We have quartz. It’s over 10 years old and still looks gorgeous. I do not use harsh chemicals on it and keep it clean and dry. Ours is “Hanstone”. Very happy with it. Curious to hear what the pros have to say.

He's wrong about everything he said about quartz. Weird that he's pushing granite, I wonder why. This is our 3rd home with quartz and it's super durable and easy to maintain. I'm no sure I'd ever choose anything else at this stage with a young family. I've had sauce spots sitting for hours and wipes right off. If there is a very slight stain from something magic eraser takes it right off (or permanent marker then use nail polish remover... ask me how I know haha). We currently have santamargherita SM installed and have not seen one stain or chip yet and I'm home with 2 kids who eat and make messes on it constantly.

I would find another fabricator as he is suggesting you do with his misinformation.

Our fifteen year old quartz countertop looks as good as the day it was installed. Look for another guy.

IMO plastic is plastic and real stone is forever . I always would choose granite over a fake looking material . I like polished granite I can put a hot pot on it , use it behind my stove no problem. I do not think it would make grat tires but sure makes great counters. Google white granite there are many.

I would not suggest that people put a hot pot on a granite counter. Most of the time you can probably get away with it, but thermal shock is not a made up phrase and science will catch up with you at some point!

I had granite put in my previous home in 2012, and it chipped enough I needed it repaired twice. I put quartz in our new home, we've been here 6 months and so far I feel the quartz is going to be more durable.

Quartz is the most sought after material. It does not crack or stain as compared to granite and marble. Most countertop companies provide you with a warranty which shows that everyone stands by their product.

Perhaps this guy isn’t certified to fabricate quartz? I believe that Cambria, in particular, requires certification training before they will allow a fabricator to purchase slabs. Perhaps other manufacturers do as well? I currently have quartz, granite, laminate and Corian in various bathrooms and kitchens in my home. I far and away prefer quartz for ease of cleaning, durability, and low maintenance. That said, I occasionally see a slab of granite that makes me swoon. But having had it for many years in my main kitchen I probably wouldn’t do it again. I also dearly love my Corian. YMMV, of course.

I have had Silestone quartz counters in my kitchen and 2 bathrooms since 2006. I was as gentle as can be with them for about two months and then went back to reality. They look exactly the same as when they were installed. No stains, no chips no color fading and absolutely no complaints!

I'm not sure where the countertop guy gets his info from and the 2 countertops he installed in the neighborhood were granite. the neighbor said he's picky and is happy that he's not able to see the seems much and he thinks he did a great job.

He did say that quartz is part plastic/manmade so it won't last as long.

I like to clean with vinegar, which I will have to research but from what I recall it's ok to clean quartz with vinegar but not granite?

if i had him install the pieces I found at the discount yard I could have him install a few in my lifex as compared to what the GC wants to charge buying them from another fabricator. I would be responsible for buying the slabs and they would deliver to him (or perhaps to me in this case as he says he cuts on site-which is another thing that I'm guessing I'll get responses about-I wasn't considering him when I looked at the neighbor's countertop and didn't know what I didn't know so from what I saw it looked like good work but I did see the laminate and I do know I prefer 3cm.
neighbor said he was amazed at how well he cut it in his driveway).

No way would I allow countertop fabrication to occur in my driveway. The resulting silica is flat out dangerous, and needs special equipment environments (wet saw, HVAC, etc.) to contain it. I would be angry if a neighbor did this, as it subjects everyone around to very serious, health-impacting air pollution, as highlighted in this 12/2/19 NPR article, 'There is no good dust':

Her research has found that even just a few minutes of dry fabrication was enough to put a worker's exposure over the permissible limit. "Any amount of dry fabrication could really be a problem," she says.


Some shops don't do dry cutting, like Capitol Granite near Richmond, Va. There, big computer-controlled machines cut through slabs while dumping up to 35 gallons of water a minute on the blade to keep down the silica dust.


"We do not do any dry work whatsoever. That's the only way that you can eliminate any risk affiliated with silicosis in the shop," says owner Paul Menninger.


He says if it were up to him, dry cutting would be illegal.


The fabricator I chose had such a computerized machine that cut according to digital instructions for a perfect fit, which is totally not possible freehanding it in a driveway.

I really hope you find a more responsible fabrictor!


