Super White granite test redux ...and Danby Majestic marble too

15 years ago

As some of you know, I tested a piece of Super White granite a couple of weeks ago for etching and staining. Below is a link to that thread. On advice of members of the forum, I got another piece which had been sealed. It was sealed by the granite yard with 511 Impregnator. When I called after the first test, they said the piece had not been resined. But when I went back to get a sample, they said it had been although I did not see the tell-tale drips.

Here are the results of the test:

Unsealed, lemon juice and vinegar made the stone whiter. Sealed, only lemon juice affected the color, although both etched. In fact, lemon juice was the only thing to affect the color.

The following all etched the surface to some degree: Tabasco, white wine vinegar, red wine, mustard, ketchup, beet juice, bourbon, and lemon juice.

Coffee and a curry powder paste made with water did not etch nor did they stain.

I also picked up a piece of Danby Majestic marble. It is an absolutely gorgeous stone. The stone yard sealed it with some proprietary product. I tested it with Tabsco, beet juice, red wine, ketchup, mustard, white wine vinegar, olive oil, curry powder made into a paste, bourbon, lemon slice, and lime slice. EVERYTHING either etched or stained, most substances did both.

I am going to take the sample of Caesarstone Misty Carrera to the office supply store and have them color copy about 12 sheets. Then I am going to lay it out to see if I like it.

Oh, I also got a piece of Bianco Romano, which has been resined but not sealed. The piece I have is not that large, so I only tested vinegar. It did not etch. I liked the slab, but DH wasn't a big fan, and to tell the truth, I wonder if the garnet/plum dots won't be limiting later on.

Here is a link that might be useful: Super White unsealed test results

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Comments (12)

trobs
15 years ago
I have had Danby Marble in my kitchen for 6 years. I use honed because it hides small scratches and if etched, I can fix in place with comet and a scotch scouring pad. But I do not nor have I ever had any staining. I belive me, I have spilt wine, juice you name. I have even missed messes that have sat directly on the marble all night and still not staining. Maybe it is the impregnator they used for your test. You want to make sure it is an acohol based impregnator.

Anyway, this is my experience with Danby. We love it as it looks as good today as it did 6 years ago.
megradek
15 years ago
I, too have been on the hunt for the perfect "white" countertop for our kitchen. Your info has been quite helpful on the Super White.

I found a few granites and quartzites that I love but haven't gotten to the testing part yet (although I better get on that!).

Mother of Pearl (granite)
White Moon (quartzite)
Iceberg (quartzite)
Gray Cloud (quartzite)
Oyster Shells (quartzite) - although I think the pinkish lines will bug me, just like the purple dots in andromeda
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First off, Kippee, you need to know that I'm a single, empty nester. As such, I have tremendous amount of control over what happens in my kitchen and I don't have to worry about rambunctious small children, oblivious and careless teens, or clueless DHs messing up my pet remodel projects! :-) At the same time, I was very clear when I chose a super gorgeous natural stone for my kitchen tabletop, I would also have to give it the kind of special attention that a diva always demands (otherwise, there would be trouble)! Therefore, when I'm eating or drinking or setting down food and beverages at my marble table, always use plastic-coated place mats. (This protective measure goes for visiting family and friends as well.) And if I see spills, I wipe them up immediately. Of course, I'm able to keep up with this kind of really attentive maintenance because I'm only dealing with an "accent piece" of white marble that is the size of cafe tabletop. In contrast, my countertops are made of soapstone. For those, I can spill anything on them, from lemon juice to red wine, sit and there are no consequences at all. With this combo, I feel like I have the best of both worlds. Unfortunately, I didn't pay attention to what sealant the fabricator used and I never asked him. However, my backsplash is a white mosaic marble (probably in the Calacatta family, but I'm not sure). For that, the contractor used Tile Guard's "Sealer Pro" for natural stone. Also, I think Bill V. usually recommends a'Miracle 511 Impregnator." But, hopefully, he'll come back here to speak on this himself. As for cleaning stains off Danby, here's a link to a homemade "recipe" for a cleaning poultice: http://www.vermontquarries.com/downloads/treatment_interiors.pdf Finally, if you want to check out a really long discussion about the use of white marbles in kitchens, I've attached a link from Apartment Therapy below. BTW, this discussion lasted over 3 years! So, for a wide variety of opinions on a whole bunch of concerns about white marbles in kitchens, there's a lot there all in one place. HTH Here is a link that might be useful: On White Marble Kitchen Countertops
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Most definitely pause. It's marble often enough that I wouldn't dream of proceeding without checking it out further. Good catch nebster! Thanks, Karin. Being married to a geologist, but nevertheless not knowing anything about rocks, I appreciate your contributions to the forums here over the many years. I have spoken with the gal at the slabyard, and they say they've sold tons of these slabs over the last few years and have never had any complaints, so she felt like they would have heard if people were getting etching and marble performance instead of the expected granite/quartzite imperviousness. That sounds pretty rational, but better safe than sorry! What surprises me is that the arabescato is so consistently visually similar with itself. (Especially versus all the other "whites" that are out there.) So I am surprised that a slab would ever look like this and be of a totally different composition. Unless it turns out this stuff is always marble; that would fit with my simple mental model of the world. :)
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Malhgold! Great to see you! Here's my version of a Giada DL recipe. We love, love this dish. My 7 and 3 y.o. have been eating this for more than a year, capers and all! Penne with Brown Butter, Arugula, Tomatoes, and Toasted Pine Nuts Dressing: Whisk together 1/4 evoo 1 lemon zested and juiced 2 teaspoons salt 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper Pasta: 1 pound penne rigate pasta or whatever fun shape you like 1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces, at room temp 4 or more cups baby arugula 1 or more cup cherry or grape tomatoes, halved 1 cup grated Parmesan 1/2 or more cup toasted pine nuts 3 or more tablespoons capers, rinsed and drained Directions: Cook pasta until al dente. Drain and reserve about 1 cup of the pasta water. In a high-sided skillet, whisk the butter over medium heat until nutty and brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat. Add the pasta, dressing, arugula, tomatoes, pine nuts, and capers. Toss until coated. Then add parmesan. If necessary to lossen the sauce, stir in the reserved pasta water, 1 tablespoon at a time. Eat up! Sorry for the hijack, Kay! On topic, I think it's about time for me to reseal also. I used, and will use, Miracle 511 Inpregnator Sealer. No need to strip prior to resealing.
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I'm glad you posted about this. I've been seduced by the look of marble in the kitchen, but I REALLY want to use it in the master bath. I think the VDMarble will be the one that will convince my DH that marble isn't too delicate for bathroom use. One thing I've noticed in slab yards is that I'll walk up to a light slab thinking, "well, there's a granite that would give me the same look as marble" only to find that it is marble! Now, this isn't my first build and I would've sworn I knew my way around stone, so I'm wondering if there is a wider variety of marble out there than there was 5-6 years ago. I'm w/you on the general love for BR and BA; for my kitchen, I'm about to decide on either River White (sometimes White Springs) or Alaska White. They're quite different, but when it comes to white granites, I love the variety. However, I did see a granite called "Glass White" recently that looked man-made, it was so COMPLETELY white. Boy, it gleamed, too!
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gglks
15 years ago
mairin.....can i find mother of pearl on line somewhere???? i was searching for that a while back and couldn't find it anywhere......
alterit
15 years ago
Do you have any photos..
Is the quartzite more expensive than the marble? I have had any luck finding quartzite in florida.
megradek
15 years ago
here's the place that I found it...

