Granite Worktops - Truth, Lies and misinformation

kabayiri

Fredzmum, try Cheshire Marble in Altrincham.
http://www.cheshiremarble.co.uk

They won't be the cheapest but you can go and choose your granite.

Hth

the_beast

Hi all

I'm hoping someone can recommend me a good, reputable supplier/installer/fitter in the Surrey area (and as I see Alan is relatively local I'm hoping he has a few names he can pass over).

We're looking at either granite or quartz for our kitchen - basically an 'L' with a peninsular opposite. I don't believe our kitchen is all that complex though (1m wide 1.5m long peninsula with hob cutout, top mount sink, a 2.5m run, a 1.2m run and a .6m run next to the peninsula).

We're leaning towards quartz at the moment unless someone can convince us otherwise. My wife likes the uniform nature of quartz and wants something black with silver sparkles in it - and all the granite options that fit the bill seem much more expensive. We've had quotes from the kitchen companies for around £3k and a couple of internet quotes for anywhere from £1700 up to £2600, but I'm a little wary of spending so much (40% the value of our kitchen ex appliances) and not having any genuine feedback as to quality, satisfaction etc.

I'm also somewhat wary of the different grades of surface too. On Diapol's site for example their base granite is only about £125/m - is it just the difference in rareity that influences price, or is their 'Silver Pearl' garbage and to be avoided (the £1200 price tag is quite appealing for our kitchen with that material though...)

Thanks for any help,

Innys

the_beast wrote: »

Hi all

I'm hoping someone can recommend me a good, reputable supplier/installer/fitter in the Surrey area (and as I see Alan is relatively local I'm hoping he has a few names he can pass over).

We're looking at either granite or quartz for our kitchen - basically an 'L' with a peninsular opposite. I don't believe our kitchen is all that complex though (1m wide 1.5m long peninsula with hob cutout, top mount sink, a 2.5m run, a 1.2m run and a .6m run next to the peninsula).

We're leaning towards quartz at the moment unless someone can convince us otherwise. My wife likes the uniform nature of quartz and wants something black with silver sparkles in it - and all the granite options that fit the bill seem much more expensive. We've had quotes from the kitchen companies for around £3k and a couple of internet quotes for anywhere from £1700 up to £2600, but I'm a little wary of spending so much (40% the value of our kitchen ex appliances) and not having any genuine feedback as to quality, satisfaction etc.

I'm also somewhat wary of the different grades of surface too. On Diapol's site for example their base granite is only about £125/m - is it just the difference in rareity that influences price, or is their 'Silver Pearl' garbage and to be avoided (the £1200 price tag is quite appealing for our kitchen with that material though...)

Thanks for any help,

Where in Surrey are you? I live in Woking and used Alan's recommendation, Mole Valley Masonry based near Gatwick. Good price and service

the_beast

Innys wrote: »

Where in Surrey are you? I live in Woking and used Alan's recommendation, Mole Valley Masonry based near Gatwick. Good price and service

Small world - I'm in Woking also. Will check them out. Thanks.

manny1481

Hi, I am in the Derby area. can anyone recommend a good Granite supplier/fitter.
I have had quotes from Plan it Granite, GraniteZone and Granite 4 you all in the £1500 region, but unsure of their quality. 4 similar sized pieces required (600x800 approx) with one cut out for sink, In Black.
Any help or advice on the above companies would be of greeat help, thanks

cyclonebri1

manny1481 wrote: »

Hi, I am in the Derby area. can anyone recommend a good Granite supplier/fitter.
I have had quotes from Plan it Granite, GraniteZone and Granite 4 you all in the £1500 region, but unsure of their quality. 4 similar sized pieces required (600x800 approx) with one cut out for sink, In Black.
Any help or advice on the above companies would be of greeat help, thanks

Forget the area you are in, most reputable instasllers travel almost nationwide. I'm from the same area, I went for a proven outfit from Leeds, search back my posts for details, ;)

Graniteman

Hi guys came across this thread today and thought i'd give my thoughts on the subject ( hopefully Alan wont mind! )
I have been in the industry for 13 years and started life out working for one of the larger Bristol firms. I have now set up my own company and have a highly skilled workforce, which leads me to my first gripe! There are many small/one man bands springing up who have little or no experience in the fabrication of granite they will undercut pretty much anyone to get the work, problem here is the end result is usually poor workmanship and poorly fitted. It is essential that as a consumer that you know the person your dealing with actually knows what there doing. I also do a repair service so believe me i have seen some shocking granite tops!
I am different to Alan because i produce from slabs All my work is done by making a template before installation, the reason for this is so that we are confident the tops will fit, without spending all day cutting and resizing and making a mess of your home. All work should be carried out with the correct machinery and done in a workshop. The only cutting that should be done on site is upstands and possibly the hob cut out ( if weak material ) Now i know there's a place in the market for precut tops, but from my experience no wall is ever straight even new builds, and of course your not able to come around corners so basically a piece that needs to be say 1600x900 as an L section would need a join.
Man made quartz, such as silestone and arenastone are very fashionable at the moment and great for those that are looking for a uniform look especially if you like the lighter colours. Prices very a lot but as posted before silestone are the most expensive, but that really depends on each company and the discounts they get. Most of these quartz tops should be around the same price bracket as star galaxy granite, except for some silestone one's which are more.

And finally for now, my pet hate you know the one that is franchised and has tv advertising and does a wrap over service! Well to be blunt they are a complete rip off in my opinion, i have quoted against them many times and i am always cheaper, i offer 30mm bespoke to their 8mm. They are also limited to what they can acheive as to the finish, for instance it is impossible to put a radius on any wrap over product, there are some companies though that use 12mm in which it is possible to have drainer grooves.

Just my tuppence worth

GM

cyclonebri1

If you are going to derate your opposition it is both essential and polite to name them. Your post does border on spam to be honest.:A:A

Graniteman

cyclonebri1 wrote: »

If you are going to derate your opposition it is both essential and polite to name them. Your post does border on spam to be honest.:A:A

I was giving my thoughts without naming name's including my own. I would of thought it obvious who i was talking about. Spam you say!! would you like me to start commenting on your bad advice... no... exactly, please it was my first post

cyclonebri1

Graniteman wrote: »

And finally for now, my pet hate you know the one that is franchised and has tv advertising and does a wrap over service! Well to be blunt they are a complete rip off in my opinion, i have quoted against them many times and i am always cheaper, i offer 30mm bespoke to their 8mm. They are also limited to what they can acheive as to the finish, for instance it is impossible to put a radius on any wrap over product, there are some companies though that use 12mm in which it is possible to have drainer grooves.

Just my tuppence worth

GM

I do understand you are a 1st time poster, if you hang around you will realise how many "company representatives" do appear and blatantly derate the opposition and push themselves.

I stand by what I said, maybe it's my suspicious nature, which is why I said "its bordering on spam".

You now have had a pop at me. And in answer to your question, yes, bperhaps you'd like to explain my bad advice, which basically is the experience I had with several companies, maybe yours was 1 of them?, and the prep work I did pre installation.:A