What do you wish you had known when templating your granite?

15 years ago

I am supposed to meet with the Marble fabricator & importer tomorrow to template my Calacutta Gold Marble kitchen Countertops tomorrow.

The short version of the story..

I have been looking at these slabs of Calacutta Gold for 6 months. I did not put any $ down on them because I wasn't sure I could afford them. I have saved up and can do it now.

I go to the yard often cause it is close by. The other day I went by to see the slabs again..I saw that there was a hold on the slabs for a designer. This sent me into action.

It turns out that there is enough marble for my job & the designer.

They have already templated the designers job.

Obviously it benefits the dealer to squeeze both jobs out of the 4.25 slabs they have left.

Question: WHAT SHOULD I BE AWARE OF THAT I DO NOT KNOW?? I know nothing

Thanks so much for you help!

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Comments (6)

rennovatorjen
15 years ago
Suggestion: Cut a mock-up out of luann (sp?) or plywood and live with it for awhile to make sure the shape and overhang are what you want. I have a 9' x 5' curved island and I am so glad I did this because I was able to move it around and make a couple of changes before coming up with the final template. I like a good amount of overhang on my counters, especially in front of the sink where you want to be away from water splattering, and the granite gets very fragile at those narrow spots. So try to go for at least 3" on those narrow spots.
pvrick
15 years ago
Make sure you know where the seams will be if any.
On our kitchen, we bought it with beautiful granite. The installer seamed the granite over the dishwasher and trash compactor. There is no cabinet face support over the seam. As a result, the face has settled some, causing the seam to be uneven (1/8 inch or so) They have tried to repair twice, but only lasts a couple of months.
Had they of put the seams over something where there was a cabinet face to support, it would not have settled.
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buddyrose
15 years ago
I second pvrick about seams. Ask your fabricator if you can be there when they lay out the template. This way you can discuss seams, if any are needed, and also see how the stone will be cut. Ideally, you don't want veiny stones with pieces not matching.

check out the rock blog and read up, also. I learned a lot from this blog. other people on this site have also recommended blogs that have lots of information.

Here is a link that might be useful: rock blog
nicole__
15 years ago
I had my own 4 slabs of ganite so I didn't have to worry about matching the grain of the pattern. Since your splitting an order of granite you may wish to see how they are laying out the grain before they cut and make it final. My BIG concern was the cabinet bases. DH was able to reinforce the bases so they could hold the weight of granite, plus the possible weight of a person sitting or standing on the counters(it could happen). He also leveled the cabinets prior to installion, he found a slight slope he corrected.
azstoneconsulting
15 years ago
here's my .02 cents-

Calacutta/Calacotta (you say po-TATE-Oh, I say po-TOT-oh, actually I say "spud")
is a MARBLE - with the majority of the stone being CALCIUM...

Calcium reacts with ANY form of ACID - lemon,lime,tomatoe/tomatto,grapefruit,
and anything else that has acid in it...

Are you using this in a kitchen application? if so, I would
STRONGLY (in the most professional sense of the word) ADVISE YOU
to consider having a "textured" surface - aka: honed, leathered, antiqued..etc

I did a podcast at Natural Stone 101.com (actually two on the same subject)
that talks about the issue of acid etching of polished marble, textured surfaces,
and sealing the stone to help retard the potential of staining...

hope that helps y

kevin
alterit
Original Author
14 years ago
I am getting the marble honed and sealed.

I have tested a piece of the marble...unsealed...and have seen how careful I will have to be.

I just had the template completed...I have some issues with uneven walls...I am worried about BIG gaps now. My contractor opened a wall in the bathroom and added a few pieces of wood to bring out the wall...not sure how this will end up.

What do you wish you had known when templating your granite?

Comments (6)

rennovatorjen

pvrick

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What do you wish you had known when templating your granite?

Comments (6)

rennovatorjen

pvrick

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nicole__

azstoneconsulting

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