HELP Want to remove countertops just installed

15 years ago

I would like to remove silestone countertops and a silestone backsplash that was just installed as well as silestone on an island.

I love carrera marble and got talked into silestone by my kitchen designer. I immediately regretted it. We have a kitchenette in the basement we have yet to do (our house is new construction). I would like to have the silestone taken out and cut to fit the dimensions of that space. Couple questions. Anyone taken out silestone without damaging the cabinets or the silestone itself? Everything is brand new, so I am concerned about doing more damage than good. I know taking out the backsplash will damage the wall, but I'm hoping since I plan to put more backsplash up this won't matter too much. I know I will have to pay for refabrication of the silestone - cuts, edges etc. Should I expect to pay a lot for that? Also, if I have to do this I may need to have seams where I didn't plan in the basement piecing the silestone together. Anyone have seams in silestone? Are they hard to hide? If we need to order additional silestone is it hard/impossible to match - slabs like granite - or is it more uniform since it is man-made???

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (3)

roey736
15 years ago
Definitely more uniform. I had to redo a caesar stone side splash after we changed the wall and the match is spot on. As for cost, it was $70 for 19"...I'm guessing you should be prepared to pay. Lucky for you that you have another place to use the stone. GOOD LUCK!
live_wire_oak
15 years ago
"Just installed" can mean many things. Hours? Days? Weeks? The longer it sits, the more the silicone cures and the more difficult it will be to remove. So, you need to call your counter fabricator right away and get an estimate for the job. As for costs, I'd expect that refabricating the counters for the basement to be 2/3 the cost of the original countertops or more plus the cost of whatever new counters you want for your kitchen. Remaking something is always more labor intensive and difficult than cutting it out of a blank slab. Labor costs plenty, even if the material is essentially "free". Engineered stone is fairly uniform, but it is created in "batches" just like anything else, and even with computer controlled portioners, there can be slight variations in those batches. So, if your layout or color is such that you need an exact color match on the same run, then the sooner you contact your fabricator to locate those slabs the more chance you have of obtaining them.
Related Discussions
Removing just-installed granite countertops--is that possible?
Q
Comments (2)
I would not remove the granite yourself. If you can have her contact another stone installer to see what they can do. It might be able to be repaired in place. Good luck and please becareful granite is terribly heavy. ~boxer
...See More
Silestone countertops just installed and look great, HOWEVER
Q
Comments (9)
thanks for your reply, Raehelen. I'm waiting for the installers to call me back (they don't appear to be in any hurry). They will have to come back not only because of the lack of sink clips (btw, they took the ones I provided them....probably used them on someone else's sink), but I suspect they did not affix the d/w to the countertop properly, either. Looks like they just glued the fastener on the left side of the d/w to the countertop, and did nothing with the prong on the right side. Again, they are not supposed to use glue, they were supposed to bolt the d/w to the countertop. They are probably off somewhere now sniffing the glue they are so fond of using, LOL! Was expecting to have a functioning new kitchen today, and instead have more problems. Wish I'd caught these mistakes before they left, will now have to take another day off from work. Anyone reading this, learn from me and don't be so bedazzled by the pretty look of your new countertop that you forget to check that they did the practical stuff right!
...See More
Help: forgot to remove mold prior to cement backerboard installation.
Q
Comments (7)
ok,,so I just looked again and saw this was brick. and you're putting that wood right on top of this brick,,,with no other waterproofing(of the brick),,, so, brick sucks up the moisture from outside and transfers it to these boards. more mold. this whole wall needs to be done correctly. you can't just leave that brick like that. You should have had the mold remedied, brick sealed/waterproofed, wall furred out,, high density foam insulation, treated lumber, then set your tub and moved forward. and yes,,all that mold needs to be remedied because it will 100% continue to spread. It's still live and what have you done to waterproof that window? anything done to that? I sure hope you didn't leave it as is in that picture. good thing you caught this now before you tiled.
...See More
Cost to install columns for load-bearing wall that we want removed
Q
Comments (30)
Wow. I’m just gonna be straight. I’m very offended. I have no plans to do this myself. This started as just a question about COST. I get that it might be difficult to assess over the internet. I NEVER said I was doing the work myself. I WILL BE hiring a contractor. In fact I mentioned that one is coming on Monday. I was just trying to COST things out. I’m not an idiot. I don’t base decisions on HGTV. WTF? Just to help commenters in the future ... maybe you shouldn’t make assumptions about the OP’s motives, plans, capabilities, thought processes... I got some good info here but I really wasn’t expecting to be insulted in the process. So I’d appreciate it if everyone just dropped it. Pretend you never even read such a stupid question as “how much does this cost” so you can all sleep at night. Oh, and for those of you that think I’m an idiot for wanting to open the wall, please don’t waste my time. I asked about cost. Heck, I just expected someone to say that either there’s a huge cost difference, there’s no cost difference or it’s not possible to know without seeing it in person. I did get that last response and some great info from a few folks. But then I was called an idiot, that I lack a multitude of capabilities, that I base decisions on HGTV, that I have horrible tastes, etc. Wow. Maybe I just don’t know the etiquette. Is it okay to ask questions on Houzz that I don’t know the answer to? Is it okay to not be a professional contractor? Is it okay to not know what I don’t know? Maybe I’ll update this thread after I’ve destroyed my house and I’m living in a shed. Because I’m just that stupid, right?
...See More
petra_granite
15 years ago
Yes: and get a price and make them give you a deal: they are going to try and take you for a ride!
We uninstall granite: and silestone is stronger. A lady hired us to take out her 98x26 countertop : she wanted an undermount sink for christmas party: when we removed the granite broke down the middle where sink sat: (skinny part): that was installed 5 years prior.
We have had to remove coutertops before: granite right after install. even 4 mounths after install.

Risk: stone cracking or braking: silestone is strong!

they should charge: tear out, re fabricate, and re-install where you want it: only: but there is a chance of damage to cabinets or walls. You just have to remember that.

Marble in your kitchen: are you sure? You know marble etches, stains, scratches, and will even yellow from bad sealer applied to the marble very easy? (!!!!!!!!!!!!)
You take a sample and start running your own test on that sample.

Especially Carra Marble! Danby Marble from Vermont is beautiful. We installed once last year. But that person did test projects for over a week on her sample.

Your car keys will scratch the marble!

Do your homework on marble before you make up your mind.
Go get a scrap piece of marble from the stone yard.
I had a guy in my shop the other day teaching a class on stains on natural stone : how to take out stains.
He took a few pieces of marble.
Or go buy one piece of 12x12 carra marble from home depot or lowes and start: apple juice, orange juice, ketcup, tomato paste, sause, olive oil, cooking oil, bacon grease, milk, blood, coffee, tea, wine, city water stains!!!!, soap stains, water ring stains: (use coasters to set drinks on); bleach, thats a few things: koolaid! grape juice, cranberry juice, ice cream, fruit, peanut butter, jelly.......

best wishes:

Calcutta Danby Marble Vermont

HELP Want to remove countertops just installed

Comments (3)

roey736

live_wire_oak

Related Discussions

petra_granite

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US