polished vs honed and light vs dark granite/quartzite
Peke
10 years ago
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Mgoblue85
10 years agoRelated Discussions
Soapstone vs honed black granite - honest opinions needed!!
Comments (18)There's not a SS market here. I would not do honed AB because of all the bad things I've read about it re: etching, staining, upkeep etc. It's not a true granite so it doesn't behave like a lot of the other dark granites. From what I've read, they recommend not using an impregnating sealer but a color enhancing sealer. But even then, many have major issues with upkeep. I got so sick of cleaning then polishing my polished (but gorgeous) antique brown that I can't fathom risking adding even more upkeep on a countertop. Here's a detailed article on it by a marble/granite guy and comments below. I know people here have had issues with AB too. I know not everyone has had issues, but IMO it's a crap shoot. With my luck, I'd have issues. Article & Comments Below Here's one small blurb: Another Small Blurb I'd find a different one to use. There are lots of other dark/black granites and quartzes to use with soft/honed looks....See MoreHoned Vs. Polished Granite-differences?
Comments (8)We are getting granite for the perimeter counters as well as the island in an antique finish (Cambrian Black and Persian Pearl). We decided on that finish due to not liking a really shiny finish and hearing from others that they were very low maintenance (several people on the forum appear to have Cambrian Black and all seem to love it). The slabs we saw have a slight texture to them, which looked more interesting than honed. As far as price, you do tend to pay a premium for the specialty finishes. When we were first looking, we considered Bianco Romano, however could only find it in a polished finish. The supplier offered to hone it, however were going to charge approx. $5/sq ft more, so didn't really make sense to do it. And since we couldn't see it in a honed finish, we weren't sure how it would look. It really may depend on where you are as to whether a supplier has many examples of special finishes. When we were first looking toward the end of last year, most places were telling us that due to so much inventory and the economy, they weren't ordering much new stuff. I would bet that hasn't changed much now. We had a really hard time finding the Cambrian Black and finally found a place with just 2 slabs - the problem was that they were from entirely different batches so looked very different. We finally realized though that it appeared as if one had already had sealer applied for some reason (it was prettier and much darker). We got the salesperson to break off a little piece of the other slab and put sealer on it and we couldn't tell the difference, so decided to go with them! Hopefully it will turn out OK - they are supposed to be installed next week!...See MoreSueded/Honed Dark Granite vs. light granite
Comments (6)I was also considering a lighter granite like Kashmire white with my shaker white cabs. I too worried about the upkeep and staining. After much research (mostly on this awesome gardenweb site) I ended up getting a leathered dark grey/blackish granite called Negro San Benetito or something like that (sorry cannot remember exact). I found it at my local granite yard, although I did see Lowes carried it. I absolutely love, love, love, it! It is so easy to care for that I feel I should clean it even though it looks perfectly clean. Nothing so far is staining it which is miraculous in my household! Oh and it has tiny iti-biti flecks of bronze and actually blue too, but only when sun is shining directly on it. Very cool! Sorry I thought I had a picture on my iPad to post. If you want to see let me know. I have a long ways to go to finish my kitchen, so not really posting much pictures yet. It has been a two year process already just to get counters so...yeah...its a work in progress. But I'm happy, happy!!!...See MorePolished vs Honed Granite Care?
Comments (1)We have honed granite counters so I asked the same question. I was told that they were slightly more susceptible but since we chose stain resistant stones and sealed with a 15 yr sealer, we aren't worried. Have you done a stain test with a sample of your stone? Definitely do that. We fell in love with another stone - can't recall the name at the moment - and I'm so glad we tested it first. It immediately developed big dark circles around each sample puddle. I was told that we'd need to reseal it every 6 months. No thank you! I haven't noticed a difference in appearance after sealing. ETA: we don't baby our counters at all and we haven't noticed any issues with staining. You will, however, notice the differences in the hardness of the elements that make up your stone. They reflect light slightly differently. DH and I are fine with that but we knew what to expect since we had requested honed samples of our stone....See Morenycbluedevil
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