Kitchen Countertops: What's the best kitchen countertop material?
Our kitchen remodel was conceived on paper and drawn to scale on the Lowes kitchen designer's cad program. We had selected some mid-grade (yet expensive) cabinets. Now we had to decide about the countertops. The first choice we had to make was was to blow the budget on expensive
granite, quartz or Corian countertops or go cheaper (still not cheap) and get laminate countertops?
Why not laminate countertops?
I had to admit there are some really nice looking laminate countertops out there. In retrospect I wish we had gone that route and saved some money. But at the time I was thinking, no matter how realistic (to a stone-look) the pattern, you will still see the seams and they will still look like thick chunky laminate countertops. You could pay extra for nice bevels or other cool finishes on the edges, but by the time you spend money on that you might as well take it to the next level and go granite.Granite countertops colors limited
Granite was definately what the sales people were pushing. I have come to understand there were
probably incentives behind that. I had originally ruled out granite countertops thinking they would be way to expensive. I thought that the Granite countertops colors were limited at Lowes too. I admit I was surprised to learn that at Lowes at least, the price was similar between granite, quartz and Corian countertops.
Corian Countertops vs. Quartz Countertops
What I really wanted was Corian countertops. My mom has Corian countertops in her kitchen. They have been there for over 20 years and they still look as good as the day they were put in.
Why not laminate countertops?
I had to admit there are some really nice looking laminate countertops out there. In retrospect I wish we had gone that route and saved some money. But at the time I was thinking, no matter how realistic (to a stone-look) the pattern, you will still see the seams and they will still look like thick chunky laminate countertops. You could pay extra for nice bevels or other cool finishes on the edges, but by the time you spend money on that you might as well take it to the next level and go granite.Granite countertops colors limited
Granite was definately what the sales people were pushing. I have come to understand there were
probably incentives behind that. I had originally ruled out granite countertops thinking they would be way to expensive. I thought that the Granite countertops colors were limited at Lowes too. I admit I was surprised to learn that at Lowes at least, the price was similar between granite, quartz and Corian countertops.
Corian Countertops vs. Quartz Countertops
What I really wanted was Corian countertops. My mom has Corian countertops in her kitchen. They have been there for over 20 years and they still look as good as the day they were put in.
I also loved the look of the seamless sink installation you could get with Corian countertops. Of course that was one expensive sink option compared to dropping in a regular sink, but I really longed for a low-bacteria situation, no cracks to scrape out with a butter knife or scrub with a toothbrush.
So why did I end up buying quartz countertops? Well, I guess I was dazzled by the look and popularity of granite but liked the alternate pattern and color available in the quartz. I was also promised that the seams would be almost invisible, and the sink installation would have no crevices for gunk to collect.
Corian countertops, they told me, would chip and you would still see the seams. Corian would stain, the salespeople said. Funny my mom's countertops have no chips and no visible seams along the one long stretch she has in her galley-style kitchen. She had always been able to easily scour away any stains on her bisque countertops. I had always appreciated the way food spills wiped easily away.
So why did I end up buying quartz countertops again?
I must have not been thinking straight, or maybe the kids were driving us crazy while we were making our decision. Oh they look beautiful, don't get me wrong:
But the seams are visible in certain lights, and the sink installation is a disaster. Gunk accumulates in the place where the undermount sink meets the quartz countertop. And they are nigh impossible to clean. Food gets stuck on them and you have to practically chisel it off, or leave a soapy wet rag sitting there soaking the stuck-on stuff for a while before you can finish wiping the countertop down.
When you consider the cost (about $70 a square foot) it was not worth it. I should have spent a little more (because of the sink) and gotten the Corian. Yes I would have gone with the "cheap"
Corian in one of the less exotic color patterns, but at least it would be easy to clean.
What I really should have done is voted for the laminate kitchen countertops, saved a little money, and had less regrets. Lessen learned and passed on to you, so buyer beware when you are shopping for kitchen countertop material!
