Question about Absolute Black Granite....
Comments (18)
momofmne
16 years agoadichristi
16 years agoRelated Discussions
Getting/making black grout dark enough for absolute black granite
Comments (5)Thanks cat_mom and Maggie, hi and thanks for your interest! I don't have any pics yet beyond the last batch I posted awhile back as to choices... we're about to order the stuff although I've already got the vanity. The big decisions were whether to tile up the walls or not ... I asked the contractor to go ahead and work into his final estimate that we'll do so ... and the tub. I have a deep old white cast iron tub that I am 90% sure I'm going to have reglazed, because it is a tight fit into the alcove and nothing I'm seeing is really quite as thin and also deep and also cast iron. So if we do that, bathroom will be: Black wood vanity, 49" kohler black enamel cast iron vanity top, black tub, black toilet (hoping for Kohler Santa Rosa if the rough-in will fit), and absolute black 12x12 tiles 8' up the wall. Above that will be an off/soft white flat paint section and ceiling, and the door will be that color. Will have a beveled 4'x4' mirror and a beveled-mirror medicine cabinet. All the fixtures will be brass, and probably the knobs on the vanity too. Going with a couple round brass robe hooks (really knobs) instead of towel racks. Getting a black porcelain recessed toilet roll holder, and will have two 12x12 granite recessed niches in the tub alcove for shower and bath use. Will very likely add an all-glass sliding tub door ... though I'd love to do without that and without a shower curtain ideally ... I'm more of a bath person. (I was thinking I could always stash a shower curtain and rod in the hall closet for shower use occasionally... but most likely will go with the sliding glass door. I'm going to get a black plantation shutter box for the bathroom window. And for lighting I will likely have a sconce on each side of the vanity with a black silk pleated shade... so there will be soft light and it will go up and down from the sconces. I may add a dimmable recessed light above the vanity but really would like to leave that option open (pre-wired) till I see what that place looks like and how much I have to tinker with lighting to get the soft glowy effect I'm after instead of glare from all the shiny black and brass. :)...See MoreAbsolute Black granite: absolutely befuddling me
Comments (9)AB...I think if you use an enhancer on honed AB the fingerprint issue goes away. As to sealing vs not sealing it, I suggest you get a sample of it unsealed and test it...if water sits on top of it and sort of beads up (i.e., isn't absorbed) then it probably does not need to be sealed. Kevin (AZStoneConsulting) has said that he's found some ABs that do need sealing...but not all do. To me, anyone who makes a blanket statement that all AB must be sealed either doesn't really know what they're talking about or are lying... (probably the former). There are a lot of people out there that think all stones have to be sealed and that's not the case. [I admit it, I was one of those who thought all granites had to be sealed...b/f I started actually learning about it. Later, I was pleasantly surprised when my KD mentioned in passing that while most of their granites are sealed, my AB would not be b/c it didn't need it...I already knew that, but it was nice to hear it from her! I did take home a sample to be sure my stone was not dyed and did the other tests while I was at it...it passed all tests with flying colors!] Here is a link that might be useful: Thread: Stone Information and Advice (& Checklists)...See MoreAbsolute Black granite honed/leathered/antiqued?
Comments (12)In my search for AB leathered granite, I encountered a variety of options ranging very dark, very textured to grey-ish with tiny texture marks - maybe more like a brushed finish. Some of these showed oily prints if not sealed. Finally found a lovely slab of Milky Way leathered granite that is the perfect deep black with great texture, with a bit of sheen that does not show prints. This was a search that I thought would be easy but proved to be a bit trickier. Good luck - it can be a beautiful material! (Mine will be installed in few weeks so I don't have good input about use yet)....See MoreJen4268? Question about your Nordic Black Granite
Comments (15)It might depend on the slab too. I know the nordic black in my butler's pantry isn't nearly as nice. When they were cutting my kitchen one of my original slabs was damaged and there wasn't enough for my pantry. I was so sad, because the new slabs the granite yard had weren't the same. The ones I ended up with were the closest match I could get, but everytime I look at them I think they are not as nice. They have more pox marks on them and are not as smooth. Luckily they are not in my main kitchen. From a distance they are OK. I can't remember my square foot price. I will try and look it up. It wasn't cheap, but it was cheaper than the soapstone and schist that I was looking at....See Moreadichristi
16 years agohappymommy
16 years agoannkathryn
16 years agohappymommy
16 years agojamesk
16 years agoI'd tend to be a little cautious about choosing honed AB granite. I have soapstone countertops in my kitchen and find them to be fairly carefree as far as everyday maintenance goes. They really are impervious to staining, although the stone is fairly soft.
On the other hand, when refacing a fireplace surround, I chose honed absolute black granite when I couldn't get my first choice of stone (black basaltina) in slabs that were large enough. I'm perfectly happy with the look of the honed AB granite, but I need to be very careful not to touch the stone when working around the fireplace. If I happen to touch the stone while tending or laying a fire, it shows every finger print. They're easy enough to remove with "Goof-off" or some other fast-evaporating solvent-- but it's a bit of a nuisance.
The problem may be less of a poblem on a countertop in constant use, but I'd still be a bit leery.
Fireplace - Before:
Fireplace - After:
black327
16 years agosherilynn
16 years agoFour sink vanities in our home have absolute black granite. It is lovely, no doubt about it. The granite is strong and took some fancy edging designs easily, which does not chip easily.
I sealed it well and have to 'stay on top' of keeping it clean. I wipe down the bathroom tops in two guest baths every single day because you can see "EVERYTHING". You see dust, drip marks from someone washing their hands. White rings develop around faucet handles fast... even though we have a water softener and I keep the bathrooms wiped down.
Knowing how hard it is to keep any dark floor or counter pristine looking and how this granite reacts with water, there is no way that I would ever use it in a kitchen. I would not have chosen it for these bathrooms, but the tops were prefabricated on these vanities units that I bought.
FWIW: I used a very dark navy blue granite with a lot of movement in my master bath. It is much easier to live with because of the 'movement'. Anyone that has movement in their granite will tell you that it is very forgiving. There is NO forgiveness with absolute black.
Here are a couple of the tops we have on some of the vanities in the sunlight before install and my navy granite with movement to 'see' what I mean.
ALSO, I only have a few small rugs in the bathrooms in front of sinks. All of my floors are tiled or stone in the bathrooms. My home is clean and I have no pets. My air filters are changed frequently and are MERV 12 or higher. I have a super, duper 'dust eater' type of filtering system on my AC units, too. I tell you this for you to understand than even the tiniest particles of dust that land on absolute black granite, show up every day. The small bath counters don't bother me. 85 sf of counter in my kitchen most certainly would bother me. I'd drive myself bonkers keeping a kitchen like mine clean with AB granite.
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16 years agonovember
16 years agobob_cville
16 years agoazstoneconsulting
16 years agonovember
16 years agohappymommy
16 years agoadichristi
16 years agominerva2
16 years ago
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