Bring along your kitchen plans - with carefully measured counter top areas. Some slabs are longer than others as well as variations in pattern which might come into your decision making if you need seams. Also bring samples of your cabinet, floor, paint etc.

Ask for a sample of the material you are considering using so you can take it home to test for staining/etching.

And from my experience....ask how he finishes the underside of the overhang. Mine are chalky and the mesh is visible.

Alexa....Thanks so much. Cabinets are not installed yet. Just got a couple pieces today that were damaged, so should be able to install this weekend.

Right now it's just an initial meeting to visit their fabricating shop and I will look at the stones they have, as well as the Cambria quartz they sell.

I would like to know if there's any questions I should ask about their installation process.

Thanks, I'll make sure I take door and floor sample, as well as wall paint sample.

Good to know, abbabug.

Definitely take samples home with you of stones you like. I guaranty they will look different in your home than they do in the showroom or warehouse.

Look at their sample seams and ask if they use gorilla grips or anything similar to minimize the seam width. Ask if they use laser templating with CNC machines and computerized template layouts or not- that is generally available only with the larger operations. Look at their edge finishes and note what the standard/upcharged edges are. Definitely bring as accurate a layout as possible with your sink and cooktop information if possible so that they can give you an accurate estimate. Ask how they will secure the sink . Ask where in your layout they would probably place the seams. Discuss how you want the pattern to run if it is a strong pattern that will be tricky to seam- that will affect the numbers of slabs needed and therefore the total cost.

Thks, Sahmmy and scrappy.

Here is info on their process without mentioning a name.

Hope this is ok to post.

I'll definitely take all your suggestions with me. I'm a bit overwhelmed with all the info, but I'll refer back here. :)

Thks, Treb. It's been a nightmare cause I don't know anyone that has had any kitchens installed, so I've asked stone suppliers and they won't give recommendations. Dead end. I tried to lookup reviews and there were a couple good reviews.

If I ask them for references, of course I'm only going to get good ones. I do know they've been in business for a very long time.

How else can I find a good fabricator? I know it's just as important as the product. BBB accredited, A+, if that means anything anymore. But they did have 2 complaints in last 12 months.

Everyone gets complaints. It's not the complaints, it's how they handled them. Did they admit their mistake and apologize and/or refund? Or is it obvious from reading the complaint that the complainer was nuts?

Lol, BBB says both complaints were settled. I guess that's why they have the A+

There was one other fabricator that coincidentally our local Home Depot uses, as well as a couple other retailers recommended, but for some reason they don't work directly with the customer, so you have to go through a 3rd party.

I can tell you from experience that the BBB sells the A+ ratings ~ once we dropped our membership our rating dropped but they offered to increase it for a price.

That said, thank you for this timely thread! We have just started getting bids from local fabricators. I made up information packets to drop off with 3 different fabricators for pricing. I gave our contact information, kitchen layout and color rendering, the KD name, Cabinet make and wood, the 3 different slab possibilities with their size, thickness, price and stoneyard, I also included the edging that I wanted (2 choices).

We had a pretty good meeting today with one (turns out he rented a house from us 20+ years ago!) but DH and I didn't know these great questions to ask.

One of the fabricators hasn't gotten back to us, one was a little too skimpy on information and the other was the one we met with today. A friend just gave us another recommendation so we will meet with them tomorrow.

I'm usually cautious when it comes to pulling the trigger on decisions. This news about the BBB makes me even more so.

I'll use the advice here and move forward because I have to start making some decisions. Albeit hopefully smart ones.

I have posted this picture a couple of times on other threads and hate to keep spamming it but this is what you want to see prior to install. My fabricator sent 3 or 4 different versions for me to approve.

I respectfully disagree with Mshahmd. While it's great to have that technology, I think Joseph Corlett made a great point - more important to have the skills and experience in fabrication than to have the technology. My fabricator was old-fashioned in how he measured and scribed. He didn't have a laser or any of that cool stuff. When he came to my house he made a form which followed my walls exactly. My kitchen walls were funk-ay in how out of plumb they were, and I also had a difficult corner sink to boot. The counters came out perfect. The one seam almost invisible and expertly done.

