Granite Worktops - Truth, Lies and misinformation

Alex_Morley

Hi everyone,

I've been reading through this thread and the company "granitefitters.co.uk" seems to have got mixed reviews over the years, with the most recent one (from Claire-F on a different thread) apprearing to be very good.

Has anybody had any recent experience with the company? While I appreciate they're a fitter rather than somewhere with a showroom, providing you don't pay until they've completed the installation and you're happy with it - is there really much risk?

As a bit of background to why I'm asking, we're currently having some work done on our house and I will soon be fitting a new set of kitchen cabinets myself. The only thing we haven't decided on yet is the worktop but we're pretty sure we want granite.

We've been quoted a range of prices as you can see below:
£1,152 (Granite Zone)
£1,294 (Mister Marble) - Have read bad reviews
£1,400 (Granite Fitters) - Have read good and bad reviews
£2,148 (Diapol) - Have read good reviews
£2,324 (Granite & marble Shop) - Visited them and very confident in them
£2,412 (The Merchant House) - Have read good reviews but I could get Corian fitted for this price.
£2,555 (Grantech) - I could get Corian fitted for this price.
£2,364 (Polish Granite) - I could get Corian fitted for this price.

I appreciate that the comment above about getting Corian for a certain price isn't a direct comparison but it's something I have worked with in my job and therefore trust - granite would be a new material to me as I've never had a kitchen with it in or worked with it in my job so if I was spending that amount of money I'd use Corian.

I'd appreciate any input on which of the above companies people have any recent experience with as we're very much on a budget but also don't want to be ripped off!

PS. We're in South Manchester if that helps people with recommending good companies of similar price range.

Thanks in advance for any help you can provide.

Alex

Alan_M_2

Visit each firm, ask if you can pick your own product, the slabs that will actually be fitted in your property - even ask if you can sign the back of them with a marker pen.

Get a feel for each company when you visit, look at their show fits.

Doing anything other than that is simply sticking a pin in a map.

You have listed 4 companies that you shouldn't touch with a barge pole - due to the Unique way MSE works - as I'm in the business I can't tell you who they are.

So go visit them, it will become very obvious, very quickly who is good and who isn't.

After all you wouldn't spend £2000 with any company on any other item without at least paying them a visit.

cyclonebri1

Alex_Morley wrote: »

Hi everyone,

I've been reading through this thread and the company "granitefitters.co.uk" seems to have got mixed reviews over the years, with the most recent one (from Claire-F on a different thread) apprearing to be very good.

Has anybody had any recent experience with the company? While I appreciate they're a fitter rather than somewhere with a showroom, providing you don't pay until they've completed the installation and you're happy with it - is there really much risk?

As a bit of background to why I'm asking, we're currently having some work done on our house and I will soon be fitting a new set of kitchen cabinets myself. The only thing we haven't decided on yet is the worktop but we're pretty sure we want granite.

We've been quoted a range of prices as you can see below:
£1,152 (Granite Zone) [text deleted by MSE Forum Team]
£1,294 (Mister Marble) - Have read bad reviews
£1,400 (Granite Fitters) - Have read good and bad reviews
£2,148 (Diapol) - Have read good reviews
£2,324 (Granite & marble Shop) - Visited them and very confident in them
£2,412 (The Merchant House) - Have read good reviews but I could get Corian fitted for this price.
£2,555 (Grantech) - I could get Corian fitted for this price.
£2,364 (Polish Granite) - I could get Corian fitted for this price.

I appreciate that the comment above about getting Corian for a certain price isn't a direct comparison but it's something I have worked with in my job and therefore trust - granite would be a new material to me as I've never had a kitchen with it in or worked with it in my job so if I was spending that amount of money I'd use Corian.

I'd appreciate any input on which of the above companies people have any recent experience with as we're very much on a budget but also don't want to be ripped off!

PS. We're in South Manchester if that helps people with recommending good companies of similar price range.

Thanks in advance for any help you can provide.

Alex

Alans advice has been invaluable to me, but I can make a recommendation as I have no vested interest here.

I'm from Derbyshire, I visited 2 of the outfits you mention in the Manchester area. I wasn't happy check my previous posts. I eventually went with the company I've mentioned in above posts and am delighted.

Pricewise they were about 15 to 20% more expensive than Mister Marble, a price worth paying. If you do try them go to the factory in Bradford rather than the showroom in Leeds.;)

bsg1

Hi

We're in the Stockport area and used Granite and Marble Shop and were very happy. We did as Alan suggested and went to choose the exact piece. As it was patterned we also talked about which direction it would be laid as it was coming from one large piece. Having said that, probably best to visit all those you are considering and go with your instincts rather than a stranger on an internet forum.;)

kabayiri

Alex_Morley wrote: »

...
PS. We're in South Manchester if that helps people with recommending good companies of similar price range.

Thanks in advance for any help you can provide.

Alex

Have you tried Cheshire Marble in Altrincham ?

They seemed reasonable to me, although I went with an outfit in Sheffield in the end.

My concerns with the likes of Mister Marble is that inevitably due to their size you don't know which fitters you will get. I wonder if the difference in the ability of different fitting teams accounts for the variability in reviews ?

I wanted to deal and speak with the actual people fitting my quartz worktops from start to finish. I can't say my installation was cheap however, but there is quite a lot of worktop.

Alan_M_2

Sensible advice on the last three posts here.

You really can't beat going to have a chat with someone.

