28

Dec

Can You Remove Granite Countertops and Reuse Them?

Imagine this. You have spent thousands of dollars renovating your house with premium granite counters then due to unforeseen circumstances, you have to move out of the house or sell it.

You can’t imagine moving to the new house without the seamless design, durability, ease of maintenance, and color patterns of granite.

Can you remove granite countertops and reuse them? You wonder. The simple answer is it’s most likely impossible as there are plenty of hurdles you have to go over for it to be a success. These hurdles include:

You have to match the kitchen space layout

Since you had already cut the slabs during installation, the only way you can use them in your new home is if they fit the footprint of your new kitchen cabinetry.

This means if in the old layout the granite had cutout around the wet bar area or around the sink area, for you to reuse your countertops in the new kitchen you should have the exact layout, which as you can guess is highly improbable.

Even if by miracle the old and new kitchen layouts match, you have problems if the new kitchen is larger than the old one.

In such a scenario you have to find matching granite pieces which can be difficult if the granite pattern and color is unique.

Even if you manage to get the piece, you will have a visible seam where you attach the additional slab. As you can guess this can significantly affect the look you are trying to achieve.

So to conclude, for you to successfully remove and reuse your kitchen countertop, the two houses should have similar cabinet layouts. The length and width of the countertop should fit the cabinet dimensions.

If you have excess granite, your contractor can trim it down, but if the granite is not enough, you have plenty of issues to solve.

High granite damage risk

Most homeowners install granite for its tough and indestructible nature, but you should know that granite is heavy and brittle.

This means it’s almost impossible to remove the countertops in one large slab as the risk of damage is high.

For you to safely remove the countertop, hire a professional to come with special tools, which as you might guess isn’t cheap.

You also have to involve several people to hold along the countertop’s length to avoid pressure points that might lead to cracking.

Even when you hire experienced contractors, most of them will require you to sign a contract that frees them from liability should the granite crack during removal. This is due to the high risk of damage that comes with removing the stone.

Before you decide to remove the granite, find out the type of granite you have. Granite can be weaker and fragile or it can be harder and stronger. Obviously, you should go for one that is harder and stronger as it will be easier to handle and move without risking a lot of damage.

You also should consider the thickness of the granite counter. It’s better to remove a thicker slab than a thinner one. To tell how thin your countertop is, check it from beneath the cabinet.

If there is plywood below the granite, then the countertop is thin and has high chances of cracking but if there is no plywood, the stone is thick and there are chances of removing it with no issues.

Work with an expert contractor

There are plenty of perks that come with removing and reusing granite counters. One is you don’t leave behind your precious countertops you spent a lot of money on.

Secondly, you don’t have to break the bank to purchase new countertops in your new home.

While this is great, as discussed above, it comes with plenty of challenges you have to be strategic when approaching them. To increase the chances of the process being successful, work with experienced granite contractors Rockville.

The contractors should have removed and reused other countertops in the past. When you hire the right ones, they will help you decide whether it’s wise to remove the countertops or not.

The contractors will also remove and reinstall the countertops if the stone is healthy enough for reuse.

12

Dec

5 Ways To Keep Granite Countertops Looking New

When you install granite countertops, you want them to keep the fresh look for as long as possible, and you have every right to as you have spent a lot of money installing them. The good news is that it’s possible to do it. To help you out, here are tips on how to keep granite looking new:

Watch out for the heat.

As a natural stone, granite looks tough and indestructible. While it’s one of the most durable countertop materials on the market, it’s not indestructible. The countertop is also heat resistant, but unfortunately, it’s not heatproof.

This means when you expose it to high temperatures, such as placing hot pans directly on it, it will get damaged. While the hot pan might not leave an ugly burn mark on the countertop, it can cause scratching, forcing you to replace the countertop.

To keep your countertops looking new, protect the surfaces from the hot pots and pans. Thankfully, it’s easy to do it.

When cooking, always have hot pads and trivets in place. Place the hot pans and pots here instead of placing them directly on the countertop surface.

Don’t sit on the countertops.

Granite is strong and durable, but the edges are prone to damage when you place a lot of weight and pressure on it. Due to this, sitting on the countertop edges is harmful as you risk cracking the surfaces, and you are left with an ugly piece that you have to replace to restore the look of your countertops.

To ensure this doesn’t happen, don’t stand on the countertops. Also, don’t sit on the counters as you are cooking or spending time with your better half.

For the kids, let them know they can’t sit or play on the counters.

Have a cutting board in place all the time

Most people make the mistake of treating their countertops as their cutting boards. This is understandable as the countertops appear tough, so many people have the impression they can’t get damaged. How wrong are they?

While you can get away with chopping a few onions for a party dip, making it a habit is counterproductive.