http://www.marble-granites.com/

from my initial pricing I've found quartzite to run higher than granite, similar to marble.

I'm in Chicago, so I'm very lucky and have access to so much. I would think that a larger stone fabricator would have access to quartzite in Florida?
alku05
15 years ago
Bbstx, the garnet inclusions are less limiting than you'd think looking at a sample. My Andromeda White is FULL of purpley-maroon inclusions, but the counters themselves don't project 'purple'. Overall, those spots just look like dark spots until you look closely at them. Of course the anount and size of inclusions will vary from slab to slab.

Feel free to look at my granite album linked below to see closups and the big picture.

Here is a link that might be useful: granite album
mustbnuts zone 9 sunset 9
15 years ago
Here in CA, I found the quartzite to be about the same as granite, depending on the quartzite. The slab below was a couple of dollars/sq/foot cheaper than my granite (which I didn't get an expensive granite). The other quartzite was WAY more than my granite. Gorgeous stuff, however.

It is supposed to be harder than marble and granite. Although the stone yard that did my granite said it depends on the quartzite--like everything in life, I guess. Here are some pictures.
The "cheaper" quartzite--it was cheaper than most granites I saw...

Expensive Quartzite--hands down gorgeous!
megradek
15 years ago
mustbnuts: ooooo, I like that top picture, especially if it runs less expensive - what's the name of the color?

those expensive quartzites are just unbelievably gorgeous, even more so in person. I'm just hoping DH doesn't notice how pricey it is per square foot!
bbstx
Original Author
15 years ago
The top picture from mustbnuts looks remarkably like the Super White I tested.
sue_ct
15 years ago
One caution. Hardness is not related to staining or probably to etching, either, although I am less sure about that. A stone can be very hard and still not be easy care in the kitchen. Love those, though.

Sue
seaduck
15 years ago
I'm wondering about that 'Danby Majestic.' I hadn't heard of that variety of the stone and so went to the website of the folks who quarry Danby. They list these: Olympian White, Mountain White, Appalachian Green, Royal, Eureka Calacatta, Imperial, Montclair Arbescato and Mariposa, and Crystal Stratus. They also have something called Vermont Verde Cavendish, from another quarry.

I believe they hold the trademark to 'Danby Marble.' I'm just beginning to explore Danby, so I'd curious to know more about 'Majestic' or if there are in fact other quarry sources of Danby. Given your staining experience -- which from what I understand sounds unusual -- I wonder if someone slapped the name on a different stone.

Here is a link that might be useful: Vermont Quarries (Danby Marble)
bbstx
Original Author
15 years ago
It is Danby Montclair, not Majestic. I knew it was one of those M words! Memory is shot.

Super White granite test redux ...and Danby Majestic marble too

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trobs

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Super White granite test redux ...and Danby Majestic marble too

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