We chose quartz because we didn't want the ongoing maintenance that keeping granite chemically sealed requires. Quartz does not need any such attention.

It is possible to safely cut, profile, and polish engineered stone inside someone's kitchen, but you have to have state-of-the-art tools and know what you're doing.

Vinegar is acidic. I don’t think it would be a great choice for either granite or quartz. From everything I’ve read it can cause discoloration and disintegration.

Thank you! I had no idea there were such harsh health risks. I wonder how many countertop Fabricators themselves who cut and driveways know this! So if any cutter is coming into the house and making any changes in the house we should be concerned about how they are doing any other cuts? The dust particles can be very dangerous?

I had thought that silica came from the sand and maybe the glues in it would be what is not healthy.

I’ve never had Quartz so I cannot attest to its longevity one way or the other. I have had granite counters in 3 homes over 25 years or so, and with hard use and no babying they each looked exactly like the day they were installed regardless of how many years had elapsed.

"The dust particles can be very dangerous?"

No. The problems with quartz fabrication is the exploitation of workers, mostly illegal aliens, by fabricator employers. A state of the art shop is all wet. The air is cleaner there than in your home. A sink cutout in your home, even done dry but with proper vacuum, poses no danger to residents. It's the long term exposure to dry cutting without PPE and proper vacuum that's the problem.

Joseph, that makes sense. So, this gentleman has worked in fabrication for 30 years in a company and he does his own fabrication on the weekends. He seems very happy to receive more work, quite the opposite of exploitation. So, with that, if he wants to work and is happy to work, the question is, then, can a fabricator do good work out of a driveway. One other thing I ran into was that the tile store will only deliver to a fabrication shop, but I'm not sure if he has a place to get it delivered or if he picks it up himself...

@mamaandsage Unless you live in a rural area and literally cannot hire anyone else, this doesn't sound like your person. I recently had sink and faucet holes drilled in granite in my yard before a slab was installed. The plumes, and I mean PLUMES, of dust rose 3 stories high. The sidewalk where this work was done was covered in sharp shards and piles of dust. Your work would be far more extensive than what was done in my yard. As others have said, the majority of fabrication should be done with a saw that utilizes a lot of water during the cutting process. Most areas have a choice of several fabricators in business. I would shop around to see what other options are available.

Granite has its own special problems and quartz has its own special problems. The Houzz forums are full of archived posts that go more into detail, if you'd like to learn more. The type of granite and the brand and color of quartz can make a difference in what type of issues you might expect, so once you decide on a few selections, research each of those individually to find out what you might be facing.

Okay, I don't want all of that dust in the glues and all going around the neighborhood, especially because we do a lot of organic gardening. That is selling me. Thank you!

Keep in mind that there's no one true perfect counter top material. They all have plusses and minuses. I have had laminate, quartz, marble, butcher block and granite counter tops. The white laminate lasted over 25 years, and only began to stain (coffee, wine) in the last few years but bleach took the stains out. Butcher block is awful around sinks. Marble, well, it etches. Black honed granite is fabulous, but you do see marks from time to time, and I don't love black counter tops. Quartz is very durable, BUT it does become stained from hard water and can chip, and it's impossible to repair. So educate yourself, and "pick your poison," with the knowledge of the pros and cons, and you won't be in for surprises.

And contrary to Joe Cortlett's comment, silicosis is a very dangerous disease caused by inhaling the dust from quartz cutting.

https://blogs.cdc.gov/niosh-science-blog/2019/10/29/silicosis-countertop/

https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2019/10/02/766028237/workers-are-falling-ill-even-dying-after-making-kitchen-countertops

This dude's on crack. I have Silestone and the stuff is indestructible; it's been in place for 7 years and looks immaculate, we are heavy cooks and bakers.

On another note, this sounds like a "side-job" for him? I would NOT use any installer operating without the backing of the fabrication shop. What if he screws up? What if the material is damaged? How will problems be handled? That's an immediate "no" from me.

"... the question is, then, can a fabricator do good work out of a driveway."

I do amazing work out of a kitchen:

"I recently had sink and faucet holes drilled in granite in my yard before a slab was installed. The plumes, and I mean PLUMES, of dust rose 3 stories high."