We don't get involved in the fitting at all, but many of our trade customers bring their clients in to pick product. It's the only sensible approach.

Any decent firm will be quite comfortable with this arrangement.

jimjam10

Ok just had our emerald pearl installed by Yes granite (near northampton). As recommended by B-stone.
Ahhh its gorgeous..! Good price (considering), templated promptly and all looks fab. Even if the fitter cut the oven cable accidentally (these things happen, and he paid to fix by a local sparky).
Thanks again, Alan.

Alan_M wrote: »

Emerald Pearl originates in Norway - a country with a pretty high cost of living. Due to this cost, the blocks are transported to India or China for processing, then exported out to the destination country.

In India you need a licence to process imported blocks, not many companies have this and they can charge pretty much what they want for this material (governed only by market forces).

Emerald Pearl is not particularly "brittle" compared with say Baltic Brown or Kashmir White but it would be more prone to breaking then say Galaxy or Absolute Black.

Ultimately, the afformentioned company probably don't have a decent supply of this particular stone at a price that works for them. It's not something that is produced in pre produced countertops in any volume, it's mainly a traditional slab material. Don't change stone if that's what you want, find someone who can do it for you.

You have an established stone wholesaler in Nothampton - http://www.bstone.co.uk/ pop in and see them, see if they do the stone you're after (they do sell emerald pearl) and get them to recommend a local firm.

There are no companies in Northampton that I have any personal dealings with, as such I'm not really in a postition to recommend any particular one over another.

Alex_Morley

Thanks very much for all the replies and the couple of recommendations.
I have now contacted both Cheshire Marble and Mayfair Granite who got back to me almost immediately and definitely gave a good feeling over the phone.
I will keep you all updated on who we end up with and how it all goes.

Thanks again for the help and advice, very much appreciated.

bustyb293

oscarisapc2001 wrote: »

Hi Folks
I have just seen this thread after browsing the internet for an answer to a problem. We have just had a £5k granite worktop fitted in a new kitchen by our builder as part of extensive house renovations. The builder is reputable and the work is being overseen by a chartered surveyor. Unfortunately, when the granite company fitted the granite worktop, the installers had to drill the kitchen tap hole by hand and in doing so cracked the granite between the tap hole and the sink - it is a full thickness hairline crack in what is probably the most prominent part of the granite. The installers didn't tell us - they scarpered and left us to notice it, which we did, fortunately before the plumber came to fit the tap otherwise we would have blamed him. The granite company have offered to repair the crack - although I don't see how they can without making it bigger since no resin or glue will go into a hairline crack - but I am more concerned about having a crack in the part of the kitchen most vulnerable to water damage, leakage and also stress as it will be supporting the tap. Our surveyor has said this is not acceptable and we have asked the granite company to replace the worktop but they have refused. We have in turn refused to pay but we now enter a legal no man's land since our contract is with the builder. The granite company have threatened to take the builder to court to enforce payment. So I would really like some advice on
1. Are we being unreasonable in asking for a replacement and not a repair and can the company insist on making a repair rather than a replacement?
2. Is this tough on the builder? I know there will be lots of comments saying builders make big profits etc but in fact we get on well with him and would rather pay up than see him caught as the innocent party in the middle.

Any advice (in a generic sense) would be welcome. Thanks

Why did you not try Alan at At Stone? its very clear to see that his posts are time served over many years, yes he is a supplier... but for the man and woman in the street you can see that he really does make sense, he will explain what is real, in a trusting way everyone can understand every time, I am not a new user as you see.

But I would say AT Stone every time for honest advice.

Thanks

bustyb293

Alex_Morley wrote: »

Hi everyone,

I've been reading through this thread and the company "granitefitters.co.uk" seems to have got mixed reviews over the years, with the most recent one (from Claire-F on a different thread) apprearing to be very good.

Has anybody had any recent experience with the company? While I appreciate they're a fitter rather than somewhere with a showroom, providing you don't pay until they've completed the installation and you're happy with it - is there really much risk?

As a bit of background to why I'm asking, we're currently having some work done on our house and I will soon be fitting a new set of kitchen cabinets myself. The only thing we haven't decided on yet is the worktop but we're pretty sure we want granite.

We've been quoted a range of prices as you can see below:
£1,152 (Granite Zone) [text deleted by MSE Forum Team]
£1,294 (Mister Marble) - Have read bad reviews
£1,400 (Granite Fitters) - Have read good and bad reviews
£2,148 (Diapol) - Have read good reviews
£2,324 (Granite & marble Shop) - Visited them and very confident in them
£2,412 (The Merchant House) - Have read good reviews but I could get Corian fitted for this price.
£2,555 (Grantech) - I could get Corian fitted for this price.
£2,364 (Polish Granite) - I could get Corian fitted for this price.

I appreciate that the comment above about getting Corian for a certain price isn't a direct comparison but it's something I have worked with in my job and therefore trust - granite would be a new material to me as I've never had a kitchen with it in or worked with it in my job so if I was spending that amount of money I'd use Corian.

I'd appreciate any input on which of the above companies people have any recent experience with as we're very much on a budget but also don't want to be ripped off!

PS. We're in South Manchester if that helps people with recommending good companies of similar price range.

Thanks in advance for any help you can provide.

Alex

A lot of reviews I see are from false or new users, not just on here, but you can see that have just joined.... see me 2005! you can see what I am saying. Like my last posts, time served users, (not just on here) is the way to go.

Have a chat with AT Stone. Alan M will help you out.

Thanks x