Valentino Dolomite Honed Marble Sealing

10 months ago

I am installing Valentino Dolomite Honed Marble countertops and the fabricator is recommending I use a professional company to seal the marble. The 2 slabs cost about $4K and the installation another $4K. Sealing quote is $3800!!! That seems ridiculous to me. I found another company that quoted $1K. That's much better but still very high. I'm handy enough to seal the counters myself but don't know what product to use. I would like to get a piece of the counter and try different products on a remnant and then test them with various things - lemon juice, wine, vinegar, etc. What products should I try? Thank you!

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (10)

M Miller
10 months ago
last modified: 10 months ago
I am not trying to be harsh, but if you are not OK with marble etching from lemon juice, wine, vinegar, etc., you should not spend $8000 on marble for your kitchen. Get another stone, one that will not be formed from calcium carbonate, which is why marble intrinsically will etch - it's the calcium carbonate makeup.

No sealant that you could apply yourself will protect from etching marble. It will only protect from staining. If the sealing quote you got is $3800, then it is likely an application of a special layer on top of the marble. Those cannot be applied by a homeowner. Be aware that type of sealant will disguise the beauty of the marble, dulling its luminescence and depth. And you will be able to see the layer edge of that type of seal on the edging of the counters.
jakensydsmom
Original Author
10 months ago
Not harsh, I understand your point. I looked at so many slabs - no one seems to carry granite anymore and I didn’t see any quartz that I liked. The slabs we chose are so gorgeous that hearts popped out of my head . It was love at first sight. I hope it won’t be a tragic love story! Thanks for your input. Truly appreciated!
Related Discussions
Honed quartzite question
Q
Comments (12)
Tl1969, I would read up on quartzite some more in the thread that Halfway posted. If it is really quartzite then there will be no etching. If it is not quartzite, then honed would be better, but it's important for you to learn what you are getting. The referenced thread has instructions for how to tell the difference. Do not leave it to the sales people or fabricators to tell you the difference. Honing a stone does not rob the stone of a protective layer, aside from a sealer that may have been applied. As for natural beauty, that is in the eye of the beholder. I do know that it's a major pain for a fabricator to change the finish on a slab of stone, so they may be reluctant to go that route. Good luck!
...See More
Loving my acid washed marble
Q
Comments (40)
Hi, Here is my kitchen. I never put hot things directly on my marble. But that has nothing to do with the acid washing or the sealer. Its just not a good idea, as almost any stone could crack from thermal shock, especially if it has a fissure or weak vein. The cutting board next to my stove stays there always to act as a landing pad for hot pots. Plus it adds warmth to the white on white color scheme, acts as a work surface, and looks pretty with the floor! BTW-Another reason to have some handy boards is that carrara marble "bruises" if you knock it with a pot or even put a coffee mug down too hard. It'll get a little white fleck that will never go away, caused by the crystals in the stone getting crushed. Hence the round board near the coffee maker! The marks are usually not very noticeable but I dont want to tempt fate. Again, these marks will happen in any carrara, regardless of how its finished or sealed. I hope this info helps. i'm happy to try and answer any other questions.
...See More
Carrera Marble Kitchen countertops
Q
Comments (23)
Shouldn't marble not stain if it's sealed? I think the real issues are etching and scratching. Those pictures are helpful for people, but they should also realize they're kind of the "worst case" scenarios. Carrera will etch, every bit as much as those pictures show, but it usually won't look as bad as those pictures, if that makes any sense. The pictures have to be taken at the right angle to get the etches to show for a picture. That last picture looks so awful because it's stained, which doesn't seem to happen to most people who have their counters sealed when needed. The first three pictures are fairly representative of what friends with carrera-type marbles live with, but their etches are not very noticeable when you walk in their kitchens. On the whitish marbles at least, those etches would not be noticeable in