The countertop is a busy work space in the kitchen.

by: BruceContryman
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You prepare all of your food here. You want it to be easily cleaned and sanitized. It should be colorful and reflect your personality. The selection of your counter should be done carefully and deliberately. It is a major upgrade and expense, so you must do it right the first time.

There are any choices to make in selecting counters. Do you like a natural stone, an engineered stone, wood, tile, Solid Surface Acrylic or Laminate?

Natural stones that have a polished surface like granite, limestone, and soapstone have a depth and beauty that is hard to match. They must be cleaned, sealed and waxed often as they will become discolored because they are porous.

An engineered stone usually uses quartz as a filler with a resin, to bind it together. They come in many beautiful colors and blends of rock. They are heat, scratch and discoloration resistant. They are easy to clean to make them sterile and do not require waxing.

Solid Surface Acrylic is a fabricated counter such as Corian or LG Hi-Macs that comes in many different colors. They are durable and easy to clean, if the surface becomes discolored. You can take a fine sand paper of 400 grit or higher and lightly sand out a stain. The seams can also be bonded together so that it looks and feels like one continuous counter. It makes a lovely counter.

Wood counters have a gorgeous look and feel to them but they require upkeep and care to keep them looking good such as teak, maple, cherry, walnut or mahogany. They are easily scratched, burned or stained.

Tile counters are durable and can be assembled in many different colors, and sizes. They are easy to clean, but the grout between the tiles need to be sealed. This grout can become stained and is hard to keep clean. The tiles can be broken or chipped, so you must take care of them.

A concrete kitchen counter can be built in your kitchen in any shape you want. You build a form to hold the wet concrete until it dries. It is labor intensive and requires some knowledge and skill to make a quality counter. It is porous so it must be sealed and waxed to keep it from staining.

Laminates are durable such as Formica or Wilsonart and come in many styles and colors. They are stain resistant and easy to take care of and clean, but they can be burnt.

About the Author

When you are ready to renovate your kitchen counter top go to Bruce Contryman's guidance on selecting a new counter top. kitchen countertops kitchen renovateing  

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