Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Recommended: Kitchen Countertops

Our companion email list, the Cleveland Park Listserv, is a treasure trove of recommendations. We want to share on All Life Is Local, on a periodic basis, the best recommendations that have been posted on the Cleveland Park Listserv. You'll be able to search All Life Is Local for "contractor," "plumber," "computer tech," "auto body shop" -- whatever you need.



I can't recommend fabricators since I'm new to town. But having redone two kitchens back home in LA in the past few years, I wanted to pass along the tip that you should ensure the granite you wind up choosing is among the densest/hardest/most durable varieties. Granite's great for kitchens but not all stones/varieties are the same and ones that are more porous and softer will stain or get cloudy (a fuzzy ring or blotch) much like marble does in bathrooms. I believe that the granites with smaller flecks rather than those with larger ones are denser, but it's been a while. Reputable dealers will advise you or you can research the particular stone (have the stone's name and country of origin) online. Also, there's a school of thought that green granite shouldn't be used in kitchens because of toxicity in the particular minerals that produce the color and which naturally leach out. There are arguments for both sides of that debate but worth reading if you're leaning toward green.

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My wife and I just went through a really challenging kitchen remodeling experience. The one truly easy and pleasant part of that whole process was the countertop. We got our granite piece from Abka in Rockville, MD. We dealt with a guy named Vadood who was super helpful, understanding, and very patient when other aspects of our remodeling forced us to delay him several times. We bought a remnant piece of granite -- a part of a larger slab that was leftover from someone else's project. I don't know how large your kitchen is, but ours isn't too big so that worked out very well for us. We only needed 25 square feet. They charged us just $35 per square for the remnant, which was a great deal. That price also included measuring and installation. The piece is beautiful and unique and everyone who has seen it loves it. They have many different options. And if you need a full slab I think the price is around $75 or $80 per square foot, which is also very competitive.
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Vadood at Abka was so patient and sent his team three times to our place to measure before installation because we kept changing cabinets (due to our contractor's fault) and he never complained once and never charged us extra. The only way we can pay him back is to refer him. I strongly encourage you to check them out.

Abka Marble & Granite Design Center
751 East Gude Drive
Rockville, MD 20850
(301) 610-7600
P.S. You may want to check Fergusons out directly across the street from Abka. They have all things kitchen and bathroom. They are not super cheap, but the customer service was great.

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I can't tell you whom to use, but the BEST countertop material is Caesarstone. It's like Silestone, but better looking. I've had it for almost three years. It's great looking and impervious to everything -- heat, impact, spills, etc. I cut directly on it too (though I've been told that's bad for my knives). I have it in two houses -- here in DC, it was part of a new house project; in Nantucket it was via a standard kitchen remodeler. I suspect the price is pretty uniform wherever you get it. Just be very specific with dimensions so if they bring a piece that's even a millimeter off, they will replace it. Mine has the sharpest angle, which is a slight curve between top and side edge.

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If you decide to go with Silestone, Counter Intelligence in Silver Spring is excellent. They probably do granite as well. My friends and I have dealt with them on numerous occasions and have been consistently pleased.

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We used Counter Intelligence after checking out a number of places. We found their cost to be reasonable, their selection to be good, and their measurements and installation to be professional and timely.

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I recently used Counter Intelligence here in DC and dealt with Frank. Although their initial price was high, they were willing to negotiate, and they did an excellent job in a very timely manner. I would definitely recommend them. Also, on a side note, I really love my Silestone counters. Not having to seal them is fabulous, and they are so easy to clean.

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Go with Silestone - I love it! Granite is high maintenance compared with Silestone. Counter-Intelligence (in Maryland) does Silestone installation. Don't use Bray & Scraff or even Home Depot (unless they are running a sale on Silestone installation). They all use (or used to use) Counter-Intelligence for their installations.

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At the time I had my Silestone counter installed, I had to go through Home Depot. I also got a "price" from Bray & Scraff and I could not believe their mark-up. I had called Counter-Intelligence directly but they told me I had to go through someone like Bray & Scraff or Home Depot. Now, you can go directly to Counter-Intelligence. I love my counter. It requires so little maintenance and is very durable. 

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I have Caesarstone (which I love), but I think the people who installed mine do other countertops too. They did a great job and they were most competitively priced too! Pyramid Granite's website is http://www.pyramidgranite.us/

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If you are just replacing the countertops, we liked the selection at Counter Intelligence until we went to Flintstone in Rockville and actually selected our stone there as the selection was tremendous and more unusual stone choices. We have just completed a kitchen refresh: new heated floor and tile and new granite counters. Our contractor was Kitchen and Bath Depot in Rockville and we are very pleased with our project. They sent us to Flintstone to select our slab, as they must be the source for Kitchen and Bath Depot, and we changed the granite when we were able to see the additional choices that were available there. So, if you are just doing the counters, I would think that you could eliminate the middle man and just go to the fabricator, Flintstone.

3 comments:

  1. Removing wallpaper can be as simple as getting a bucket of hot water and a cloth to remove it from the walls and spending time to make sure there is no wallpaper adhesive left by wiping it down with a wet sponge. If your counter tops are scarred and dated, another way to update the kitchen countertops is to install new counters.

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  2. Nice information, this is really useful for me. There is nothing to argue about. Keep posting stuff like this i really like it. Thanks and God Bless.

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  3. Wow, your counter tops look amazing!!! You are so talented at making ordinary things gorgeous.

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