Granite Countertops: Tell me about yours and if it's worth it to get them

[Anonymous]

I have black on our island and "butler's pantry" and mixed (giallo) on the rest. Ohhhhh if I had only known. The black is a disaster..I am always wiping and it never looks clean while the mixed lighter on the rest always looks wonderful. I am considering taking out the dark since I am sick of the streaks and marks. It's awful!! I do remember our contractor mentioning this to me but I was so in love with the black I thought.."oh not a big deal" but yes a huge deal!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:LOVE our Silestone.

Agree. We love our silestone too! Easy, no sealing.

[Anonymous]

I love my granite. It is beautiful. It is so beautiful it inspires me to keep my counters cleared off and clean, to whatever degree practical. I love the natural beauty. Worth every penny, no regrets. And I have a huge kitchen and the biggest island many people have every seen.....

[Anonymous]

PS I have a primarily black granite, called "Uba Tuba' and two little kids. It's a mottled black, with greens, golds, and pearls.... I wipe the counter after they use it. No problems keeping the granite clean looking.

[Anonymous]

I hate 'em - they're hard as a rock! I much prefer Corian, which I also think looks nicer

[Anonymous]

I love our granite - butterfly verde is the name, I think? anyway, it's not very dark and is beautiful. Cleans up nicely and only have to seal once a year.

i don't even notice the 'hard as a rock' part of granite. I've had tile counters and THOSE broke and chipped every dish I ever owned.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thanks for all of your responses, they are very helpful.


10:57: I suppose you mean that if you dropped a plate on your tile, it would break because of the hardness of the tile?

[Anonymous]

I have the honed black and I hate it. Just got it too. Wish I had thought to post first. It shows all the smudge marks and never really looks clean.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I hate 'em - they're hard as a rock! I much prefer Corian, which I also think looks nicer

LOL! They ARE a rock!

[Anonymous]

I have tropical brown granite and love it! It is a pattern so it doesn't show every mark and water spot. I think that is key. I got small samples of a few colors and tried to stain them or make a mess of them, and the solid colors showed everything whereas the patterns don't. No damage after four years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have granite, and I think it looks great (browns and tan with a touch of bluish). My problem is that it always looks clean, even when it isn't. I would prefer some light silestone that shows the dirt more so that I would have an easier time cleaning it. I want my kitchen to be clean, not look clean.

We have a golden oak color granite and we love it. Both the good and the bad is it doesn't really show much dirt. At first I would think, is that a wine stain - and it would be part of the pattern. We also use glass cutting boards along where we would place things - next to the stove, by the sink - so we can put bottles, cups etc. and not worry about placing something down that would stain the granite. DH seals the countertops once a year. Overall, I wouldn't say we baby the counters. I probably don't wipe them down as much as I should, we use the glass cutting boards to cut down on things sitting on the counter that could cause a problem (like placing the bottle of olive oil that I used that may have oil dripping down the side after using it) - and we haven't had any problems. The only thing we have had to watch out for is water stains - if water gets under the glass cutting board near the sink - or at the back of the sink near the faucet. I think the stone may absorb it over time, but at first you can really see the difference where water has sat for awhile.

I would say to look at the materials and see what appeals to you. We opted for silestone in the bathroom because we really didn't want to worry about anything and a bathroom has lots of water, toothpaste stains, and using hot appliances for hair.

[Anonymous]

I had shiny brown and beige granite in a previous kitchen, which I hated, hated hated. I could never tell if it was clean because I couldn't see the dirt, so I'd always put papers or my hand down on the counter and end up with gunk on something. Also, the shiny granite reflected the undercabinet lights, which made it very uncomfortable to cook.

I had Corian in another kitchen, and hated that too. It looked greyish after a while, and you couldn't put pots down on top of it.

I have honed black granite in my current kitchen and I love it. It doesn't reflect the cans or undercabinet lights, I can put hot pots directly on it, it never chips (although metal can scratch it). I didn't seal it, because I don't use any chemicals in my home, and those sealing chemicals are very, very nasty. I wipe it down with mineral oil every once in a while if it starts looking dry. I use water and a microfiber cloth to keep it looking great. Super-easy to maintain. It's not environmentally friendly, however, because granite is non-renewable. If I had to do it over again, I'd get a composite like Silestone, or a glass-based countertop. Granite is very hard, and glasses break if you drop them on it.

The PP who said her granite chipped, probably does not have granite. Soapstone is beautiful, but it chips, so does slate, both of which look similar to honed granite. I considered getting soapstone, but I knew it would chip in our household (very active kids), and I didn't want that worry. Granite won't chip unless you hit it with a sledgehammer.

[Anonymous]

I have a question for both the granite people and the Silestone people.

Granite people: Do you cook a lot and with foods that are highly staining? DH and I are big-time into cooking, and we need something that can hold up to a lot of use. I think granite is gorgeous, but I'm not sure if it's practical for people who would put it to some heavy use. I think we would end up staining (curries, dark vegetables and fruits, not to mention coffee and wine) and damaging granite.

Silestone people: What finish do you use - the regular or the Leather? I love the honed and matte look of the Leather series, but I think it would probably look smudged and stained pretty quickly. Would you be willing to report which Silestone (Yellow Nile, Blue Sahara, etc) you used, and whether or not you like the way it looks?

[Anonymous]

We have a dark granite (black with gray flecks). We last sealed it 5 years ago. It doesn't have any stains. We are careful with vinegar and lemon juice. We use cutting boards for cutting, mostly so we don't dull our knife blades, but also to maintain the sealant. We cook every night, but we aren't messy cooks. That is, we generally wipe up spills quickly, use a spoon rest, etc.

The granite does show smudges and streaks if you aren't a good wiper. I love Method's Daily Granite. We have also tried Williams-Sonoma's counter spray and I find it leaves a sticky film behind.

[Anonymous]

Silestone user - we had Rosa Grey in one kitchen with maple cabinets with natural finish and then Alpina White, again with Maple Cabinets with a slightly warmer finish. We did not do the leather finish. We loved both countertops, both the way they looked and the fact that they don't stain or smudge - although Rosa Grey was EXTREMELY difficult to see dirt on - which is both a blessing and a curse.