I had two ceasarstone countertops installed in my kitchen. One of the surfaces is honed and the other shiny.

They had to be reinstalled as there was a defect in the stone.

I am very unhappy with the surfaces. They pit, chip and scratch. There are only two in our household and we are gone six months a year. I barely cook.

Customer service is terrible. They rely upon their distributors and the distributors are busy selling.

I would not recommend purchasing the product.

You can't beat granite, one of the main things to consider is how to fix the counter when it gets scratches... and it will, I don't care what any of the " fake " stone fabricators say. It can't be restored as a natural stone like granite, marble, limestone can. Ask them what to do if you get a big scratch in the ceasarstone. Because they are epoxy, polymers and some actual stone, they can't be diamond honed and polished where as natural stone can be restored over and over for years and made to look like new every time. If you buy countertops like women buy shoes ( for the looks ) no offense, then go synthetic, if you want it for ever, get granite.

I have just read all 48 posts and now I'm more confused than ever!I have ordered the caesarstone Absolute Noir 6100 because i liked the consistancy of the pattern. I don't much like the veining in the granite and the uncertainty of not knowing what your exact piece will look like as they are all individual. Now I am wondering if i have made a mistake, i was unaware that the product could look "milky" as someone put it. Also I have been looking at samples in various store and found them all to be slightly different, some has lots of reflective shiny bits (which are not to my taste) and some had hardly any with gray dappeling. I just don't know what to do! Can anybody tell me how they found the Absolute Noir to wear and look over time? I am also concerned about resale value of my home in the long term.

I have had my Silestone countertop (coffee bean) for almost 2 years. I HATE it! Some of the problems are our fault, some are not. First, the edges were unbelievably dull. They almost looked like there was a white film over them. We had the manufacturer (Pacific Stone Designs) come back a couple of times and they just kept telling us "that's the way they are suppose to be". Finally after a year of looking at them and being totally annoyed that I paid $5000 for something that looks dirty, I called the head maintenance man who came out and said that is not the way the should look. He sent a guy out who "wet sanded" the edges and they now look okay. Second, I had the head guy come out because it seemed that the top of my island (where I do most of my cooking and therefore is cleaned more often than the rest of the countertop) was starting to develop small discolored spots. From most angles it looked like I needed to clean my counter (even though I just did). He saw what I was talking about but just said that it was the way the light shined on the dark counter. Since that time, the spots have spread all over the island. My counter always looks dirty even though it's clean. I am still fighting with them over this. Lastly, I set two double A batteries on my counter for about a day. When I picked them up, they had completely taken the color out of my counter. The batteries were NOT leaking! However, it does clearly state in the paperwork to stay away from alkeline. So how can I argue that? Because of how many times I have had to call the company back to my house, I now seem like the high-maintenance B**** who just wants a new counter. The last time the head maintenance guy came out he was unbelievably rude and tried to make it seem like I was crazy and my counter looks fine. It does not and I am not the only one who thinks so. It's pretty bad when your cleaning lady asks you "what wrong with your countertop?" The manager is now involved and is sending someone else out today to look at the counter. Who knows what will happen.

I recently had my ceasarstone installed onto my window seal but noticed a shallow chip that's 1/4-3/8 wide. How do I go about address the chip with epoxy? Will the stone deteriorate over time?

I am a countertop fabricator/installer in the midwest. Over the past 14 years I have found the following to be true:

Craftmanship can effect seams, edge finishing and gaps along walls, etc. Check references before choosing an installer, and ask how long the company has been in business. There is a big learning curve in this industry and a company that has been around for just a few years may not have the expertise to do a decent job.

Squared edges are more prone to chipping compared to rounded edges. I would strongly recommend at least a 1/4" bullnose edge in a kitchen.

Black polished quartz and granite products can show dust, dirt, fingerprints and grease smudges more easily. Black honed products will show fingerprints and grease smudges even more so.

Darker granite colors don't need sealed as often as medium or lighter colors. We seal every granite job that leaves our shop and I strongly recommend consumers to reseal their lighter colored granite. When using a spray on sealer, it is about as difficult as cleaning your countertops, it really is not a big deal.

Hard water and soap deposits around faucets can be carefully removed with a razor blade. NEVER use abrasive scrubby pads to clean your countertops. Also, do not use a razor blade on softer types of stone like marble, slate or travertine.

A highly skilled craftsman can fix many accidents but it can take a lot of time and money. Most shops just have average workers who do not have the years of experience to become a highly skilled craftsman. This does not mean that they will not do a good job, it just means that when a specific problem arises, they may not have the skills to fix it.

All countertop products have limitations. Companies that claim their product is "scratch/fade/chip/stain resistant" means that their product is difficult to scratch/fade/chip/stain. However all products can scratch, fade, chip, or stain. Some are more resistant than others. Different colors of granite have different mineral content that can affect the hardness or porousness of the stone. Quartz products have different pigments and other minerals in it that can effect its performance as well.

Laminates can crack, chip or get burn marks. Solid surface can crack and stain. Granite can stain, scratch and chip. Quartz can fade, etch, scratch or chip. No product is perfect, but some are tougher than others. Having a complete unbiased understanding of the product will help a consumer choose and live with the right product.

Caesarstone is about as hard a surface as you will find. It does have a semi-gloss surface and is not supposed to be as shiny as granite. It will scratch if you try to scratch it and as it doesn't have the mottled, speckled look of many of their colors, a scratch will show. Caesarstone also comes with a lifetime warranty, unlike any granite slabs. I have Oyster in my kitchen and cook a lot, as well as have an espresso machine on my counter. No stains, no scratches, no worries. I have bumped the counter with an 8 qt dutch oven full of water, hard enough to crack the enamel on the pot, and hit the counter right in front of the sink, where there's a small seam, and nothing happened to the counter. Granite would surely have crumbled...

