When you decide to get a new kitchen countertop or replace an existing one, natural stone is perhaps the most popular and recommended option you will come across.
Everyone you ask praises marble and granite kitchen countertops simply because they are the best options for kitchen countertops. However, like many other people, you may wonder what these natural stones are and where they come from.
Today, we will cover granite in detail and explain granite and granite fabrication to help you better understand the natural stone’s journey from the quarry to your kitchen. We can discuss marble another time.
For now, let’s focus on granite. We will also discuss why you need to consult professional fabricators like Half Price Countertops in Fort Lauderdale for the best advice on kitchen countertops and granite fabrication.
That being said, let’s begin.
What Is Granite?
Granite is a natural stone material and one of the densest, durable, and popular options for making kitchen countertops. It is widely considered one of the most attractive countertop materials that add a natural look to any kitchen or home.
Granite is a coarse-grained, intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, feldspar, and small amounts of mica and other minerals. It forms underneath the earth’s surface from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cool and solidify underground.
The cooling allows large mineral crystals to develop and give granite its color. There is a wide range of colors, patterns, and veins available in granite. It can be black, white, green, or red, with or without veins. The natural stone is also porous but not as porous as other stones like marble.
However, raw granite looks and feels very different from the granite countertops you see in kitchen showrooms made using a stone fabricator. The final product goes through the granite fabrication process before it is ready for your kitchen.
What Is Granite Fabrication?
Granite fabrication is the entire journey of the granite from the quarry to home, except for the extraction, mining, or quarry phases. Most of the granite in America comes from quarries in Virginia and Vermont.
Once mined, a stone or granite fabricator like Half Price Countertops will order it directly from the quarry. Once the natural stone arrives, the core of the granite fabrication process can begin. The fabricator assesses the stone, typically delivered in slabs, for scratches, seams, blemishes, and fissures.
The fabricator will determine the best appearance of the granite slab and prepare it for shaping. Next, the slab is cut to a specific thickness before drainboards, and support rods are installed, as per the slab’s requirements.
Then, the natural stone is smoothed out to give it a workable surface, washed, dried, and finally, the fabricator applies a seal base coat. This coat is what gives granite its smooth buttery feel. The seal is important because it reduces the porous nature of the granite, making it fit for kitchen use.
Why You Need a Granite Fabricator
Stone and granite fabricators do much more than receive the material from quarries. They can help you select the suitable stone for your kitchen and home based on certain factors. They can measure and determine how much granite you will require to complete the job.
They can also assess your preferences for color, shading, veining, and much more. Fabricators are experts at carefully checking the stone for your kitchen countertops and can determine its structural integrity.
Since each granite slab is unique, this structural check can be a significant factor before installing a new granite countertop. Expert granite fabricators like those at Half Price Countertops in Fort Lauderdale are integral to the granite fabrication process before you install them as your kitchen countertop.
They can help you with every step of the process and ensure that you get the best quality stone and the most value for your money.
Conclusion
It isn’t a secret that installing a granite countertop will offer you many benefits, both in terms of looks and practicality. Granite is heat, scratch, chip, moisture, and stain-resistant, making it perfect for kitchen countertop applications, and it is also easy to clean and maintain.
Not to mention that it is unique, exceptionally durable, and will add value to your kitchen and home.
If you want stone and granite fabrication, Fort Lauderdale’s Half Price Countertops are ready to do an expert job. Visit our website to learn more about granite, granite fabrication, and the best stone and granite fabricators in Fort Lauderdale.