How do you know which countertop material is best for you?

If you’re considering new countertops, are you looking for:

Durability?

Beauty?

Sustainability?

Something dramatic?

Or maybe you want a white “workhorse” that blends easily with the rest of your kitchen/bath.

Whatever direction you’re headed, here are the questions you need to ask before you make a final decision:

What design style are you going for?

The top two elements for me are durability and beauty. If it’s for kitchens (that have cooks) and bathrooms that get used daily, granite, quartzite and porcelain are your top contenders. There are many beautiful options and all three are incredibly durable.

What activities will happen in this space?

There are kitchens and bathrooms that get used everyday by multiple people. And there are those that look beautiful and that’s their main purpose. Where do you land on this spectrum? This guides your selection choices.

Is your water soft or hard? How much do water spots and mineral deposits bother you?

Darker colors show these more than lighter colors. Leathered finishes camouflage the most.

Daily cleanability - do you always tidy things up when you’re done for the day? Or do you tend to let things sit for a while before you get out the cleaning products to wipe things down?

Keep in mind, the longer something sits on your surface, the more likely it is to stain and harder to remove.?

What’s your comfort level for long term maintenance?

Yes, natural stone requires sealing. Manufactured quartz and porcelain do not. But sealing is not complicated and only happens once every year or two as needed (the way you know if a countertop needs to be resealed is when the water no longer beads up on the top).

Are you good about using trivets and cutting boards?

Or do you tend to cut/chop things right on your countertop? Are you someone who takes things out of the oven and puts them right onto the countertop? If so,? don’t choose quartz. There are resins that will discolor from direct heat. I would also encourage you to start using potholders, trivets and cutting boards to protect your investment - no matter which stone you choose.

What’s your budget?

Laminate, Butcher Block and Solid Surface can be easy on the wallet. Quartz can be too. Or it can be priced in the same group as granite and sometimes even quartzite. Quartzites and Marbles tend to be more expensive, yet worth every penny you invest in these beauties.

And two very important tips:

Don’t put 30 year countertops on 5 year cabinets.?

What do I mean by that? Here’s an example:

I recently bought a condo “as is”. The kitchen is original (from 1974) and seriously needs to be gutted. But I’ve had neighbors who replaced the countertops (and not the cabinets) for a “facelift”.

The question now becomes - what happens a couple of years in when you have no choice but to replace those cabinets?

I’ll tell you - it all gets torn out and thrown away.?

And you get to replace the countertops again.?

Do not ask your fabricator to uninstall and reinstall.

Countertops are not software that can be installed/uninstalled without lifting a hammer, tearing things up and probably doing some damage.

It’s better to wait and replace them at the same time.?

Not to mention reducing waste that goes into landfills.

And thank you @Andrew Risinger, CMKBD and Dallas NKBA chapter president, for bringing this to my attention.

And speaking of timing - which comes first - the cabinet or the countertop?

Countertops are often the most visual element in your kitchen because they’re a horizontal surface. And they make an even stronger statement if you do the full height backsplash in stone. Design professionals recommend selecting/purchasing slabs and then selecting cabinet color/finish.? Natural stone is one-of-a-kind. Cabinets can more readily be made to harmonize with the stone you’ve selected.