Pros and Cons of purchasing a black granite composite sink!
boopsie
14 years ago
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KD
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Home Depot or Lowes--Granite. Pros/Cons?
Comments (23)Timely topic, as I'm right in middle of granite installation now w/HD. I paid back in early Feb, but had delays with new cabinets till now. HD still honored the promo pricing I had at the time of purchase ("D" level granite for "C" level price, plus free undermount sink.) I thought their price was good...I did some research and it seemed in line competitively with what others were quoting....not ridiculously low or high. Someone who works at HD once said they often negotiate really good prices from fabricators since they represent so much volume to a local shop...and if you catch them during a promo, they can offer some pretty decent values, even with their middleman markup. Not saying their price is always best, but wouldn't count them out right off the bat. They definitely let me choose slabs - in fact, they stressed that I must do so to make sure I got what I wanted. Local fabricator they subcontract to has been in business 20 years and granite yard is one of the largest in the nation. Doesn't mean my experience still may not go horribly wrong, but I feel I've covered bases as much as reasonably possible without over-obsessing any more than I already have. (And according to my husband, I'm a big time over-obsesser!) HD does have the 1 yr labor and 15-year stain-resistant guarantee. As someone here mentioned, can't say how well they'll honor guarantee if a problem arises - and I have polished black granite, so I already know I may have specific problems related to that color - but the kitchen/granite places I've checked offer no guarantee at all. So it's something. Chose slab yesterday...install should be within 8-10 days. my fingers are crossed that all goes well. (Tip: one thing I did as soon as I found out who they sub-contracted to was to Google that business's name along with "complaints" in search box, as well as check BBB to make sure there were no red flags. I think the #1 risk with HD all comes down to who they choose do to the work.) Hope this helped someone......See MoreGranite Pros and Cons
Comments (23)Northcarolina - in answer to your question, I had stainless counters about 20 years ago in an older home, so the stainless I think dated from the 60's. And yes, the scratches bothered me, even though at that point they were all over and were just a general patina. I also didn't like cleaning the stainless counters, because you had to be careful to wipe with the grain, and they showed fingerprints. I don't know if stainless counters now are made differently. I just know that I said at that time that I wouldn't have stainless counters again. My granite is so easy care, I just wipe and go. Also, although Brickeye and a few others have said the very dark granites are the most bulletproof, I want to emphasize that there are some lighter granites, like mine, that are also bulletproof. Mine is a light-grayish-blue with tons of swirls (as I noted before, it's called Piracema or "Wave"), not dark at all. And, if you choose the darkest of granites, Absolute Black, it is so dark that fingerprints and dust show up easily, and it is very reflective of overhead lighting. That's why I like granites with pattern - they don't show dirt, they are tough, and they are lovely....See MoreSink materials, pros and cons
Comments (24)Stainless steel: All except cheap ones are pretty quiet now b/c of sound dampening coatings and/or pads They come in all depths. My 16-gauge SS double-bowl has a 9" deep side & a 7" deep side (then, add the thickness of our granite countertop and our undermount sink is actually 10" & 8" deep). They come in all configurations...single-bowl, double-bowl, I think even triple-bowl. Double-bowl with equal-sized bowls, small/very large, or medium/large bowls. Yes, they do scratch, but they develop a patina over time that "hides" the scratches. Using a sink grid will delay the patina. They probably can dent since they're metal, but I've never seen one dented...even after dropping a cast iron pan in one. Our vitreous china sink in our Powder Room already has a nick in it...after less than 2 years. It won't be easy to repair seamlessly, so I haven't done anything about it yet (I'm afraid the repair will look worse!) It will never develop a patina of nicks & scratches that will look OK! I do kind of wished I had looked into the Silgranit sinks, but I don't remember any mention of them back in 2007 (or I was too clueless to realize!), so I didn't consider them. Growing up, we had a white cast iron sink first and it stained & scratched pretty easily. When my parents replaced it 10 years or so later...it looked awful. They replaced it with a stainless steel sink. Another 10 or 15 years later they did a minor remodel and replaced that sink with another SS b/c the other one had held up so well. I think it's the one they have today...at least 20 years old, I think. It was not a brushed stainless but over time it developed a patina of scratches. It looks fine. No, not brand new, but it still looks good. I have brushed stainless sinks (almost 2 years now) and they look almost as good as new. The grid feet have not left marks on the bottoms of the bowls and there's no brown or other look to it. I'm curious, what is an "operatory"? What do they do in the operatories and labs at your work?...See Morecorian integrated sink/countertops -- pros/cons
Comments (95)Hi All! I have learned sooooo much on this site. Thank you Mr. Corlett. I have had Corian countertops since 1998 with a granite composite under mount sink. Love the Corian, not the sink so much because it seems yellowed since installed. But I do a lot of canning so the sink has put up with a lot of beet juice and boiling hot water with minimal distress, no cracks. Just clean with Soft Scrub and bleach sometimes. We are now building a house. I am again using Corian for the countertops. I am considering either a Corian integrated sink 850 or an LG-HiMacs integrated sink 3118. I do not like the sink drain in the center of the sink as in the 3118 but that sink is an inch and a half longer than the Corian so better for skillet handles to fit in sink. Do you have an opinion as to the staining or cracking or other issue of either product I might consider before making my final decision? Thank you. Cynthia...See MoreJoseph Corlett, LLC
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