Hands down, granite is one of the most popular kitchen countertop materials, being also used intensively in bathrooms and exterior house decorations. The main reason, why homeowners all around the world love to choose granite as their worktop, is the extreme hardness and the fact that even if decades pass by, it never loses its shine.
Installing Granite Countertops
Having to install a kitchen worktop is not something that everyone can do, especially when we are talking about granite. Here are some tips to be taken care of every time you want to refresh your kitchen look.
- Transit from warehouse to kitchen:
- Even though granite is recognized as being a very hard rock, it may break or chip during transportation, and this is not what we want
- In this spirit, a wooden A-frame has been constructed in order to support transition of the 500 pounds granite slabs
- Cutting the granite:
- Scaling the dimensions of your countertop needs to be done in your kitchen or bathroom, to fit perfectly around the sink
- Special saws:
- Being a hard rock, not every saw can cut it; circular or standard saws can only cut thin tiles
- For thicker and larger pieces of granite countertops, water-cooled blades are needed to be used, or for easy cutting, some prefer diamond blades.
- Sealing your granite countertop:
- It has a porous surface, making him sensitive to liquid spills and acidic solutions
- It is not stain resistant, since fluids like wine, juice, oil or vinegar, can easily penetrate into its texture and leave unwanted marks.
- The solution to avoid these problems is to seal your worktop once every year, but keep in mind that the sealant doesn’t make your granite waterproof; it only gives you extra seconds to wipe out that spill.
Radon Level and its Proportion in Granite Worktops
Due to the fact that it is a natural stone, it may also slightly contain radioactive elements, like radon and uranium. But don’t be afraid! The media blew out of proportion this fact for marketing and commercial reasons.
The truth is that even a regular garden soil contains radon in a more proportion than granite, and the low density makes it even unlikely to emit harmful gases, according to EPA. For sure this is one of the most interesting fact about granite, but definitely not a crucial purchasing point to take care of. Despite rumors that you may hear looking on the internet, granite countertops are extremely safe to be used in your home and it is for sure a safe material to prepare food on it.
Colors and Decoration Motifs for Granite Kitchen Countertops
Granite may come into 3 main types of color. From light tints to dark black shades, it remains only up to customers preferences to select the most appropriate motif that fits in with his cabinet.
Light Granite Colors:
- Autumn Leaves
- Bainbrook Peach
- Desert Sand
- Giallo Topazio
- Golden Beach
- Imperial White
Dark Granite Colors:
- Absolute Black
- Bamboo Yellow
- Brazilian Black
- Blue Perola
- Volga Blue
- Spectrolite Brown
Sum up, granite countertops must be taken into consideration when redesigning your kitchen and bathroom because of their extreme hardness, shiny look, and last but not least, its low purchasing price.
