The fabricator doesn’t do a microscopic sample of a stone to analyze for iron content. Iron content is a possibility for all white stones. Then you get rust. That’s Mother Nature you need to blame. And she very impersonally doesn't care. It’s the luck of the draw.

The good old thing is all of the grays are going away, so your stone is leading the way for you to follow.

I know. I definitely did NOT want tan. if the fabricator had told me in the beginning that white color granites can do this I would have definitely gone in a different direction.

Scroll down in this thread and read oldryder's suggestion for fixing green bloom in granite.

green-bloom-on-granite-update

Thanks. The green isn’t as bad as the tan coming out as much as it is. Trying to find out if fabricator should at least go half with me to replace it!

There are also some threads about some light granite turning darker, which are due to a reaction with the glue or something like that? Don't remember the details.

Thanks. I have read that also. So disgusted with how this happening. Tan was the absolute last color I wanted in this remode!

@janeen88 Did you end up replacing your Alaska White? I was considering this granite for my new kitchen, but your thread has given me cold feet. I've seen a lot of the granites with white in them have small rust spots developing even on display at the slab yard, so with the amount of moisture that will get on my kitchen countertops once installed and in use, I know that will accelerate rust from any iron content which is already visible in select spots in many of the white and off-white granites. I'm thinking now of upping the budget to go with Taj Mahal quartzite which can have iron deposits but is supposedly non-porous.

A friend of mine has Alaska White for 3 years, and it looks like the day it was installed. It is gorgeous. I wonder if the installation had something to do with the change? There are quite a number of happy Alaska White owners on this forum.

I was wondering if the sealer is turning colors. It really isn’t a rust color, it is definitely a tan color coming through

@Shannon_WI Yes, I thought I had seen reports from quite a few happy Alaska White owners, as you mentioned, which is why I kept this granite on my list for consideration, but after doing more research, I can guarantee this isn't the only thread containing information on Alaska White problems. Houzz is so helpful in drilling down to get an idea of risk factors with various products, and there is apparently some degree of risk for color changes with Alaska White and really any granite containing light colors.

@janeen88 I've heard about and actually seen resin on granite that turns a dirty yellow color, especially with exposure to direct sunlight. The "white" in Alaska Whtie always seemed more of an off-white or tan to me to begin with in slabs I've viewed, but here you are seeing an actual color change, so I don't know. If it's the resin, perhaps the resin could be polished off and new sealant like Stoneguard applied? To do that in place would probably be prohibitive as far as the dust ruining your house; you'd have to have the countertops removed and taken back to the shop. The countertop installers should have used only silicone, not epoxy, to secure the countertops to make a potential removal less damaging.

I would pay for another unbias local Pro's opinion to come inspect the granite in your home. Find out if is indeed normal granite changes or changes due to installation materials. Once you have more valid information from the Pro, you will know which action if any to take next. Worse case, it is not fixable, you will at least know it is the granite itself & not the installation. You may find out some great news, that there's something that can be done to fix it or make it better. If it is install materials that caused this, you will be able to discuss with installer & hopefully come up with a solution. Good luck with that.

Thank you! Had the installer out twice and by the third time he told us not his problem anymore! This is the way it is. Ugh! I was thinking about having a new installer come out and asking if The sealer is causing the color to change

There is a possibility the installer is being bias with his feedback due to his possible liability & possible costs to fix. His feedback may be factual & it is just the stone. But you will never know until you get another Pro to look at it in person. Choose a Pro who has a been in business for years with great reviews & really knows a lot about granites & installation processes. It will be $ well spent,imo, to get their opinion. Definitely get a 2nd opinion to have an unbias opinion & possibly get a real solution. Information is power. Get the facts to get the answers.

Can you post pics?

The tan spots were white when it was installed

@janeen88 From your photos, it looks as though the tan spots are blotchy, not all over, which would indicate something other than the entire surface sealant is going on. Do you have spots that are still as white as the areas that are now tan? Not to cause alarm, but this reminds me of some pictures I've recently viewed of marble that turned dark after absorbing moisture. Mold can even be involved sometimes. I could be completely off base, so don't panic, but maybe keep a running list of questions for the 2nd opinion you'll hopefully get based on the excellent suggestion above to have an unbiased pro assess the damage. If these tan areas are regularly exposed to water, perhaps experiment with keeping them really dry for a week and opening the cabinet doors underneath for ventilation and seeing if you have any color shifting?

These are spots that don’t get any water on them! Just really disappointed at how it looks!

@janeen88 Would you say all the spots that were white are now equally as tan or are there still some white spots left that look the same as they did originally? This might help rule out more sources of the problem.

There are some white spots left. Most have turned tan and yellow.

@janeen88 Very interesting. Normally we would think of iron deposits creating orange spots in granite, but In doing some Google searching, I'm seeing a lot of references to iron oxide impurities causing yellowing of natural stone especially when exposed to "weathering" which in your case could mean moisture of any kind such as if you're using anything more than a dry rag for wiping up. Steam from cooking or from a dishwasher could even play a role.

As for the tan, I found one reference to white and light colored dolomites turning tan due to several mineral impurities. Your granite probably doesn't contain dolomite, but if you wanted to pursue this lead, you could probably find a university geology lab that might do some microscopic examination of a sample of granite and be able to tell you what minerals it contains that could be turning those areas tan. Here's the quote, "Dolomites are fine- to coarse-grained rocks that, in the unweathered state, are generally gray to light colored. On weathering they may become buff or tan because of impurities that commonly consist of iron within or between the dolomite crystals or of small amounts of pyrite, siderite, or marcasite." From this source: Kansas Geological Survey, The University of Kansas

Houzz contains several threads with various suggestions for fixes for the iron staining. Here's one for starters with this quote: "As for iron oxides (orange rust) appearing on slabs, Naval Jelly, which is a rust remover, might work. We've used it on granite that had something steel against it that had left rust that had penetrated the surface. It's worked every time. We haven't had the issue of rust spontaneously appearing on a granite, but Naval Jelly might work." From this thread: https://www.houzz.com/discussions/2544821/green-bloom-on-granite-update

@janeen88 A sales representative with Triton Stone told me during a warehouse tour yesterday that the quarries are doing some bleaching of natural stone to whiten brown areas, and I wondered if this might be possible for your situation post-installation. If you'd like more information, contact Sheri Carlisle at USA phone (214) 775-1650, or email sheri@tritonstonedtx.com