Natural Stone Kitchen Worktops...

Squirm

Hi everyone,

The build is coming along really well and I finally believe that we might actually pull it off! So I am begining to source (obsessively!) kitchens, flooring, interior fittings etc etc etc... anything and everything you could think of.

My current project is sourcing and pricing a natural stone kitchen worktop. However, I do not want granite or marble and am most interested in either soapstone, slate or basalt... possibly limestone. I know that these are all wuite different stones, but until the exact kitchen cabinets are chosen, I want to cover all bases!

Anyway, I am finding it quite difficult to find any information about where I might find the above and what kind of money we would be talking? I know it really depends on the size, shape, cut etc of the countertop, but I was hoping to get even a rough approximate of 'per square foot' prices...

Any suggestions or recommendations or personal experiences?? Thanks!!

Tmurf

Contact <SNIP>
We recently installed a kitchen in our new build.
We are from Cork and called up to them.
They have hundreds of different slabs of every type of stone on the planet.
Go there first to pick your slab of stone.



Mod edit: Please read the forum charter. PM the details if you wish. Infraction given.

BryanF

Squirm wrote: »

Hi everyone,

The build is coming along really well and I finally believe that we might actually pull it off! So I am begining to source (obsessively!) kitchens, flooring, interior fittings etc etc etc... anything and everything you could think of.

My current project is sourcing and pricing a natural stone kitchen worktop. However, I do not want granite or marble and am most interested in either soapstone, slate or basalt... possibly limestone. I know that these are all wuite different stones, but until the exact kitchen cabinets are chosen, I want to cover all bases!

Anyway, I am finding it quite difficult to find any information about where I might find the above and what kind of money we would be talking? I know it really depends on the size, shape, cut etc of the countertop, but I was hoping to get even a rough approximate of 'per square foot' prices...

Any suggestions or recommendations or personal experiences?? Thanks!!

have you considered getting a concrete one formed insitu? you can get some nice textures and pigments

Tmurf

Appologies for mentioning a company name on last post,
Squirm if you want company details Pm me

rcanpolat

Squirm wrote: »

Hi everyone,

The build is coming along really well and I finally believe that we might actually pull it off! So I am begining to source (obsessively!) kitchens, flooring, interior fittings etc etc etc... anything and everything you could think of.

My current project is sourcing and pricing a natural stone kitchen worktop. However, I do not want granite or marble and am most interested in either soapstone, slate or basalt... possibly limestone. I know that these are all wuite different stones, but until the exact kitchen cabinets are chosen, I want to cover all bases!

Anyway, I am finding it quite difficult to find any information about where I might find the above and what kind of money we would be talking? I know it really depends on the size, shape, cut etc of the countertop, but I was hoping to get even a rough approximate of 'per square foot' prices...

Any suggestions or recommendations or personal experiences?? Thanks!!

Hi mate,

I work in the stone industry. My father owns his own stone masonry company and we've been in business since 1992.

Anyway i just wanted to give you some advice (this is purely advice, I'm not trying to rope you into doing business with us or anything like that)

For starters you are looking for the wrong material. I strongly recommend you do not use any of those stones you are looking for. In the past we have made worktops for clients (mostly high end vip's in the UK & Ireland) using limestone and thats perfectly fine but we informed those clients that their stone needs daily maintenance. Limestone (along with the other stones you are looking for) are extremely porous materials. No matter how much sealer you put onto the surface even a drop of red wine will stain the stone and it will not be removed without stripping several mm to 1cm off the surface of the stone.

For example our last project done in dublin was the entire downstairs of an old georgian house in dublin. we used limestone tiles (french limestone) and limestone counters in the house. we recommended to the client and architect to not use that material but either way they went ahead with it. Within 1 week of the client moving into the house we were back to do repair work. One of their kids dropped ink onto the limestone tiles. Sadly it could not be removed using chemical treatments and ripping the face off the stone.

Just to inform you how we sealed that room so you know it was done properly. The entire floor was tanked, bedded, tiled with limestone, allowed to set for a few days. Then the entire floor was flooded with water and we allowed the stone to soak up every last bit of water on its surface. It was then sealed in theory "locking" any foreign elements out of the stone but limestone being such a soft material let the ink into it. The very same has happened on the counter top. Wine spills & acid attacks from juice, lemons etc. Its the worst material to use.

Several years back we done an almost identical project for another large client in his home however on a daily basis he has two workers in the house cleaning and scrubbing and resealing the limestone floors and counter. Is this something you can afford to do on a daily basis?

basalt (being hard like granite or diabase) is a better solution but again it has its flaws. generally basalt is found with natural pit holes which need to be filled. these fillings can collapse and you will be left with millions of holes all over your counter top. this happened in another vip project we done in killeen castle around a swimming pool. again we advised the client but they didn't listen and now they're stuck with the worst looking pool you'll ever see.

i will personally guarantee that if you use limestone, soapstone, slate or basalt within 1 year you are going to wish you never done it unless you have a daily maintenance crew and you be extremely cautious.

if your looking for something different but practical might i suggest either looking for quartzite or granite slabs. again I'm not trying to push anything on to you but take a look at our company's website and see what granite's we work with. you might find something you like. an alternative solution is to use honed granite. this is a little rougher in texture and makes the stone more pale but it gives it a different texture. however it does make it more porous.

otherwise i would suggest quartzite, a reconstituted material which is tougher then granite, more flexible and comes in literally millions of different colors.

ps: excuse the site, it is currently still in development. it has only recently gone live on the net: <SNIP>




Mod edit: Please read the forum charter. PM the details if you wish. Infraction given.[/QUOTE]