get as many bids as you can, and work them against each other. Times are slow should be able to get a great price right now.

[Snowking]

is granite the only choice? id look at crushed quarts most is nsf approved and there very little upkeep unlike granite. do you have over a ten foot run ? if you do theres going to be seams. id look at soild surface a little cheaper than granite and no seams. plus if it gets scratched you can sand it out and it will look like new. i have a chunk of granite at work that was 2400.00 my cost but there is so much sand in it that its no good for a counter top

[fast40m]

Minnesota Granite and marble in maplewood. Awesome!!!!

[Lip_Ripper Guy]

If you consider something besides granite, I'd look to Avonite. You can get the same look, without the hassles of granite, for about 1/3 less. I would highly recommend it.

[Black_Bay]

Has anyone has experience with Cambria counter tops?

[Walleye Guy]

We installed Cambria countertops in our lake home in Wisconsin. I would buy Cambria again in a moment. Its easy to care for, and has a more consistent color pattern and it doesn't need any sealing. When you buy a quartz product you get exactly what it looks like in the showroom. Because granite is natural it may have more of a random pattern. Some people prefer that. When I am spending that kind of cash I wanted to make sure I got exactly what I ordered. Dn't get me wrong I really like granite. I just like Cambria (quartz) better. You can't go wrong with either.

If you are looking for a great dealer, contact Select Surfaces in Roseville. Very price competitive and their installation techs do the installations for HomeValue. They did my installation in WI and I did multiple quotations from both MN & WI based dealers. They also sell Silestone and a bunch of other solid surfaces countertops.

[only ice]

I put granite in my home last summer. We love it!! I put a BLUE PERL, its from Sweden. I dont plan on going anywhere soon and it will last for ever. Its worth the money!!

[Borch]

Price varies greatly depending on where you are buying from. For us Granite was cheaper than or equal to the quartz countertop products. After checking many installers we found a smaller shop that had what we were looking for and for significantly less than the big box stores we checked. With the building slow down I would think that some would come down a lot more just to keep their folks busy.

We love our granite and wouldn't trade it for anything.

[reddog]

Most granites require very litle to no maintenance. Its the 30% or so that are very susceptive to staining that gives the manufactured surfaces ammunition.

Different shops will price a job out different ways. To begin with, ultimately, it is calculated by the sq inch and sold by the sq ft, plus fabrication costs. If you take your exact pieces, and calculate it out to sq ft, and round up, you will find out the job size. Some companies will quote edgework separately, and other will do an all inclusive quote.

My jobs typically are split 50/50 between granite and quartz products. When I say quartz, I mean Cambria.

You can use larger pieces when using granite, because typically, the sheet sizes are larger to begin with. Like 72X120.

Quartz sheets are 54X120, with a net useable surface of 52 X 116

I prefer Cambria, not because of the product,(ps. its a great product also) but the fabrication. The finished product when fabricated out of the factory plant is impeccable. The other benefit to Cambria is that in my area, all colors are the same cost and all of the availabe edges are the same cost. There is no other quartz product out there,(or solid surface) that has this available to the customer.(this may not be typical in your area) Most have at least 4 or 5 price groups, and the good looking colors arent the cheap ones.

When someone asks me how it (quartz) compares to granite or solid surface, my answer is always, "it depends" Not to be evasive or anything, but unless you have a granite color or solid surface color and edge picked out, it is not possible to accurately compare prices between them.

To get an ogee edge on a granite job, can typically raise the price anywhere between $700 and $1200 depending on the scope of the job. The ogee edge is standard with Cambria.

To compare Uba tuba (verde Labrador) to Cambria, with a standard granite edge, the granite would typically be less.

To compare Blu Eye or volga blue to Cambria, with a standard granite edge, the Cambria would probably be less expensive.

Almost every granite color has a different price. Try not to get a price range. Pick a color out and stay with it. The problem with actually picking a color out is that the store will assume that this deal is a go and may price accordingly. If you chose granite, then you should pick your slabs out in person and discuss how and where it will be cut for seamwork if there is alot of "movement" in the stone. Many of the stones, like Absolute Black, Dakota Mahogany are very consistent in color, and will seam up well, with little regard to seam location from sheet to sheet. There are also many stones that have considerable "movement" in the grain patterning and seaming at the wrong location in a sheet can leave you will less than desirable seam appearance, regardless how tight and flush it is.

If youre going to spend the money on a stone top of any kind, then you want to make sure you are getting the best in materials and fabrication equipment. Ask if they use electronic templating. Ask if they use gorilla clamps on the seam when they install. Ask to see a representative sample of their seamwork. If they tell you that this is what they have in their showroom, but their current seam work going out of the shop is better than this, take it with a grain of salt. Make them show you a seam that is going to be representative of what you are going to be getting. If its acceptable, run with it, if not, run from it

Backsplashes can add quite a bit of expense to a job. The reason being is that typically, there is as much edgework on a backsplash, as there is on a countertop, but no material to make any money on. Kind of like getting a price ona sidewalk and a driveway froma concrete guy, The driveway is going to cost $3.25 a sft, and the sidewalk is going to cost $6.50 a sft. There is no materials, for the same amount of forming, edgework etc. I typically tell my customers that they could tile the complete backsplash area, for what a 4 inch high stone splash would cost. Personally, I like the splash for appearance, but I do offer this deletion to my customers.

The quartz seamwork, has caused the granite industry to "step up" their seam program. This is good for the consumer and the stone industry.

[polarsusd81]

Reddog,

Thanks for posting up that info, there is a lot to take in there but you seemed to hit all the points perfectly. A very good read for anyone looking to do counter tops. Something I am looking to do in a year or two.