Solid Kitchen Top

[compassvale 0]

actually all options got pros and cons...

like Mace's plain wood top, easy and cheaper to replace if anything goes wrong...not so heart pain.

strong and beautiful granite,

limited range of colours/grains. not to mention a visible seam inbetween pieces if the surface is very long....very very few light base colour if u are thinking of a white/biege coloured countertop....need to be very conscientious in wiping after cooking, washing. Water-etching happens and very very difficult to remove. Once it happens, u need something with Rockwell/Vickers hardness higher than granite (diamond polishing pads) to grind the surface and the renewal of the surface is not very easy for us laymen to DIY

those who want white/biege countertops can opt for marble, but then again, will turn yellow and same thing with water etching and staining of the surface.

solid surfaces,

alot of colours/grains to choose from...no visible seams at joints...

but scratches easily....far too easily..

good thing, no problems with water etching/stains.....even when it does happen....much easier surface renewal with polishing creams/light abrasive pads...can have a surface looking brand new again after polishing easily.

anyway,

we went for solid surface top as our cabinets were dark and we did not want to go for a dark countertop as well.

with white/biege based in mind, solid surface top seems a better choice for us than marble.

nonetheless, we used solid surface for the countertop, marble for our dining table top and indian galaxy granite for our toilet sinktops...hehe

[phoenix 0]

i said cheapest top - LG top aint cheap. wat we got is just a plain wood top.

so paiseh... i think i was confused... tot u wanted granite, but managed to get a solid top (LG one somemore keke)...and u got it cheap. almost wanted to ask u whr u find your lobang. haha.. but then clearly in my memory, i remembered that LG tops are not cheap, in fact even more ex then the avg granite tops.

actually all options got pros and cons...

like Mace's plain wood top, easy and cheaper to replace if anything goes wrong...not so heart pain.

strong and beautiful granite,

limited range of colours/grains. not to mention a visible seam inbetween pieces if the surface is very long....very very few light base colour if u are thinking of a white/biege coloured countertop....need to be very conscientious in wiping after cooking, washing. Water-etching happens and very very difficult to remove. Once it happens, u need something with Rockwell/Vickers hardness higher than granite (diamond polishing pads) to grind the surface and the renewal of the surface is not very easy for us laymen to DIY

those who want white/biege countertops can opt for marble, but then again, will turn yellow and same thing with water etching and staining of the surface.

solid surfaces,

alot of colours/grains to choose from...no visible seams at joints...

but scratches easily....far too easily..

good thing, no problems with water etching/stains.....even when it does happen....much easier surface renewal with polishing creams/light abrasive pads...can have a surface looking brand new again after polishing easily.

anyway,

we went for solid surface top as our cabinets were dark and we did not want to go for a dark countertop as well.

with white/biege based in mind, solid surface top seems a better choice for us than marble.

nonetheless, we used solid surface for the countertop, marble for our dining table top and indian galaxy granite for our toilet sinktops...hehe

hi compassvale,

thanks for sharing your kitchen pic. is your solid top 'cresto' by the way? i can see the round symbol at the corner. by the way, can we easily get these polishing creams to polish ourselves? or do we need professionals to do so?

Edited November 17, 2007 by phoenix

[compassvale 0]

hi compassvale,

thanks for sharing your kitchen pic. is your solid top 'cresto' by the way? i can see the round symbol at the corner. by the way, can we easily get these polishing creams to polish ourselves? or do we need professionals to do so?

hi phoenix,

nope, not Cresto, it's the Corian badge

Both Cresto and Corian are from DuPont.

Think it's just Corian's way of making you feel better that u are paying about the same or more than a piece of beautiful natural stone when you are only paying for man-made PLASTIC.

Seriously if our cabinets were lighter-based laminates, we would probably make do with the seamlines of granite since we would get black/dark colour granite top and the seams would not be too obvious. But well,

we like our laminates dark wood colour mah, so we prefer to match to light coloured tops !!

Easy to get polishing creams ~ JIF or those kind of household abrasive cleaners will clear up most light scratches/stains combined with scotch brite pads....if your scratches are deeper, then either u need them to come and renew your surface or u can DIY if u have the right tools, like those rotary buffers/polishers for cars...hehe

Edited November 18, 2007 by compassvale

[LouiseBrown 0]

Hi Compassvale

Thanks for sharing. U've got good color sense and balance!

I'll be getting a Corian top for new aprt.

I use cork mats to prevent scratching and also paper coasters that are replaced every year.

In place of granite/hard plastic, I hve decided to get big and long basins that would serve as vanity tops for my toilets.

Cheers.

[compassvale 0]

thanks LouiseBrown.

