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Cultured Marble Kitchen Countertops

15 years ago

Greetings!!!

I want to know if anyone has ever used cultured marble for a kitchen countertop? I am really looking for a marble-like surface that is NOT marble. I want it to look like white carrara marble. Any suggestions??? The truth is I LOVE marble and really want to use the real deal for the kitchen countertops.... BUT I don't trust myself to keep up with the maintenece or want to worry about spills.

Thanks!

Featured Answer

jakkom

15 years ago

Ah, so there is some confusion in terms. You are looking at quartz and solid surfacing, not cultured marble? It was my understanding cultured marble is not approved for kitchen counters, it lacks sufficient strength.

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Comments (8)

edlakin
15 years ago
a few people here have had good luck with Danby marble, which is real marble, but is a harder variety that holds up better to kitchen use. there are a couple granites that somewhat mimic the look of marble. and caesarstone makes a counter surface called "misty carrera" that's a decent-looking facsimile.

good luck!
rmkitchen
15 years ago
And Okite has a few, one of which is available through Zodiaq. (bianco carrara)
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I bet you will not have to replace the vanity once you replace the faucets with really nice substantial models. Replace the tub and shower trim to match. You can even change the finish on your tub and shower to match new faucets. If you have a roman faucet, pick out that trim first and then get matching lav faucets. It is perfectly acceptable to have a cultured marble vanity. Buy your faucets on line or at a plumbing supply store, not at the big box stores. Buy faucets whose model numbers match those on the manufacturers websites. Tile your floor. Put a nice coat of car wax on your cultured marble, (but not the shower pan) Step back and voila, you have a new bathroom.
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I couldn't wait to get rid of my white cultured marble vanity tops when we remodeled our bathrooms. Sorry! Bath vanities are often so small, you can probably find granite or quartzite remnants that will work for your bathrooms.
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I have cultured marble in my bathrooms -- it's original to the house, which was built in 1970. Mine are not unlike this picture, though my sinks are shell-shaped, and I don't have the fancy edge: Things I can say about them: - In spite of being almost 50 years old, these countertops are in perfect condition. No stains, no chips. - The sinks are integrated, meaning no seams to clean, no possibility of leaks. - The sinks are too shallow, which means that water splashes back up at us. Of course, this may just be our particular sinks -- the sink in the picture above appears to be a nice depth. - LIke the above picture, my sinks can only accept a small faucet ... whereas, I'd prefer a wide-set that would be easier to clean. If you choose cultured marble, it's almost certainly coming to you "as is", whereas with granite you can choose where you want the holes to be drilled. - It's not a look that's trendy or cutting edge, but it also doesn't look "old" like tile or some other items could. Would I put them in a new house? Yeah, I would. They wear like iron, and they're just kind of "plain". Plain stands the test of time. Incidentally, I have the same material on the walls /ceiling of my shower. I do get soap scum and mold on the shower walls, but it's super-easy to wipe away. I think my showers are bad for this because they're small /have low ceilings and are enclosed with glass doors ... little air circulation.
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@acm I don‘t know if these would be considered custom or not. I got the vanities from the same guys. All I picked was the color and the shape of the sink. No one asked about anything else. All the houses I’ve lived in have had over flows on the sinks—even the cheap cultured marble. It never occurred to me to specify and I’m disappointed my builder didn‘t recommend them since these are kids’ bathrooms. @suzyq53 the stoppers are now gone. Had we noticed the lack of over flows prior to this, they would have been gone moths ago. Of course now I have to worry about them dropping things down the drain. I guess I’ll go look for those wire hair traps tomorrow. Hopefully they make them for small vanity sinks. @AFoster The house I built in 2004 had cultured marble with the overflow. I just assumed that was standard. Like you, my husband and I are pretty handy and can fix this ourselves, but it is a PITA and not something you expect in a 6 month old house. It is a good thing we were home when it happened. This is supposed to be our forever home, so we need to find a fix. I’m hoping we can add overflows because we have two bathrooms with double sinks and I don’t want to replace counters and sinks.
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alku05
15 years ago
If I remember correctly, cultured marble is a less suitable counter material than real marble. I also love marble, but knew I couldn't trust myself to keep it as nice as I would want it (I'm a pristine gal, not a patina gal). We chose a white marble called andromeda white and although no one will mistake it for real marble, it still gives our kitchen the contrast we wanted.

Here is a link that might be useful:
kompy
15 years ago
American Marble Industries (Ohio) has done some kitchen jobs. I have only seen pictures. They looked great. However, it was almost the same price as Corian. Corian has some nice 'marble-ish' colors....as does Mystera. I would consider that before doing cultured marble for my kitchen.

Mystera looks the most like marble. I don't believe their composite is like Corian or Hi-Macs...might have some polyester in it. That said, I would still prefer Mystera over Cult. Marble in my kitchen. I recently saw a mystera top in a local restaurant and it was beautiful.

You can check out the website below to see if it's available in your area.
Kompy

ps. Caesarstone's Misty Cararra is a nice material too. I have a display in my showroom.

Here is a link that might be useful: Mystera
roserx
15 years ago
Bite the bullet and go w/ granite and scrap the trailer park travertine (cult marble).
moderncucina
Original Author
15 years ago
Thanks for all the info!

I found a guy about 45 minutes from my house who sells Mystera. I'm calling tomorrow to see if I can go take a look. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. :)

I took a look at the Andromdea White yesterday, and i'm considering using it. It's on my "possible" list. I went today to look at the Caeserstone based on a suggestion from someone on AT. It might work, but I'm thinking it might be a little *too* grey.

I loved the Danby! ... I took samples from the stone yard and put lemon juice and ketchup all over them. The lemon juice almost sizzled on impact! hehe. I left them on for about an hour or so. They wiped up easily but did leave a mark. I'm deciding if I can live with that or not.

Roserex... LOL...
lorila
15 years ago
Have you tried looking at Quartzite? My understanding is that it has the durability of granite, but the look of marble.

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