Here is another pic ...

I don't have Raven counters, but did you notice the spots when you choose your slab?

Side note, COUNTERS!??!?! You have counters? That's great! Home stretch now!

Yes, that's within an acceptable amount of expected variation. Any color pooling smaller than a dime is usually an acceptable amount. And it's something you should have been told about and understood before you ordered.

I don't have Raven, but I considered it and spent countless hours looking at Caesarstone samples. I never saw anything like that on the various Raven samples I saw including larger samples. It may be within the acceptable amount of variation, as livewireoak says, but that would disappoint me if I did not know in advance. I would definitely ask your fabricator. Raven is such as beautiful choice....

I have these white dots in my Caesarstone Smoky Ash, but I think SA has more movement and color variation which mitigates it somewhat. It doesn't bother me at all and I pretty much don't notice them, although I will occasionally try to wipe one up. :)

You shouldn't expect white dots on a black pattern! Imo, they haven't perfected the quartz process yet and the QC is non-existent. And they won't do a thing about it. Every time someone posts on here that they're getting Caesarstone, I cross my fingers for them.

I had Buttermilk (had, because the installers messed up the finish with BKF and replaced it at their cost. I switched to Pentalquartz, which has surface issues...sigh). Anyway, several samples showed natural-looking round white marks on a beige background that mimicked natural stone. What we got was solid white thumb-print sized blotches all over that looked like paint smears. Imo, it was not the pattern I selected, but Caesarstone doesn't consider that a defect. One slab was fine, but the bad slab was the big one on the peninsula. I don't know how the factory let that slab go. I think it's almost criminal to show perfect samples but then something different shows up in your house. I understood the warranty and that there could be resin pooling, but you can usually template around that if it's just one or two pools.

I'm sorry that you've run into so many problems in your remodel, BlackChamois. After my double countertop problems, I've just given up on the foolish idea that we would get a perfect product for all the thousands of dollars we spent.

I had Raven in the bathroom and never noticed any white spots. I am sure that I would have noticed this because our bathroom was almost all gray/patina steel looking. White would have stood out. We had a 7 ft counter, so a substantial counter. I had no idea that such variation was possible and acceptable.

Thank you all for your responses on this first day of 2013!

Breezy - I wasn't given the option of selecting a slab (I guess since this is quartz vs natural stone). And yes, COUNTERS finally. Although there have been many disappointments along the way so I am not jumping for joy right now. My doors and drawers fronts still are not on so it's not feeling much like a kitchen just yet.

Livewireoak - This variation was not mentioned to me, either by the GC or the fabricator.

Marinagal - Same here. Never saw these spots on any of the samples I looked at ... and I looked at a lot of Raven. It is a beautiful stone so this is a disappointment :( I'm hoping Smarge will see this and chime in as I know she has Raven, and from her pics they look perfect!

Linelle - I feel like my counter looks dirty because of these splatters and find myself trying to wipe them up. Not really what I wanted out of a new kitchen! :(

Mayflowers - I agree! Samples should be a truer reflection of the end product. It's deceitful imo. I think I've just about given up too. This is an expensive learning experience. After being 8 mos without a kitchen I feel like I deserve a little bit of perfection. (They still have not fixed the sink seam issue to my satisfaction. I then also discovered that the sink cut-out is slighly crooked. I've brought this up to the GC but have yet to hear back. Although I doubt they will do anything about any of this and not sure what recourse I have. BBB???)

Thank you again and Happy New Year to you all!!

Firsthouse - Thanks for commenting. Did you hand select your slab? (Your bathroom is beautiful btw!)

So you see they are capable of sending out perfect slabs, like firsthouse's. We used a leftover piece from another customer, and it looked just like the sample. The slab we ordered in had white splotches. Something happens during the run where the machine hiccups while splurting the white. I don't really know what the process is, but that's how I imagine it happening. They see it when they inspect but pass it on to the customer anyway.

The fabricators need to push back at Caesarstone about this. When it covers a slab, it's not the same as a resin pool here and there, so I don't see how it can be claimed as a warranty issue (or non-issue, as that's what they consider it).

I have raven on a long run of counter that is not part of the main kitchen work area. It does have some of those light splatters that you show in your pictures. At first I was not happy with them as I did not expect light dots to be in my grey counter. This was the last part of our kitchen and I think renovation fatigue played a role in me not pursuing the issue. It has been a year now and I don't really notice them anymore, however I still think in a dark grey counter light splatters should not be acceptable.

Think the company would be receptive to an inquiry though.

That's not a warranty issue, and yes, it's an acceptable amount of resin pool. If you push back, the company won't replace the counters. They'll push it onto the fabricator as a customer service issue at their discretion, and they'll have to eat the job if you force the issue. Not saying if that's right or wrong. That's just the facts of the matter.

I would not be happy with "an acceptable amount of resin pool. "
Thank you for this thread so that others considering manmade quartz will know what to expect. When I was looking at Chroma, Zodiac, Silestone & Ceasarstone (which I did not end up buying) NOT ONE DEALER mentioned this issue. I think this is deceitful.

Resin-pooling wasn't mentioned to me either, but I learned about it on good old GW. It was one of the reasons we went with Caesarstone over Pentalquartz (Chroma) originally, thinking since they invented the process, we'd get a better product.

This is like so much of what has been happening in the corporate world the last 10 or more years. It's all about shareholder profit and not about making the customer happy. Over time, we've learned to accept the poor quality of most of what we buy because that's all there is. Everything's made in China and what isn't is just too darn expensive for most of middle class America.

