Corian countertops

[Brett Hartwig]

Anybody have experience with Corian countertops. Pros, cons, expense, etc. thanks

 

[Tom Schindler]

Pro: Sweet material and looks nice.



Con: Expensive, Expensive, Expensive.





Tom

 

[Brett Hartwig]

like how expensive?

 

[Kevin Palmer]

About 4 months ago I did a kitchen remodel, (I did all the work).



Decided to replace the counter top as I had the ol traditional Formica, albeit a modern style, it was still formica.... LOL



So, I went to Lowe's and Home Depot to see what my options were for the money I was willing to spend. As I was getting prices on various materials, I was seeing that in many cases stone, (granite and marble) were the same price if not a tad cheaper.



So, I left Lowe's with a quote of $4346.00, went to Home Depot and did the exact same thing, they came back with a price of $4133.00. That was about $1500.00 that I wanted to spend since I was doing the work.



I stopped at a Mom and Pop shop by my home and priced out Granite. Total price INSTALLED was $1987.00. And it is absolutely beautiful.



My point, stone prices has dropped to become competitive with all of the composite materials that have come available over the last few years. It is worth checking out.



Here is a link to a supplier of stone. No, you can not buy from them as they will only sell to distributors. But the have a link to find on near you, from there, you can get a total price from the distributor, (which is the same in this case as the person who will cut and install your top).

 

[Ian Cowpar]

I had Corian put in my kitchen about three years ago, and I'm very happy with it. It has been remarkably durable, and it is very easy to take out any scratches. Since it's a solid-surface material, you can just buff out imperfections with progressively finer grit scrubbing pads, and it is as good as new. I would recommend it. I had about 20 linear feet put in, and it cost me around $4000 installed.

 

[TomT]

Like Coastiejoe I had my old formica counter-tops replaced last January with granite. I found after extensive research the granite prices were much below everything else. I had mine done for less then 3K and I have a LOT of counter. Especially with the island. Don't use Home depot or Lowes. They are way over priced compared to an independent contractor.

Go to a granite wholesaler if you have any in your area (we have dozens in the Houston area) and look at a full sheet of granite to really get an idea of how it will look. You can't tell anything by the little samples. You can get some contractor recommendations while your their.

It's all a matter of personal taste but I love the natural granite compared to the engineered stuff.

 

[Mark Santini]

I know it's expensive per foot, but for my money, I am glad that I went with the Corian,,,,,,,sink and all. There are many choices of color, finish, and edging style, as well, too. We love our Corian, and as Ian said above, it is indestructable, easy to fix/re-serface yourself, with a little practice. Thing is, knowone will know you were practising!! It's well worth the money, in my mind,,,,,,,,and wallet,,,,,,,,,,hope this helps,,,,,,,,Mark

 

[Chops]

Corian is out.

Granite is in.



Maybe it depends on geography so I'll pause and say look what is being installed in your area.

Down here corian is definitely a late 1980's thing and it gets ripped out left and right.

I just had 80 sq ft of granite installed for $4200, and that's the thick stuff, 3cm, with an ogee edge and cutout for undermount sink and cutout for cooktop.



Corian or Silestone is probably less than half of that.

 

[Chris Kulbaba]

One advantage Corian has over granite is that it is much better for germs. Granite is porous therefor germs and bacteria can hide in all the small holes and cracks.



Another point to make about Corian is that it can be resanded and polished to be like new if anything happens to them...



Other than that, they are both expensive. I prefer granite for the looks, but if you are afraid of germs and bacteria, then corian is the way to go.



My 2 canadian cents

 

[Kevin Palmer]

Granite and Marble is porous, that is correct. You do have to seal it once a year. But it is super simple. It is really nothing more than the effort put out when you spray windex on it and clean it.



It literally takes only minutes to do the entire job.

 

[JohnnyB]

My parents have corian countertops in their kitchen for almost 20 years. Still look great, no problems.

 

[Nelson Atwell]

If you use marble, be sure you have no cleaning products with bleach in them. My fiancee found this out the hard way.