I keep seeing granite countertops listed on real-estate listings, home improvement/remodeling project ads, etc. Why is this particular amenity so popular and considered such a plus? What are the alternatives and why are they inferior (at least, inferior enough not to be explicitly mentioned like granite countertops are)?
In: Engineering
I’m not a contractor, but I am a geologist, and I’ve been helping my mom redo her kitchen. First of all, granite can be really pretty, and adds a lot from an aesthetic standpoint. It’s on the expensive side, but it’s also stone, so it can handle having a hot pot set down on it better than most other materials can. After all, what’s even a 500°F cast iron skillet when granites form somewhere around 1500°F and up? It’s also relatively difficult to chip or scratch once it’s installed unless you’re really putting some effort into it, so it’s durable.
Most of the alternatives are man-made products. Laminate, solid surface, and even wood countertops don’t deal nearly as well with heat, though they tend to be cheaper. Engineered stone, marketed under different brand names, is what my mom eventually went for. It’s less expensive than granite, and more resilient to heat and scratches than the solid surface ones. They don’t quite have the aesthetics, but there are some that dont look too bad.
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