Granite worktops, are they expensive?

Dear Kimberley,
We wanted to do exactly the same thing as you -black granite. Then I spoke to a few friends who had real black granite- and also some suppliers.
They said- and the suppliers confirmed -that natural granite is a porous material so you had to be careful how you cleaned it- no kitchen sprays containing bleach- as otherwise it would start to oxidize and eventually discolour and pit.

Darn I thought because I liked the look. Then another friend recommended Granite Transformations.
http://www.granitetransformations.co.uk/

They make sell and install sheets of a natural granite and acrylic mixture that looks exactly the same as granite and has the same cold heat resistant surface. However it has enhanced chemical resistance so you can clean it with what you like.
They fit this sheet and edges , spraybacks etc on top of your existing worktop effectively encasing it.
One advantage of this is less mess and you also get the look of a really thick slab of granite- for which I got quoted "double sheets" from real granite suppliers.

We had it fitted 2 years ago and are still absolutely delighted. They took 2 days to fit in our large kitchen-3 x 3m worktops and splashbacks.It looks the same as granite and has worn really well so far. No-one visiting realized it was not real granite -including my friends who have the natural sort!

And needless to say as this is Money Saving Expert forum -it was a lot cheaper than what we had been quoted for the other stuff ( just over half the cost).

regards,
Helen

helcat26 wrote: »

They make sell and install sheets of a natural granite and acrylic mixture that looks exactly the same as granite and has the same cold heat resistant surface.

No-one visiting realized it was not real granite -including my friends who have the natural sort!

I'm a big fan of Granite Transformations surfaces - but they don't look exactly the same as granite - not if you're familiar with the look of granite.

Neither are they as heat resistant as granite - the literature says resistant to 150 degrees C - so avoid putting hot stuff straight from a hot oven on them.

It isn't possible for them to do small curves for the corners either -they can only fabricate shallow curves.

As I said - I like these surfaces and it might be worth looking at some samples - but granite they're not!

I'm glad you're pleased with your tops helcat - like I said, I like them too. I just don't think they should be confused with real granite.

It's perfectly true that granite can't have invisible joins - if you want those then granite isn't for you.

There are also many different qualities of granite and some of the cheap ones around these days are not as suitable for worktops - especially some of the black ones which aren't technically granite at all. If you get a white patch on your granite with nail polish remover, or lemon juice or vinegar - then it isn't good quality granite. If the liquid goes black, then the tops have been stained to look more black - a common trick, I believe, with cheaper black granites.

Good quality, dense, mottled, dark granites can be used without sealing and will not be affected by lemon juice or vinegar and you can use bleach on them (as long as it isn't on there all the time!). You can also put hot pans direct from the oven on them (as many owners will testify!) although it isn't recommended, especially for narrow pieces of granite. It's marble that is attacked by vinegar and lemon juice - but I wouldn't recommend marble for worktops anyway - and I personally wouldn't have a plain black top, since it will show fingerprints and dust and watermarks - even if it's super duper quality.

What you need to avoid are abrasive cleaners, which can cause scratches, leaving oil on the surface for long periods, because it might soak in, and really strong chemicals like battery acid, paint stripper and drain cleaner, which could etch the surface.

If you choose a very cheap granite, or an exotic granite with lots of graining and irregularities, or an unusual pattern, or a very pale colour - then you need to be more careful - and sealing is advisable (essential with pale colours). For pale coloured worktops I often recommend quartz composites (or the tops from Granite Transformations if no tight curves are required) - since they are very non-absorbent.

I don't think you can beat a really good quality granite for looks, though.