The best counter top?
Question:Consumer Reports 08/07 reviews counter tops... but mentions nothing of Corian (what I've been considering). Can anyone answer, how does Corian stack up against other tops? (Quartz, Granite, ect?)
Answers:
I read the artificial also. I have been looking into counter tops for the last 8 months. It's really confusing, and I think depends on what you are looking for.
Granite is expensive, looks great, chips and has to be maintained, stains, shows seams.
Corian cant stand heat, but flaws can be rubbed out with light sand paper, holds up well and seems to be what people are going back to. Reportedly they are finding out that the cost and upkeep of granite are a bit much.
I like Corian but am not crazy about the color choices.
Laminate by Wilson Art and Formica are coming out with all kinds of textures and colors and some look like natural stone. Generally pretty cheap but some of the new combinations come close or Corian and some of the other. It doesn't wear as well, shows cuts, and can't stand heat. But, it's what I have had and grew up with and have never had a problem so I am considering it, It shows seems but a good installer takes care of most of that.
I am also looking at quartz, which is 93% quartz and the rest is polymer. I looks like stone, is strong, has less tendency to chip, doesn't stain, will dull a knife without showing cut marks and is suspose to withstand heat.
The stones are just to porous and soft to hold up under use.
Right now I have pretty much narrowed my choices down to Laminate and quartz. Hope this helps some. Spend a lot of time researching and talking to people in kitchen remodeling shops to find what will met your needs. Remember to look at how you will be using your kitchen and how the countertops fit with your lifestyle.
I would say the Corian works well but Quartz/Granite/Stone r the top notch. Corian is the less expensive of the them all accept for laminate. I believe u can't put anything hot like a pan on it but other than that... it works well.
In the design industry, Corian is also know as solid surfacing. Other companies produce it, but Corian is the most popular brand name.
When you price out solid surfacing, quartz, and granite, you will find that the difference in price is sometimes very minimal.
One thing about countertops is that they all have advantages and they all have disadvantages. I could list out all of the pros and cons, but at the end of the day it comes down to cost, look, and practicallity. And of the three the one that has the best of all 3 is quartz. Now if you are replacing a lot of countertops, it would be wiser to upgrade to granite. Only because granite will give you more bang for your buck.
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