I'd have to ask what people are doing to their counters where they are "dulling" the surface. It's a countertop, not a work bench. There is a lifetime warranty with Caesarstone, and if contacted, they will send authorized people to fix or repair, but they also have the right to say the countertop was abused and not cover replacement or repair. I would think that after paying for new countertops and going through the inconvenience of a remodel, most would have an appreciation for their new counters and take care of them, like, say a new car. But I know not all people do.

I get a lot of customers that think counters are supposed to be bullet-proof, and none are. Granite is porous and can stain, and with effort will scratch. if the surface if granite is ruined, not much can be done to polish it back to original shine. Any attempt to do this will show. Stainless steel counters scratch like crazy, also they dent. And they discolor from heat. And if cheap material, one without a high nickel content, is used, they can rust. I've seen this, and it's was a disaster.

Caesarstone can be "shined" up using Softscrub. Here in the West, wiping your counters repeatedly with water will leave a film of calcium or lime, which dulls the surface, Softscrub solves this. I recommend Softscrub with bleach, for those who are less than tidy, as it kills bacteria growing on grungy counters too. Waterspots in general come off quartz products with Softscrub, but can permeate some granites, and shows on anything black. I have seen where granite was eaten away by water in a kitchen. I had some nice customers who were kind of slobs and the counter next to the sink was wet all the time and it eroded the granite over the course of 3 years. So not only does granite need to be sealed, it should be dried off after every use. Sealing only makes granite stain resistant at best.

No countertop is indestructible. Some are better than others, but all require some upkeep and common sense when using them. Casarstone Lagos Blue has been a hugely popular color and with that kind of popularity, comes nay-sayers. Caesarstone is the original quartz surface and was the first to offer a lifetime warranty. there will also be a few who will push the envelope and be dissatisfied. Imagine what they'd be saying if they has purchased granite or marble instead.

BTW, I design kitchens and bathrooms for a living, and routinely specify Caesarstone products for their beauty, ease of maintenance, consistency in color (important when seams are required and multiple slabs are needed), and general value-added-ness.

I had Concrete color Ceasarstone countertops installed two weeks ago. I just went to put a vase on the counter, hit the edge and it made a fingernail size chip. I am heartbroken. It was just knocking the edge of the counter, not banging it with a hammer--definitely within the range of normal use--and it damaged it. It is a kitchen counter for goodness sakes, how are you supposed to treat it like an eggshell? That is crazy. I don't cook at all but cannot imagine what it would look like if someone really used their kitchen often. I do not recommend it. (PS As a side note, I also had Blizzard color installed in my bathroom. I didn't notice a spot of Listerine that was left on the counter and when I went to clean it (within 24 hours) it will not come out. I would definitely not recommend this color if you have kids.)

I am a "green" kitchen designer in the DC region. We avoid Silestone because they add an anti-bacterial agent to their sealers. So, they are adding a toxin to a product that is inherently non porous and therefore anti bacterial. Also, because of this added agent, the product cannot be sustained in the future. Instead, we prefer Cambria or Caesarstone. Over the past 15 years, we have had only one call back on a quartz job, but over 50 call backs on granite. Here are the facts: no sealing over its life, no loss of gloss, absolutely bomb proof, very consistent quality, and fair pricing. Granite shops always push granite because they earn much much money on stone over quartz and they also carry an inventory of granite, while quartz is ordered on an as needed basis. So, their carrying costs for stone is much higher than for quartz. Over 90 percent of our jobs are quartz.

I own K2 Bath Design in Minneapolis. I have dealt with all of these products in my career. I have toured the Cambria plant, seen it made, heard the pitch and dealt with installations first hand.

Here is the scoop. Zodiac, Caesarstone, Silestone, Hanstone and Cambria are all exactly the same from a perfomance standpoint. The only differentiators are color and design. Cambria is the industry leader in these categories. Every year they come out with new colors and the rest of the companies imitate them. Cambria is also much more expensive.

No quartz countertops are warrantied against hot pots being set down on them. The head is evenly conducted through the material until it hits the edge and then it is released all at once and often causes cracking. They are about 60% harder than granite but not indestructible, they are totally pourless (thus anti-microbial), they will scratch if a knife is run over them aggresively (not a cutting board), they are all particularily susceptible to damage around the edges (which is true of any fabricated material: stone, metal, plastic, bone, you name it), and almost all dulling of the finish and discoloration is due to improper cleaning products.

Cost? Cambria sells their products to their distributors (not direct to the customer) for around $100 per square installed. A consumer can expect to pay margin to the contractor on top of that.

The other quartz products have been largely commoditized and can be played against eachother if you are looking at more than 30 square feet. If the install is less than 30 sqf you can expect to pay 100 to 150 per lineal foot.

Quartz products are significantly superior from a durability perspective than natural stone. However, granite is perceived to be a greater value by prospective buyers and is at the end of the day perfectly suited for a countertop application. You could argue that the durability advantages of quartz are unneccesary.

Quartz is less expensive than mid range granite and approx. the same cost as low priced (aka, readily available) granite.

Bottomline: Whatever you get, the decision should be made based on the way the countertop looks.

Note: sealing stone should only be done every 5 years or so. Don't over do it. Most issues with discoloration or damage, as with quartz are related to abrasive cleaners or bleach.

I had granite in my previous home for 13 years and it still looks like new. The apartment I just moved into has caesarstone and its only 2 years old but looks terrible. It is a light cream colour but is dull in lots of places and looks terrible in the light. I would choose granite every time. Granite is a worry-free investment. We brought up 4 kids in our granite top kitchen and it took all the rough treatment without a hassle. I am positive caesarstone does not stack up to the natural product.