Anyone regret installing marble countertops?

16 years ago

I'm pretty sure I've read every thread here about marble countertops and perused countless articles online detailing the pros and cons. My KD recommends against them, my DH is very skeptical, my mother thinks I'm nuts to even consider them with my messy DD and DH around. But I can't stop drooling over all the beautiful marble kitchens here on GW and in magazines. It seems 90% of my inspiration photos feature marble counters.

I'm prepared to fight for them but I want to be well-armed for the battle, soooooo I have one last question:

Is there anyone who has had marble countertops for a while who regrets installing them?

Featured Answer

Jean Popowitz

16 years ago

I've only had mine for two weeks but I bucked the naysayers and forged ahead with my marble. My honed marble was sealed and the fabricator told me to reseal every six months. In a previous home, I had a dark granite that had to be resealed every year. That granite etched around the sink (Uba Tuba) and I learned to live with it. It also had 32 chips on the edge when I moved and showed every smudge and had to be polished several times a day or it looked grimy. So granite isn't bullet proof either. Go for what you love.

On the mother issue--don't listen to her. My mother had a hissy fit when we named our 4th child "Georgia". It was too unusual 22 years ago. She still hates it. DH, DD and I still love the name. Moms don't know everything!

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Comments (10)

rmkitchen
16 years ago
No regrets. At all.
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User
16 years ago
Nope I have a salvaged marble coffee bar area 4'x 2' . It was love at first sight and still is after almost 2 yrs. c
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My good friend has Carrara marble in her kitchen which was installed about 15 years ago. She also use a portion of the slab as the top for the kitchen table which was used a lot as the family used it every day for eating and for gathering around. Her husband who is pretty much a pig cooks a lot and so there would have been plenty of stuff that was not cleaned up immediately. Nothing in the kitchen was babied in any way - I know because she and I were cooking buddies and so I would go over and we would put together joint dinner parties with a lot of messy prep work :-). There were also lots of gatherings with kids as well who were not particularly careful or restricted in normal kid behavior. There is minor etching in some areas but the light has to be right in order to see it but nothing that anyone with normal sensibilities would notice unless they looked. Kitchen counters tend to have things on them so you don't normally turn your head to the side and squint to check out etching :-). But no stains after 15 years.
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The easiest way for you to create patina is to buy (samples are free at most stone yards) a sample and play with it. I personally opted NOT to do marble because I could not live with it. I got many samples (all honed) from stone yards and played with the samples, dribbling vinegar, tomato sauce, wine, lemon juice etc. I tried to "get out" the etches with scotch brite etc. In the end, I was not happy with the blotchy look that new marble develops on its way to real "patina" that takes many decades. If you are in Seattle, Pental stone yard in Georgetown has marble and basaltina installed in their show room. They are both premium stones. I remember this because they were the only two stones that I seriously considered. In the end, the stones were too porous for me. I have stone in my bathrooms, and they end up having a bit of mineral spotty ring/stains/look around the faucet over many years. I did not want to deal with that in the kitchen.. When you are there, remember that they do not cook in these showroom kitchens. The marble has "coffee etching" from the coffee pot sitting there. I think they have Calcutta Gold, which is a relatively expensive marble compared to your standard much cheaper carrera marble. Only you will know what is acceptable to you or not. You can get a pretty accurate picture by playing with samples....
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raehelen
16 years ago
Can't comment on the marble issue, but can pipe in on the mother issue. My Mom basically said the same thing about us getting granite. I was really worried for a while. To tell you the truth, 30 years of nagging = no change. Getting granite counters = DH caring enough to start wiping up! Shudda done it sooner!!! :>)
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solarpowered
16 years ago
Erika, you probably already know this, but in case you don't: Acidic materials like lemon juice will etch marble. Also, marble is fairly soft, so it will get marked up. The people who love their marble have been expecting it to develop a patina, and not look brand new.

If you're expecting a "perfect surface, forever", marble isn't for you; this is why people steer you away, because they are concerned about people coming back unhappy. If you're OK with the patina, then go for it.
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mamadadapaige
16 years ago
Erika,
that is a big decision... it will totally effect the end result of the look of your kitchen. if you really want the granite you should go for it. my architect has it in his kitchen (he said he just couldn't live without it despite the fact that he knows it requires more maintenance).

go for it!
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coleen3201118
16 years ago
I've had mine for about a year now - for a while, the answer was "maybe" because the initial etching was really bothering me. Recently, however, I mus say my answer has changed to "no" (I do NOT regret) because it has all blended and you can't see anything specific. We had friends over the other day and I was trying to find the etch mark from where my daughter tried to make lemonade by squirting an entire bottle of lemon juice into a glass (a good portion of which ended up on the island) and I couldn't find it. I was amazed. If you love it, it is worth it and you should have it.
mindimoo
16 years ago
Loving it 3 months in! We have polished Calacatta and it is beautiful, even with the tiny little droplets of etching it's gotten here and there and scratches, they are so hard to find. After that, today, I think it's even more beautiful! There's nothing else that looks like marble and everyone who sees it just says "wow"!
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sunnyd_2008
16 years ago
Talk to a fabricator about honed marble
polished is what "etches"
honed is beautiful also, you still get the look of marble

or check out caesarstone carrara (but look at a full slab if you can
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blondelle
16 years ago
Look at the Danby white marbles. They are suited for a kitchen counter. They are harder than the Italian marbles, will etch less easily and they resist staining better as they are less porous too. The come in eight different varities of different colored veining and vein patterns.

Anyone regret installing marble countertops?

Jean Popowitz

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rmkitchen

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