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Caesarstone Countertops, Silestone, Soapstone - What's the difference?

6 years ago

last modified: 6 years ago

Hello Houzz community!
After a very long time contemplating whether or not to remodel my kitchen I have decided that I'm going to go for it. I'm not entirely sure which company is the best, but I've been looking at alot of quartz countertops by Caesarstone. What makes Caesarstone better than Silestone or Soapstone? If anyone has had experience with Caesarstone. Silestone, or Soapstone, please share!
Thank you guys in advance for your feedback!!

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Comments (4)

tackykat
6 years ago
The first two are different brands names for quartz. Soapstone is not a brand name. it is the name of a material, just like "granite" or "butcher block." Don't know anything about soapstone but many on this forum will have advice for you.

My kitchen has quartz counters by Silestone and Daltile OneQuartz (another quartz brand) and I have been very happy. Extremely durable.
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FeatherBee
6 years ago
The difference is in fabricator/installer. Find a good one and you'll be fine.
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I'm still a newby in terms of experience in use, but I can speak about shopping around for a countertop. I think many people choose natural stone, including granite, marble, and soapstone because they have this beauty that comes from within. It comes from nature and there is just no way to reproduce what nature made. There are probably a little more maintenance to each of these, but some very little, and others worth it or even enjoyable. I would have thought with my art background, that I would then have chosen one of them, but instead the caesarstone. (guess I should learn how to spell it since I have purchased it!!) I think that I wanted something different. I wanted a very practical and very neutral surface....I guess I would say when I see it though that is a clean, pretty, light in color, and either slightly contemporary or even retro. I am hoping to put more focus on a colorful backsplash and to enjoy my beautiful cabinets. The caesarstone price, where I live, was just a little more than the price I was quoted for a more common granite. Like rubyfig said though, it is not all about the look. Research the differences and think about what will suit your home and your kitchen function.
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Buehl
6 years ago
last modified: 6 years ago
Silestone, Caesarstone, and similar are what is known as "engineered stone". They consist of crushed up quartz and resin mixed together. They're mostly quartz (95% or so), but there is a small percentage of resin (5% or so) mixed in to hold it all together.

Soapstone is a type of stone that is quarried directly from the earth and is sold in slabs -- the same as granite, marble, etc. It can be relatively soft (compared to engineered stone & most granites), but it can be sanded to "fix" scratches -- one of the nice features of soapstone.

You probably saw and worked on it in the science labs at school.

Many people have soapstone and love it. You will find many threads on the Kitchens Forum about soapstone. In particular, look for posts by Florida_Joshua, he's a soapstone fabricator who used to post here frequently to help those with questions.

Both types of counters are good choices, it just depends on what you like.

(There are also many threads about engineered stone/quartz.)
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PRO
leadstoneusa
6 years ago
Agree with FeatherBee, it depends on the fabricator/installer, just service.

If you are in NY.USA, you can consider Leadstone,is a quartz manufacturing company, provides quartz countertops with high quality and competitive price,

welcome to make an inquiry and wholesale quartz slabs, 10 years limited warranty.
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