I definitely went to the templating where they tape up the slab to show the cut-outs. That is essential. That is why I didn't need the "3 or 4 different versions" of photos sent to me that Mshahmd shows. The decisions of cut-outs were made at the fabricator's, with them giving me pros and cons of different cut-outs right there, and me giving them my input on which parts of the slab I wanted to make sure were not cut-out. All done with tape right there. And then fabricated and installed how we agreed.

If your fabricator says he does not want or need you for the templating, immediately find another fabricator.

Sahmmy, thank you. I definitely will be here for templating.

I even went to the fabricator to discuss templating my plain white Ceasarstone! I just wanted to be sure they would avoid using any areas with unsightly blobs, but they had already marked those off. My fabricator also used the old-fashioned balsa wood frame method of templating and everything was perfect.

I was planning to go today, but we're having a lot of storms today and it's not a close drive. So, drier tomorrow or early next week.

BBB ratings are worthless. In the LA area there was a huge pay to play scandal. Be sure to check out contractors name and especially if they have done business under prior names (here it is common for the contractor to BK a business when there is a judgment against it and just start a new business), google, facebook, yelp, etc to try to find out about them, ask them for references,

"We have just started getting bids from local fabricators. I made up information packets to drop off with 3 different fabricators for pricing."

Were I a fabricator, I would give this person a phone call, but no price, at least not initially. They are assuming that my competitors and I are equal; we're not. If they're shopping on price alone, I don't want them. There's no rational business model in a race to the bottom. If my reputation has no value, we aren't right for each other. If I don't deserve an opportunity to show you why I'm the best value in person, you don't deserve a number.

This always-get-three-bids mantra we hear here all the time can cost you plenty.

I agree with you.
On the other hand, I hate it when I call a place (plumber, contractor, roofer, merchant, whatever), and they can't even give me a general ballpark figure. It's a waste of my and their time when their price is 5x as much as everybody else's. Not too long ago, I went through this with a new roof. I gave everybody roof size, slope, specific shingles to be used, other specs. One of the companies insisted on sending out a salesmen, who, after a 45 minute spiel, wanted that I sign on the spot to get a "20% discount." They were about 2.5 times as much as the next estimate.

I don't think it is necessary that the fabricators have the laser templating equipment. We had ours done by a very reputable company that has been in business for 30 years. They did it the old fashioned way with some kind of card board and scribing and everything was very well fitted. They said the laser method has a few of its own problems although I don't really remember the details of what those are. Experience is what counts.

Joseph, I disagree. I used to manage a high-end glass company and bidding/quoting was expected and our chance to make our best impression. It's not all about money and we were hardly ever the lowest price but we always worked hard to be the most professional, on time, courteous and knowledgable. Those who were looking for the lowest price went elsewhere and that was just fine.

I use that same approach when looking for a KD. We gave Home Depot and two other companies (both came highly recommended) a chance. HD completely missed the mark as far as listening to what we had in mind so they were out as of the first round of drawings (we didn't even get to $). The KD from one company never came out to the house. We had an initial appointment using our measurements to go over our space and a couple of ideas. We had two further appointments and while she did a good job, she was a bit slow in returning calls/emails and we were left with a feeling of being totally on our own for measurements and possible red flags. She was a good KD but works rather exclusively with GCs ~ good to know when you're a DIYr. The third KD was responsive, came out to our house, measured, and thought outside of the box. She certainly wasn't the least expensive but we went with her because of her professionalism, the confidence she instilled in her company including after the sale and her ability to work within our budget and skill level. In the end, we ordered a kitchen that is comparable in price to the other KD but with the service that we require.

If a fabricator isn't willing to give an estimate, I have to assume that they either are too busy, unorganized or short handed. I never would have thought that they might be offended but if that is the case then we wouldn't be a good fit either. Fortunately, I have quite a few choices.