most light conditions to someone who's just walking through the kitchen. (I don't know about the third one that's brownish--I've never seen anyone with a polished counter in that color of marble.) A good friend of mine has carrera counters in her kitchen that gets lots of light, and she has hundreds of etches. Unless you bend your head and crane your neck to look for them, you won't notice them. Her honed finish makes a big difference to this--with a polished finish, the difference in finish between the etch and the rest of the counter will be more noticeable. She also doesn't have direct sunlight hitting them through most of the day. I also have marble counters, but they're dolomitic marble, so they're a bit slower to etch. In other words, we can spill lemon juice on them, and it won't etch if we wipe if up within a few minutes. Our counters are just as soft as non-dolomitic marble in most places, and we have thousands of tiny scratches on our polished finish counters. Most of them are like the ones visible in the fourth picture, and with the veining of our counters, they're not noticeable unless you look for them. Over time, the polished finish is developing its "patina" and getting less shiny. They're still gorgeous, and I'd do them again in a heartbeat. But I would not have risked polished counters with carrera. I did want to mention the scratching because I think it sometimes gets overlooked as people worry about etching. Both will happen to marble, no matter how much you baby it.
...See More
NAMIB Fantasy Marble - Whats the truth about this marble?
Q
Comments (20)
Jennifer, do you have honed or polished Namib? I also clean up during and after cooking so should be good there. We were going to do honed per designer and stone warehouse rep to hid the etching, planning on getting it initally sealed and then there after per recommendations. I have 2 boys (9 and 12) well, 3 if you want to count the biggest, messiest boy my husband. They are all usually pretty good but I'm also expecting some spots, staining, etching, bruising etc. this is to be expected and I agree I like the lived in look. I guess I'm just nervous as to how quickly it can stain. Sounds like I wuld have some time to get to the stain and wouldnt be within minutes of contact. BTW- your Namib is gorgeous!
...See More
anna_682
10 months ago
last modified: 10 months ago
We have honed marble. No stains and no etching. They were sealed upon installation. It's time to seal them again. Honed marble counters do not show etching as polished marble does. Enjoy your marble counters.
Sally T
10 months ago
@anna_682 - what kind of marble? and what kind of sealer did you use on install? Thanks!
anna_682
10 months ago
last modified: 10 months ago
@Sally T Our fabricator used Tenax Proseal. We have dolomite marble. Our slabs are similar to this:
Sally T
10 months ago
Thanks @anna_682!!!! Would love to see photos of your kitchen if you have any available -
anna_682
10 months ago
last modified: 10 months ago
@Sally T I don't have any pics of the finished kitchen. Here is the mockup with the actual marble slabs. We squared off the island and did a mitered edge.
jakensydsmom
Original Author
10 months ago
I learned a little more and the expensive quote is for a nano-film from Stoneguard USA. It isn’t a liquid sealer but kind of like that film you can put on the hood of your car. Still seems crazy expensive to me but is supposed to last for years.
M Miller
10 months ago
That is the type of sealant I mentioned in my second paragraph above. Please read my warning about how it changes the appearance of the marble. I would prefer seeing etches to that, but you may feel differently.
cpartist
10 months ago
last modified: 10 months ago
Marble will stain and etch but it becomes part of the character of the marble. One of my favorite restaurants had a bar with marble and the marble looked beautiful even though you could see it had etching and some stains.

I have honed marble in my master bath in the shower and the floors and walls. I have onyx on my countertop. Both are still beautiful 5 years in and have never been sealed.

Valentino Dolomite Honed Marble Sealing

Comments (10)

M Miller

jakensydsmom
Original Author

Related Discussions

anna_682

Sally T

anna_682

Sally T

anna_682

jakensydsmom
Original Author

M Miller

cpartist

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

Valentino Dolomite Honed Marble Sealing

Comments (10)

jakensydsmomOriginal Author

Related Discussions

jakensydsmomOriginal Author

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

jakensydsmom
Original Author

jakensydsmom
Original Author