testing sample Honed and not sealed. olive oil, lemon juice and GoChuang SAUCE

Show the kitchen . Show what you are doing. What are the floors, the cabinets ? Are you thrilled with the layout? Are you refreshing, changing only counters? Redoing the whole kitchen? Building a new home?

No......you didn't ask re any of that. That is why I am asking.

@mcgeee Did the granite sample pass theyour tests? It's a lovely stone. It looks to be a cool white on my screen, will a cool white work in your kitchen?

hey i am planning to ask questions re the kitchen, layout, etc. especially the layout, So will get onto that next week. but was just more wondering re the durabilty, issues with staining and other things that people seem to know so much about here, Mainly as i cannot find the name rocky white anywhere So stay tuned and the layout will get posted, But it is for a waterfront cabin in BC Canada, Will have windows galore and very few uppser cabinets, Douglas fir lower cabinets, With intergrated pulls, Only a few uppers and they will be painted, a light but not white colour. flours are oak mid range . matching the originals in rest of houuse. i love marble, and was thinking of the local marble that is mined near my cabin, but just think that will be too fussy for a recreational cabin full of guests and visitors and dont want to worry re the countertop, thinnk marble maybe just to "fancy" a look. design advice will come next week

A cabin near water? Doug fir? I'd not do granite at all. I'd do soapstone , or EVEN a honed or leathered absolute black granite.

Your cabinet layout, and layout in general, DOES affect your top choice : ) Seams......no seams....where....etc

Honed absolute black:

In general · More Info

Interior Design Work · More Info

I think your light granite will be beautiful if it meets your durability/staining needs. How did your testing go? We can use all the brightness we can get here in the PNW. What Marble is mined near you? I didn't know we had any mined locally!

"Why make demands like this?"

It's not a demand. I do believe the questions asked provided some context as the selection

I also stated " I realize you didn't ask"

And we LEARN. It's a cabin, it is waterfront, it is new.

For all we knew prior? It could have been going into a a fifty year old honey oak kitchen, poorly laid out, not worthy of a new anything but total gut.

THAT'S why.......the so called "demand".

She's only asking about durability of the granite and other names at this point. And if she wants granite in a 50 year old honey oak kitchen? That is not a crime against nature, for heaven's sake.

@JAN MOYER, the cabin is not new ...

"floors are oak mid range . matching the originals in rest of house."

It looks a lot like Kashmir White which is more suitable for a sponge than a countertop.

Honestly........

It's a cabin could we agree on that? Lots of things are durable. what FEELS most suitable to a woodsy lakeside cabin? That ALSO meets a durability test? that works with existing floors and oak etc?

This is the internet. Nobody said it was a crime to do anything, have anything, put it anywhere. Do go back and count the threads, when with a few questions..... solicited or not? Someone has uttered " ohhhhh thank you for that, I like that idea". Or "ohhhhh!!!! Never considered that, thank you".

Maybe this is some new "policing" of what can be asked of anyone or replied to by anyone ?

If you don't like my question? Consider it wasn't posed to you, it was posed to the author of the thread. It wasn't critical of a concept, it asked for context and apologies if I missed info in the middle of a thread.

mcgee. that granite is River White or Kashmir white.(if it has little burgandy colored 'berries' Here's a close-up of it)

those are the two original names for it. sellers tend to rename slabs (I have no idea why)

OR, There is another similar one that has dark spots. Colonial White.

this is how it looks leathered

this is honed river white

Both are decent white granites. the river white tends to run a little 'cool'. you will have to apply a sealer to them, but overall, it's a pretty hearty granite.

@ Beth

Thought the same thing. "River" but I see brown and no little deep berry spots

Jan, I added a few more pics. It could be colonial white. that one has the darker spots. I posted two close ups of both so she can get a better look. Granite-wise, they're pretty much the same.

Colonial white

River White

Both slabs have a wide range of variation

Well, you're not using it commercially:

FWIW I have always wondered if stone yards used new/different names to make it harder for consumers to comparison shop based on price

Is it called something else? See photos.

Names in the granite industry can be all over the place. Sometimes granite names can be consistent, but I would not rely on a granite name to be informative. You are doing the right thing to test the stone.

I gather all white granites are risky re staining if not well sealed

Actually, the granites in the "Alaska White" family are not risky. Alaska White and its relatives White Delicatus, Lennon, Bianco Antico, Bianco Delicatus, White Springs, and some other names are not stain prone. You seal them once a year, but you can pretty much relax with them. But they are a different look from what you are looking at, since the Alaska Whites are chunky patterns with a great deal of variety in pattern. Anther granite that is "white-ish" or light that is pretty carefree is Viscon White, but again that is a very different look in that it is very swirly.

but is it granite?

The stone in your OP photo looks like granite. It does not look like marble if that is what you are asking.

Is it a good one, bad one, or no one knows?

You are doing the right thing to test the stone. These white-based granites vary tremendously in their porosity. Yes, Kashmir White is the worst without question, but the similar-looking River White has been reported on this forum to be carefree other than sealing once a year.

