Choosing granite countertops for your kitchen

You’ve chosen your kitchen and decided that you want granite countertops. It’s a minefield, so here’s a guide to explain what to look for and what to do.

So… where do I start?

You’ve decided you want a granite countertop, it’s an essential item on your list of must-haves for your shiny new kitchen, but it’s something you’re inexperienced with. You have read all kinds of horror stories on the internet, Chinese granite, Indian granite… is it dyed? Are the installers good? Why are dating so different? Let’s try to give you a layman’s guide to what’s out there.

Pre-Produced Verses Traditional Slab Granite:-

For centuries granite (and many other stone materials) have been produced in slab form, geologists carefully select a block of stone, which can be as large as 3.5 meters long, 2 meters high and 2 meters wide. wide… it’s huge and very heavy This stone block will then be transported to the production facility where it will be cut on a huge multi-saw machine into thin slabs (usually 30mm thick). These thin slabs of granite are then transferred to polishing machines where they are polished to a high shine and any imperfect pieces are selected. These slabs are usually quite consistent in production and the thickness often does not vary much more than +/- 1mm.

These slabs are then imported into the UK and purchased by traditional masons, cut, fabricated, polished and laid in their beautiful kitchen. You’ll get a high quality custom product that should meet or exceed your expectations. The problem is that it’s going to have a custom price tag attached to it.

What if I don’t have £4k or £5K to spend on granite? I’m more of a B&Q/Magnet/Wickes/IKEA/Howden customer than Smallbone or Mark Wilkinson. But I would still like the granite, can I afford it?

Well, this is where prefab countertops changed the industry.

In granite terms, this is still a fairly new idea. That usually means that there are people who don’t fully understand what it is and how it works.

When the aforementioned large granite blocks are quarried, a selection of smaller blocks is also produced at the same time. Geological events such as veins, fissures, winds, and general inclusions make it impossible to mine large blocks all the time. These are used for other purposes such as tiling and cladding, and generally for smaller size requirements. These blocks are also used to produce precast countertops.

So instead of being sent to a large, very precise multi-saw machine for cutting, these smaller blocks are sent to another corner of the factory for vertical cutting. Basically this is a very large overhead circular saw blade (think very large like 8 foot diameter) that cuts individual slabs at a time to pre-required sizes. The material itself is still of the same quality, but the blocks are not as large and therefore not as expensive. However, the cut is sometimes not as accurate as the multi-saw material. So a 30mm top can be +/- 3mm. That means these granite pieces are 27mm to 33mm thick…so it’s important when selecting more than one piece that the thickness is within 2mm if the tops meet or touch.

So a company like mine orders containers of this stuff, we’ll order a variety of sizes, like 2400mm x 610mm x 30mm or 2500mm x 900mm x 30mm breakfast bars…providing us with blanks. The factory will also polish the edges of these caps to reduce labor in the UK.

Think of this like walking into your favorite big orange DIY store to buy a 10-foot-long laminate countertop, except it’s granite instead. A part of the fabrication is already done, the waste of a large slab is reduced and it is easier to handle from the beginning (a countertop weighs around 140kg, while a full slab can weigh up to 500kg and sometimes more).

Now there is a hybrid version of prefab countertops. In our very high volume granites (particularly Star Galaxy) we are producing so much material that it has become financially viable to cut the blocks slightly smaller on band saw cutting equipment. This provides a much higher degree of accuracy with respect to thickness, the cost of these is only slightly more than normal vertical cut material, but provides a cutting accuracy of +/- 1mm per slab.

This had?

Some more unscrupulous producers dye the material, usually black. The UK has an obsession with pure black granite, Nero Assoluto, Absolute Black, Zimbabwe, African Black… same thing, lots of different names.

Sometimes the seams of this product appear with a gray spot of light marks on the product. Occasionally, the less scrupulous supplier dyes it completely black and sells it as pure black. The tint will eventually wear off over time. There’s nothing you can do but trust your supplier that this hasn’t happened, it’s not as often as many people believe and it usually only happens with the pure black materials.

Is it Chinese, have I been told that it is garbage? Indian is better?

Well, we’ve seen trash in both regions, we’ve seen exceptional quality in both.

What we tend to do is buy a product from its country of origin, that way we are likely to get a better final product. Let’s choose one of the most popular stones available and explain how it works: Star Galaxy.

Star Galaxy is only found in one place on this planet, the Ongole region of India. So it makes sense that you buy this product from an Indian producer, but how come the Chinese sell it too? Well, it’s sent to China for processing. Common sense says that if the Chinese buy this product from India, send it to China and process it, they have to buy cheaper than the Indians to be able to sell it at the same price…so quality is sometimes a trade off. little lower.

The other side of the coin is that we would not buy Fujian White from India like we do in China, so stop worrying about its origin. If it looks good and the production is good and the slabs are a similar thickness, then you probably have a good stone.

We will add that some of the best production we have seen comes from China, they have invested a lot with the help of the government and they have bought a lot of Italian production companies wholesale and have sent equipment to China for production. Things are very different there now than they were two years ago.

Do I need my kitchen templates?

In reality, this is due more than anything to the design of your kitchen. If you’ve gone the traditional mason route, they’ll do it as a matter of course. If your room is an odd size, odd shapes, things aren’t square, then you probably need a stencil.

If you have a galley kitchen that is 10 feet long on one side and the same on the other and it’s all straight, then it’s probably not necessary.

So, which is better, the installation of precast or traditional slabs?

Actually, this is determined by the design of your kitchen.

A typical “L” or “U” shaped kitchen is usually the perfect setup for pre-fab countertops. It is very efficient, has very little waste, and can often be manufactured on site.

If you have island or mainland units, the size of these pieces will determine the most appropriate fit.

The bottom line is that a traditional fit will cost more, you are paying for a custom service to get exactly what you ask for. It will be custom made from scratch and should fit perfectly.

Prefab countertops work if your design allows for modular sizes and you might not mind an extra joint or two. The advantage is that it will be substantially cheaper. For simple kitchen cabinets, you may not even be able to tell the difference between custom-made and pre-made.

Manufacturing costs

Labor and manufacturing is what makes granite expensive, it is heavy, difficult to move, difficult to cut and very difficult to polish accurately. The more polishing requirements you have, the more the price goes up.

A simple cutout for an over-the-sink sink will take a good fitter around 30 minutes to produce and is likely to cost around £40 – £60 or so. A Franke undermount basin and half sink with tap hole, polished cutout and drain slots will take a few hours (and specialist equipment) and set you back around £450 fabrication alone. So you can see how something as simple as the design of a sink can substantially alter the price. The rule of thumb is, if you’re on a budget, keep it simple. Reduce polishing, keep all lines straight and steer clear of curves.

How do I know that I can trust the company?

Take all the usual precautions. A recommendation is worth its weight in granite, so always go that route if you can.

Choose a company that is happy to let you view the stone or even choose your own slabs before setting.

Don’t be intimidated by companies that ask for small or reasonable deposits. This is often used to eliminate time wasters.

Be sensible about it as you would any large purchase, ask questions, if you are not comfortable with the answer get a second opinion.

Get a variety of quotes and make sure you understand what you’re buying and what you’re paying for.

If you’re not sure about something, just ask, advice is free and much better before making a decision than after.

Remember you are always welcome to visit and see the stone for yourself, there is no substitute for seeing the natural products in person.