MSI quartz - durability and long-lasting?

5 years ago

Hi,

My husband and I picked a quartz countertop from MSI and were ready to put a deposit for our slabs, but in the 11th hour, I was at another store looking at backsplashes, and one of the workers said not to buy from MSI because the quartz is Chinese and he had a lot of problems with customers in the past who bought from MSI. He said it can stain (even fingerprints?) and scratch easily. He said to go with a non-chinese brand. I'm very confused because I've been researching online since then and I've seen conflicting info. Some say they've had their MSI quartz over a year and love it, and others say yes, it scratches and yes, chinese quartz should be avoided. I really need to make a decision in the next 48 hours so I am hoping to shed some light! Any advice? I may go look at Pompeii or Daltile and compare..

Featured Answer

missenigma

5 years ago

As I understand it, MSI does not manufacture, but rather they source their products from contract manufacturers around the world. I believe that some, but not all of their offerings are sourced from China. It depends on the style you're choosing. For what's it worth, I'm currently shopping for counters as well. I keep flip flopping between quartz or granite. But several of the places I visited that sell all the well known brands, said they really liked the MSI products and that MSI had great customer service.

In other postings I've read on here, some people have called MSI directly to find out where the style they were interested in was made. Others also got information as to whether it was made with the Breton process which some discussions on here indicate is the better manufacturing process.

Search the forums for MSI and Breton and I think you see a lot discussions pop up.

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Comments (12)

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Beth H. :
5 years ago
I've also heard both negative and positive. Why don't you ask your seller where the product you want is sourced? you'll get your answer that way.

otherwise, go look at Cambria or Ceasarstone.
Sarah Waldman thanked Beth H. :
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mariannehoyt
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
Sarah, I'm in the same predicament as you. After searching forever I found a quartz I really like, MSI Alabaster White. I brought home a sample, loved it, was ready to place an order, and decided to try to test if I could scratch it with a steak knife. It was very easy to do and looks just awful - like pencil marks all over. Even with Soft Scrub they will not come out. I did the same thing on the Cambria and Silestone and no problem. Make sure to do a scratch and stain test. And let us know what you ended up with!
Sarah Waldman
Original Author
5 years ago
thanks everyone! I called the seller to ask where the product was sourced and it is NOT china so I felt better about it. like missenigma said above, some of their material is from china and some from other places. so fyi the calacatta vicenza is not from china. i read a couple other threads of peoples reviews of it and they love it and hadn't had any problems with scratches, stains etc so we took our chances and ordered! Kitchen reno starts monday so i'll do a follow up post to tell how it turned out and how its lasting! thanks again for your help!
K R
5 years ago
I have 2 quartz walls from MSI and I’m pleased with the quality, no issues getting stains out and I spill red wine a lot!
ponypals
5 years ago
I installed the calacatta vicenza about 6 months ago during a complete remodel of our kitchen in our new (old) farmhouse. We previously had Ceaserstone and I just did not want to sink that much money into it this time. We have been very pleased! My husband is a great cook but not a neat one and so far it has held up well. There is some difference in surface sheen I noticed initially but it is still beautiful. I scrubbed out a small scratch that you can no longer see and it has not stained. My daughter juices most mornings and it has held up to beet juice etc. I've been pleased! It also does not have noticeable "ink dots" that the more expensive counter had.
gthigpen
5 years ago
I've had MSI quartz in our kitchen for over a year now and no problems with staining or scratching at all. We had one tough curry stain but a magic eraser took care of it. We are not neat cooks so lots of stuff gets spilled on ours and everything has wiped right up.
gulfmermaid
5 years ago
Our seller told us that Pompeii was not made in China. Almost four years later I find it is. Lots of problems with it. Dull, chips, streaking...
PRO
Design Loft Bracebridge
5 years ago
I sell MSI, Cambria, Caesarstone, & a couple of others. I haven't had any complaints with MSI, but that's not to say I haven't heard of them around the circuit. If it were my kitchen, my money would go to Cambria.

I often get quotes for each product for my clients in order to find best option for colour & price. Cheaper is not always the best choice. A lot of people think Cambria is more expensive, & often it is, however, it depends on the colour & it's pricing level. Have you priced out Cambria or Caesarstone? You may be surprised to find that a Cambria colour is less expensive. I've had it happen to the surprise of my clients. It's also hard to beat their colour choices. Cambria also has one of, if not the best, warranties of the lot. Their stain & scratch tests have revealed a lot to me when comparing the others.
Matthew Smith
4 years ago
I have done a ton of research on MS international's Q quartz including emailing NSF. Don't waste your time and money on this product. First, only 10 of their colors are certified for safe for food prep. All the other colors are only approved for splash zones, so bathroom or around a sink. This came straight from NSF. Second they are in the process of switching manufacturing outside of China and will not be able to be NSF certified for food safety for a while. Third, all their products on the market now are from Chinese factories and will never be certified food safe. Can look on NSF.ORG website to checkout other manufacturers. My wife and I are going with Cambria because have true NSF certification. It is more money, but gives us peace of mind.
Matthew Smith
4 years ago
Ps... the 10 colors that are NSF approved are made in India. They have 2 listing on NSF one with 10 from India and second has all the other colors. Listed as MS international on website. Also, there can be variations in color between different lots with MSI, because they don't only use white or clear quartz. Thus, need to see slab before buying like with granite. Cambria doesn't have that issue.

Emailed NSF directly to verify information and MSI representative told me about moving manufacturing out of China, but didn't know where to yet.
N Cho
4 years ago
Planning to go with MSI as well, but glacier white and pearl gray. Curious if anyone has used either of them? How is the warranty?

MSI quartz - durability and long-lasting?

missenigma

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MSI quartz - durability and long-lasting?

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