Good that you will also be getting the Corian top

Actually, one really has to weighs the pros and cons of each material and match it to one's own expectation,budget, style and the kind of home/ambience that you wanna create in your living space.

There is not only science to it when deciding to choose materials. The science are the facts/specifications of each material.

How you choose and decide what material to use in order to blend into your decor into a common theme for your whole project, is an art already

that's why most of us choose IDs to help us blend science and art together...hehe...

but then again...some IDs have neither both..or abit here and there and hand over a messed up job....hehe

Edited November 18, 2007 by compassvale

[phoenix 0]

hi phoenix,

nope, not Cresto, it's the Corian badge

Both Cresto and Corian are from DuPont.

oh.. didn't know cresto also by dupont. now i know.. thanks

i'm likely to go for a solid top, if budget cannot afford corian, i'd get a lower range. i like the fact that solid tops can make the non-drip surface without see the lines. although some may think that non-drip 'design' is not as nice as a sleak clean cut, but for me functionality should come first.

personally also have had experience with a solid top (not sure what brand though) for 3 yrs in a rented apt, it was white and still same condition when we left it. considering the fact that it was white in colour.. and that i'm guilty of not taking as gd a care if it were my own home, it still looked good after almost 3 yrs. hehe

found these 2 articles.. share them here.. (got other types of countertops too).

http://www.typesofcountertops.com/coriancountertops.html

http://www.typesofcountertops.com/granitecountertops.html

[phoenix 0]

anyone did their kitchen solid top with a broader front profile? do u need to top up extra money for this? if yes, how much ah?

i thinking of going for either Corian or LG.

if anyone has done it before, please advise me.

thanks!!

[jule 0]

anyone did their kitchen solid top with a broader front profile? do u need to top up extra money for this? if yes, how much ah?

i thinking of going for either Corian or LG.

if anyone has done it before, please advise me.

thanks!!

Mine is 3" front profile.. standard for my ID i think.

[phoenix 0]

Mine is 3" front profile.. standard for my ID i think.

hi jule,

so how much extra did u pay for it compared to the thinner profile??

[Chunky Monkey 2]

Mine is 3" front profile.. standard for my ID i think.

Do you mean 3cm or 3 inches?

phoenix, I will be having a 6 cm think front profile for my master bedroom vanity counter. I don't know how much more this compares to standard quote but I'm paying $135 sfr.

[phoenix 0]

Do you mean 3cm or 3 inches?

phoenix, I will be having a 6 cm think front profile for my master bedroom vanity counter. I don't know how much more this compares to standard quote but I'm paying $135 sfr.

hi chunky monkey,

i meant 3 inches. hmm... 6cm is abt 2.5 inches.

$135 pfr u mean? LG or Corian? which colour did you choose? i know that their range has different pricing range for different 'model'... i think its the colour range that differs...the grains or something like that.

hey, your classic cabinets all done up? post a picture leh...wanna see the final pdt!

[Chunky Monkey 2]

Sorry. Yes, $135 pfr (no idea where did the "sfr" come from!). This is for Corian. And it's actually for my master BATHROOM. Not bedroom as posted above. (I guess my brain and my typing won't very coordinated when I posted). I can't recall what colour of Corian I chose. But it's definitely very plain, and without texture.

Whereas for kitchen, I chose LG. This is grey with some shimmer in it.

Please go to my t-blog for pictures of my kitchen done by Classic Furniture (Tanjong Katong Complex).

[blueblue_m6 0]

i've chosen a crystallized glass panel top (white) for my kitchen top- it's call nero paris if im nt wrong. fell in love with the colour & shine. it's man-made & non-porous. my ID (the interior place) quoted me $180+pf run for it. now reno juz started. will update in time to come if this kind of top is gd.

!!

[bassy 0]

Any other material beside solid surface that can use for L-shape table top

[phoenix 0]

i've chosen a crystallized glass panel top (white) for my kitchen top- it's call nero paris if im nt wrong. fell in love with the colour & shine. it's man-made & non-porous. my ID (the interior place) quoted me $180+pf run for it. now reno juz started. will update in time to come if this kind of top is gd.

i think i've seen these crystallized glass panel top in classic kitchen before. but i was not sure if it was merely sandblasted glass or something else. it does look really pretty. but looks very 'fragile' too. imagine if u drop something heavy... *ouch*!! how is the resistence like? does it come in 1 single long piece for your entire top?

but wah.. $180 pfr is a heafty price to pay for a kitchen top. but i'm sure it will look great!

Any other material beside solid surface that can use for L-shape table top

yes... plenty. juz to name a few....

tiles

laminated postform

stainless steel

granite

marble

glass