Signed,

Old Fart, who remembers how it used to be

mayflower
you are so correct. The corporations have moved on to other "consumers" in other countries. we are no long useful to them, either as workers or purchasers.

We have Caesarstone Pebble. Mottling? Yes. White specks? No. Can you feel the white flecks when you run your finger over them?

Ann - No, I can't feel the flecks. There were similar looking spots which the guys scraped off with a razor - I think residue left over from tape or something. That's what I thought these were originally. But these are IN the stone. I know that Pebble is lighter so if there were any in yours they may at least be less noticable. Again, my sample (and others that I had seen in person) did not have any of this.

I too feel like I am getting to the point of renovation fatigue as Muskokascp mentioned. I just want this over with, but I also want to love the kitchen that I have paid so much for and waited so long for.

I am doubtful that they (the fabricator or GC) will do anything about it, but I am going to mention it when they come back to discuss the other issues I have with the counter. I will certainly keep you all posted!

We have a new kitchen with Caesarstone in Espresso -- a dark brown. The small white specks were shown to us and explained in advance by 2 of the 3 bidders. They aren't noticeable to us in the normal scheme of things but are visible when you look closely or try to clean them off.

So I wanted to come back and post an update. To give you the background, I had my Raven counters installed on 12/20. The issues were the following:

1) White "specks" IN the stone which I was neither informed about nor were present in the samples I had seen.

2) Seaming at sink did not line up and had to be sanded down (see link)

3) Sink cut-out askew by about 1/8" making the sink look crooked. (It is not completely parallel to the counter edge - left side is 3 1/2" from the edge - right side is 3 5/8" from the edge, so out of alignment slightly.)

The fabricator came out today to see the issues I had reported.

1) Regarding the specks, he just claimed they were part of the stone and acceptable/puposeful since they were all over vs. in one confined area. At no time did he mention resin pooling nor was he even familiar with that term when I brought it up. Makes me question how much he installs quartz products. He only could speak its advantages (non porous, scratch resistant, etc.)

2) After install there remained a bump where they tried to sand down the seam. He did more sanding and it is a bit better but still visible (to me).

3) He agreed that the cut-out was slightly off. He then spent a hr explaining to me the process of templating and that sometimes it is off slightly (but again, according to him, within an acceptable amount of variation). I asked him what my options were and after taking a bunch more measurements, said he could remove the stone and turn it slightly. But this, I pointed out, would create a gap at the back against the one wall. He did not offer to redo it with a new piece. Had that been the case I would have asked him to seam it in the corner.

So where am I now? The GC agreed to come out and take a look on Monday, but I know will side with the fabricator that all of the above are trivial and that I'm unreasonable to want better workmanship.

Granted, I have a very detailed eye and notice these things, especially in my own home. I've had a few friends look at my counters and didn't notice until I pointed out the issues. On the other hand, my folks were here over the holidays and dad picked up on the crooked sink.

Maybe I am expecting too much. You can tell me! I can take it! Ha Ha! This is my first remodel and much more stressfull than I had imagined.

I probably will just say the heck with it and hope that once the faucet, backsplash, doors/drawers are in I will not noticed it.

Sorry for the long post and thank you for listening/reading!

Here is a link that might be useful: Seam issue

BlackChamois,
When I reported the white specks to my fabricator they suggested I contact the regional representative for Caesarstone products. I called and left a message. The rep did call me back but I wasn't there and he left a message. He was prepared to come by and have a look. I should have followed up with him but life got busy and I just lived with it. It's not a counter I am working on daily so it's easy for me to ignore it. Some of the white spots are raised and I can feel them. I think if it was on my main counter run I would have pursued it more.
Anyway, calling the rep from the company is another option.

Doesn't look "acceptable" to me. "Acceptable" is industry jargon for "we're going to screw you royally because there's nothing you can do about it." If those white blobs were truly acceptable to consumers the company wouldn't hide them on its samples and website. Bait and switch.

I'd call the local rep and have him come out, letting him know you're going to make what Caesarstone considers "acceptable" very famous on the Internet.

BlackChamois, I'm sorry that you are dealing with this annoying situation. I've read about rasin pooling in quartz and was nervous when I ordered our two Cambria slabs. When they arrived at the yard, I asked to go examine the slabs and also we positioned the templates then and there. Our color has some patterns and it was obvious that between the two slabs, half of the slab appeared whiter/lighter than the rest. I suppose I could have requested to have another slab sent, although nobody can guarantee that it will have exactly the same evenness as the other slab. Anyhow, we were able to work with what we had since our perimeter L shaped slab only uses one and half slabs.

My question for you is: did you think about taking a look at the slab before it was cut? Or, did you make your request, which was refused?

I have read in several threads now about this pooling/color variation/splotching thing with quartz, and it concerns me that although it is common and deemed acceptable within a range, the issue seems to be buried in the fine print in the marketing/sales process.

We bought a light colored Caesarstone and didn't have these issues, but I was led to believe by our KD that one of the benefits of Caesarstone is that it is uniform, it is always like the sample, and that you don't have to go through the hassle of picking slabs. It would bother me no end to have a dark color with those white specks-- especially if I had no understanding beforehand that this could happen.

I had caesarstone countertops installed only last week. Color is espresso. They look great. Today I noticed tiny white dots on them...not a lot but it bothers me. Contracter was working here this morning. Thought he may have splattered something. After seeing the pic and posts I guess some slabs have this?? Of course no one mentioned it to me and the samples did not have "dots".