Balaria:

The top corner radii above were cut wet, in the kitchen, with a 1 3/8" core bit, same as a faucet hole. I had no need to even wear a mask. There is no dust. None. Just harmless slurry.

This is what I mean about proper work.

"And contrary to Joe Cortlett's comment, silicosis is a very dangerous disease caused by inhaling the dust from quartz cutting."

Diana:

Unless you can find a single instance where I've said that silicosis is not a very dangerous disease caused by inhaling the dust from quartz cutting, and you can't, you owe me and the readers here an apology for your irresponsible and untruthful mischaracterization of my comments.

Ummm, I'm 7 years in with my quartz. Still gorgeous. You want to talk maintenance? He forgot to mention granite needs to be sealed, repeatedly. Quartz - nope. I fell for the granite craze in my bathroom. Never again! I'm a proud quartz girl.
Mine is not your standard quartz design and we had to wait for it, but we love it still. 7 years in. Try a different contractor.

“He forgot to mention granite needs to be sealed, repeatedly.”

This comment indicates a lack of knowledge. I mentioned above that I have 3 different granites in 3 kitchens over about a 25-year period. I never sealed any of them. In 25 years. They looked brand new all the time. There are a thousand granites, and a person cannot make a statement like the above comment as if all the thousand behave the same. Many granites do not need sealing ever. Many granites need sealing once a year, a 5-minute process. There are a handful that need sealing several times a year, and they behave more like marble, with Kashmir White and its relatives being the most known of this type.

Like any choice in your kitchen - cabinets, appliances, fixtures, flooring - a homeowner needs to do a little research before plunking down their money. As Belaria mentioned, the OP should narrow down her choices, and then do research on those choices’ maintenance needs. My granites’ only maintenance in 25 years has been to clean with some dish soap and wipe dry.

A choice between Quartz and granite counters really boils down to an aesthetic one. They look and feel entirely different, and each material has a myriad of colors and patterns. You said you don’t like a busy pattern - while there are a number of granites that have little or no pattern, most do have colors and patterns. The Quartz choices definitely have many more patternless offerings, and so you should focus there.

“I don't want all of that dust in the glues and all going around the neighborhood, especially because we do a lot of organic gardening. That is selling me.”

I am not sure which material this comment is referring to. It seemed like it was responding to Belaria’s comment about granite. My granite counters were cut at the fabricator’s and delivered to my house that way. The only onsite cutting was drilling of 2 holes needed which didn’t generate dust. As discussed earlier, when slabs of Quartz are cut and finished to fit a kitchen, large quantities of silica particles are released. But like granite counters, those too should be cut at the fabricator’s so there should not be a worry about your neighborhood.

Your decisions about your countertops should focus more on the fabricator. Do you know how many posts are on here about bad fabrication? Thousands! And thousands spent too on all types of counters, only to be ruined by bad fabricators. Don’t be offhand about choosing a fabricator- it is an essential part of your kitchen renovation regardless of which type of counter you choose.

@Joseph Corlett, LLC You do a great job with already-installed granite re-configurations, and it sounds like you are equipped to keep the space clean. The job to which I was referring included cutting of 2 sink holes and 2 faucet holes for a double vanity. There were 10 holes drilled and 8 straight cuts made for that job. It would have ruined our new bathroom had they done it inside, which they had planned to do. The dust would have gotten in our ventilation system and really everywhere. There were no precautions they planned to take for dust control. The shop vac they used to clean up outside, after I insisted they cut outside, spit out dust from the exhaust as they vacuumed the sidewalk. They left shards of material on the sidewalk. This wasn't a fly-by-night operation. It was one of the largest fabrication shops in the Dallas, Texas, metro. They have multiple teams, and I have no idea how they get away with this. The large plumes of dust created during their work rose well above my 2-story home for maybe 10 minutes. I thought about documenting with a photo but was paralyzed with horror as I watched what might have happened inside my home had I not stood firm and demanded they do the work outdoors since they put up a great deal of resistance to that idea. I have left a cautionary review on their Google page lest anyone fear for future customers, of which I won't be one again.

If you hire Side Job Bob, you deserve to get the job that all the very obvious red flags indicate that you will.

Find a quality fabricator first. All the hours that people spend agonizing over which marble look is the “ perfect” would be better spent inside shops watching work happen.