I am looking to replace my 18-year-old counter top, which we got for free: white tile. My husband is in the business, granite, Silestone, Corian,Zodiac, etc. etc. he gets at a great price. So, of course, I want wood. Not going to happen. Also, I know that wood would have to be babied and I know I'll get lazy, or out-of-my-mind busy with Christmas dinner and place something scorching hot down on the counter and that's the end of that. I know myself. The white tile has served me well, you can put anything on it and it's fine. You just have to keep on cleaning the grout - it was a lot of upkeep and I'm glad to be replacing it. However, I swore I would never get granite, because I tend to not like to do what everyone else is doing. Well, wood is out, (darn!). I have natural cherry cabinets, still gorgeous, not replacing them. I saw a display kitchen with natural cherry cabinets and colonial gold granite and fell in love. I love the natural movement of the stone, I love the sparkle embedded in the stone, I love the relatively low-maintenance of the stone, and I love that it's a natural material. Ask yourself: what am I like in the kitchen - will I be careful? Do I want to fuss with keeping something continually clean? (i.e. white tile with grout - yikes!) We all have to make compromises to accommodate our manners in the kitchen. You want to get something that you'll love for years to come. You certainly don't want to have to babysit your counter tops! Take your time - do your research, make a decision that's a balance between beauty and brains! Good luck! Enjoy the journey!

One reason that Corian always rates highly with installers is that DuPont really does stand behind its product and they are known as the most responsive to installers/customers complaints. This is not a small thing; no matter what product you pick as a countertop, it can be ruined by poor installation and having to fight with the mfg to get satisfaction is not a pleasant thought after spending $$ of dollars. I personally chose Swanstone as we've been very satisfied with its performance and carefree maintenance, plus it has a slightly higher heat resistance than Corian. Like DuPont, Swanstone insists upon factory-trained installation for kitchen countertops. But I do think some of Corian's colors are more pleasing. One thing that might swing you either way - most solid surface mfgs, including DuPont, only offer their integral sinks in a few colors. I think Swanstone is the only one that offers their Swanstone sinks in all 38 colors, same as their countertops.

I think there are several answers to your question and I will try to tell you in detail about each of them. First, I think you should think about the coverage, because this is probably the most important factor. It's important to prevent the problem before it even occurs, but I think you already know that. I can't think of anything more so than stainless steel. And as I thought about this answer it occurred to me it must be the reason commercial prep kitchens use it so much. Solid surface countertops are synthetic and don't offer the same quality and durability as a natural stone. However, these materials are non-porous and don't stain easily. Certain chemicals and acidic foods can stain these countertops if left on the surface for long periods of time. The second is this immediate caveat: -Stop using acidic cleaners or heavy alkaline cleaning material that can strike and destroy stones. And the third is a solution to the problem. To be honest, I have never encountered such a problem, but after a little searching on the Internet I found an article that might be useful to you: how to remove stain from solid surface countertop To be honest, I do not vouch for the correctness and effectiveness of the methods described there, but personally to me it seemed the most correct and logical solution to the problem, so I recommend that you read this article and draw your own conclusions. I hope my comment was helpful and you can clean the surface without any problems.

Similar experience to Debbie's. After nearly 25 years, Corian countertops here still look & function as new. My husband likes to slice & chop in one area directly on the counter. After a few years of that daily ritual, that section shows very faint marks in bright light. He buffs it out when I get around to fussing - easier than using & washing a cutting board every day to him. Really like being able to put burning hot pans on the counter with no worries. The white seamless sinks are Corian - a breeze to clean, quiet, same as the counters. The island's electric slide in range is an older glass top model with interchangeable modular sections. The burners are solid cast iron & get plenty hot, but likely less high heat output capacity than your gas Thermador. The repairman may be right about your cracking from heat. Might contact Thermador to see what they recommend as an insulator between the cooktop & counter. Perhaps the solid surface makers could also help with recommendations.