For one, the countertops have plenty of bacteria, so when you chop your meat and other foods on the countertops, you expose them to the many bacteria on the counters. The meat can also get into the stone’s natural pores, making it hard to disinfect them once you are done.

Most foods contain acids that can etch or even stain the countertops. This means you shouldn’t cut grapefruits, lemons, or limes directly on the countertops as they will cause damage.

The tough nature of the countertops can damage the knives and dull them. To protect your precious knives and keep off the food from your countertops, always have a cutting board in place.

Clean your countertops

This is the first thing that comes to most homeowners’ minds when they think about maintaining their countertops looking new. While it’s true cleaning the countertops comes in handy at maintaining them looking new, you have to do it right.

Clean your countertops daily to keep stains, bacteria, and spills from penetrating the countertop seal and seeping into the natural pores of the stone.

You don’t have to be fancy when cleaning the counters. Using water and a few drops of dish soap is enough. An easy way to do it is to mix the two, put them in a spray bottle, and then spray directly on the countertops. Follow up by wiping the surfaces with a clean cloth, rinse with clean water then dry with another clean cloth.

Regular cleaning of the countertops prevents them from getting foggy and grimy with stains.

Avoid harsh cleaning products such as steel wool as they will scratch the surfaces, leaving you with ugly countertop surfaces.

You only need to maintain your granite.

The key to keeping your granite looking new is to take good care of it. Besides the above tips, also reseal the countertops at least once a year. You can do the sealing or hire granite contractors Rockville to help you out.

07

Dec

How Much Do Granite Countertops Cost?

If you are asking how much do granite countertops cost, you must be looking to renovate your bathroom or kitchen and not sure how much to budget for it. As much as we would like to give you a definite answer to this question, the unfortunate thing is the price of the slabs varies depending on plenty of factors that include:

Source of the stone

Ask most homeowners where to buy the granite counters, and the first thing that comes to their minds is the big box stores. While the stores are large and popular, they often don’t have plenty of countertop slab options to choose from. The stores also tend to be more expensive, with most of them charging up to 40% more than specialist stores.

These big-box stores also often outsource the fabrication and installation work making the installation process too expensive.

To save money and get many countertop options to choose from, buy your countertops from the countertop specialists. These professionals have staff, skills, and the necessary equipment, making them a one stop shop.

When you visit these stores, you get top quality unique slabs at a lower cost, and you have expert contractors ready to install the countertops for you expertly.

Thickness

Most of the granite slabs vary between 2 cm and 3 cm. As you can guess, the thicker slabs are more expensive than, the thinner ones. This means you can buy many thinner countertops than thicker ones.

Unfortunately, the thinner slabs require a lot of support and easily break especially when you place them over a large area.

Rarelity of the colors

Although most homeowners install white countertops, granite slabs come in all shades of colors where the rare and exotic colors such as red, blue, and black tend to be more expensive than the standard hues.

Cut

Most people associate granite with long slabs of stone, but these are just the most desirable cut for the kitchen countertops. Manufacturers cut granite in many ways, including tiles, modules, and many others.

Slabs are the most popular, followed by modules, then tiles, where the only advantage granite slabs have over modules is that slabs look better as they require fewer seams hence presenting a smoother, sleeker look.

The modules and tiles might seem less durable than slabs, but this isn’t the case. Remember, they are made from granite.

If operating on a tight budget, go for tiles that also work excellently for backsplashes.

Granite quality grades

Granite comes in different grades defined by pits, veins, colors, soft material content, marks, thickness, and the quarry. While there are many grades, we can summarize them into three primary levels:

Level 1: The low level or entry-level granite is also known as the commercial-grade or the “builder’s grade,” often from china.

Level 2: This is the mid-grade level that is more unique than level 1, and it’s often from Brazil and India.

Level 3: Also known as the high-level grade, it’s the finest quality and comes from India and Brazil.

Obviously, level 3 is the most expensive as it focuses on the quality of the stone.

Demand and supply

Like any other product in the market, the granite countertops’ price is affected by the demand and supply forces. If you buy the slabs when they are in high demand, you will pay more for them than when another person would buy when the demand is lower.

Finishes

Most countertop specialists give the countertops a glossy or polished finish, and in rare cases, they will give it a matte finish. These are the most popular granite finishes, and when you buy them, you won’t pay extra for them.

Unfortunately, if you choose another finish, such as hammered or leathered, you will have to pay an extra fee as the finish is out of the ordinary.

Can you save on your countertops?

The good news is you can save on your countertops. One way is to be more flexible on the countertop’s color, size, grade, and texture. You also should be cautious of the store you buy from.

To avoid costly mistakes, hire expert granite installers Rockville to handle the installations. The professionals will help you with the installations and guide you into buying the right slabs for your home.