The OP is smart to test the stone. I suggest that instead of us opining over cyberspace about whether that stone will stain or not - because how can we know - let's hear the results of the tests that @mcgeee has done.

It would have been good to test one half of the stone with sealant to see the effect that sealant can have on staining. If you have another sample, try that too.

wow thanks to all of you for comments. Can't wait to post re kitchen and layout and colors, i guess i am worried as there is so many negative comments on some granites like kashmir white. It does not have any red spots, I think it looks most like the river white. The stone place had colonial white ( considered) but it had more brown/ beige in it. ) with the first test on the honed and not treated sample, it did not edge with lemon. But did seem to absorb the olive oil a bit but when it dried it looked fine without a stain. i have another sample that is polished so could put some sealer on one of the pieces to see what happens there. Re the soapstone comment. I love soapstone, Issue is inspite of all the windows, the cabin has wood on some walls and a wood ceiling that is beautiful, so I am trying to keep it wood. Also in my area soapstone was super expensive.

Regarding your comment about the other sample being polished - a polished finish will have a better result with the oil than the honed finish you tested. That is regardless of whether you seal it or not; that is the nature of polished vs honed finish and its absorption of oil.

How did the sample do with the red liquid you show in your photo? (Idk if that is ketchup or hot sauce or what)

I am off to get some sealer and will re do my testing, Thanks all. So helpful. and yes i will post the design with more info shortly. I am working with a professional.

We saw a white granite that looked kind of like that it was called Pitaya white. It looks like cookies and cream.

I have used factory polished granite in all of my clients kitchens and honestly never needed sealers for any of them and no issues with staining.. IMO wipe up spills when they happen not the next day.

We are using this rocky white granite stone in our kitchen for the perimeter countertop with a soapstone island and similairly, internet searches resulted in very little information. We looked at pitaya, river white, thunder white, colonial white, white fantasy as well as super white and mont blonc quartzites. Our (leathered) slabs passed the 48hr oil/lemon/sriracha test. Will post a photo after install (in 2 weeks fingers crossed)

Was your test on samples with sealer? I got staining with the overnight oily hot sauce but lemon and oil alone were ok. But have not yet tried a sealed sample. Thanks so much. .

Kitchen design underway.

I’ll post this under design advice shortly.

Renovation oceanfront cabin. Cabin is a type of log cabin so considerable amount of cedar on walls
Cabin is on a point of land with sea views in many directions. Goal is bigger better kitchen combined with DR in footprint of house. Also additional covered deck on side of house with some aspect of very simple outdoor kitchen.

Large door from DR to outdoor deck. Possible pass though window from kitchen to deck as well ?

Kitchen will have extensive windows on two walls so very few uppers. So lots of windows and views everywhere. Steel beams will be needed in structure and exposed. Ceiling peaked and has large cedar beams as well

Kitchen design early. I am not keen to have sink or stove on island. Decided on 2 sinks. Idea is wash up area separate and large prep sink in the triangle. Both sinks with views. I suspect this will be commented on.

Cabinets likely both wood below and painted uppers

Douglas fir oil stain . Modern style with integrated pulls

Painted cabinets still undecided coloring but light non white maybe with green/light grey tones

Countertop hopefully whitish granite.

Style is modern but fitting a 60’s cabin with rustic and existing mid century modern features.

Wood is staying cedar. Ie not being painted white.

Room adjacent is living room. Which is 25 by 15.5. Ft Style is modern but warm.

Some of the cabin has been dry walled so not all walls are wood.

Ps. Re soapstone. And black granite. I love love soapstone but due to all the wood I worry kitchen will be dark if we do a dark counter. I also considered some soapstone on island and some granite or quartz on the sides. but prices higher as soapstone around here is expensive. And a bit more wastage. The ceiling is currently drywall but we may take it off to expose a gorgeous wood ceiling which will make room much darker.

mcgee - Yes, the rocky white sample I tested was leathered and sealed. The soapstone will be waxed.

We also went against the grain in our layout to get the kitchen island and keep the mountain views and so the design/laout is a 'zone kitchen'.

Regarding your kitchen re-design... do you have a dishwasher location? For our layout we established prep zone, cook/bake zone and cleanup/sink/dishwasher coupled with frequently used/washed items cabinetry zone to help guide design. How the kitchen will function is something to consider if you are going to break with convention.

Yes dishwasher in in island but across from the cleanup sink. It’s pretty close to the prep sink too. I’m trying to put dishes cutlery next to in in drawers glasses in one of the few uppers next to prep sink. Limited uppers . I’m used to a very small kitchen which is great for one person but we basically have guests here most of the year.

Can you post after your get your rocky white granite installed !! Curious. I’m thinking honed not leathered.

The countertops are finally in! Permiter countertop is the rocky white and island is black soapstone. Very happy with the combination. We have a zoned kitchen layout and wanted a large island to be the center of our kitchen with the permiter visually soft to de-emphasize the many angles and incongruities in the space.

Very nice!!

Very nice , lots of light . And big. How big is the island ?

island is 128" x 58", we love it!