Few people actually know what questions to ask before buying a new granite countertop. A tradesperson would shop for new granite countertops with a different list of expectations. Most home owners only ask two questions. What colors do you have and what price group is it in. If that’s all you ask, than suffering onto you.

Do you carry raw materials or do you buy them from someone else? It doesn’t matter which way this is answered, but it should be on your list of questions. If it’s anything that’s in stock, you’re likely going to get a better bargain, because the manufacturer got a quantity bargain.

Does this variety of granite soil easily? Once again, I would deal with whatever the answer might be. Be prepared for the average salesperson not to know the answer. Pour water on the granite. If it’s soaks up liquid in less than 5 minutes, it’s going to need a lot of sealer.

Does this stone etch with acid? If you’re salesperson actually knows the answer of this, purchase from them! After you’ve gotten the types down to the top two or three, find out if they’ll knock samples off. Put some lemon juice on the samples. 99% or more of the stones sold for kitchens won’t be affected.

Is this genuinely top caliber material? Don’t ask, just inspect. Slabs of granite aren’t perfect, nor are they intended to be . Are you looking at a plethora of challenges or just a few? How much repair work was done to the slab overseas? Is the shop proposing on just carving it to shape, or are they planning to repair something? Is this stone easy or difficult to work on?

What kind of equipment are you going to utilize, and who’s going to employ them? You can get top quality work from two guys and some hand tools; if they know what they’re doing. Gadgets are good, but it’s the people that use them that will determine how the job turns out. More expensive tools that costs hundreds of thousands of dollars make high quality work easier, but it’s still run by humans.

What kind of turn around time are they comfortable with? Some shops need 12 days from template, other need 3. Rushing through the job is never a good idea. Do you want it done right, or do you want it done right now?

How long can I call you for guarantee concerns? Most issues that are craftsmanship related will show up within the first 12 months.

What’s their grade with the Better Business Bureau? Great to know.

Can you get the slab lifter and actually put the exact slabs you inspected away so they’re still there 3 weeks from now? It’s common for the stone shop to say that you’ll get some of the slabs from the same block or batch. Perhaps there’s enough variation in the lot to specify which slabs will work.

Have they lost any good technicians lately, where did they go?

How many install teams are there? Maybe you should ask for one gang over of another.

Who would be my point person if the job “doesn’t go well”? Nice to know this in advance What’s their goal for turn around time for service or tweaking?

Some of the better stone shops in their never ending quest for superior quality have joined industry trade associations like the Marble Institute of America (MIA), and the Stone Fabricators Alliance (SFA). Family run businesses like San Diego granite, granite Minneapolis , or granite Baltimore are frequently the ones that are leading the industry through innovation and higher quality standards, and deserve your consideration alongside the bigger players.

If more people asked these types of questions, it would be a win-win for both the contractor and the consumer. Expectations would be set more obtainably, and consumer gratification would soar. There’s also more than a few granite shops that would shut down if they were asked all these questions up front.

Comments are closed.