I recently redid my kitchen and brought new granite countertops. The company that did the installation was crappy and I had to put in my own supports and other odds and ends that I thought was standard for installation. I asked if the granite was sealed, and they said they didn’t know. I have two questions, how can I tell if the granite is sealed, and if I find it isn’t, do you know of a product that I can use myself?
Should I seal the granite countertop
granitekitchen-countersstone
Related Solutions
The typical thing to use when joining the two slabs would be epoxy, clear or tinted to match the color of the stone.
It's been a while since I've used it, so I don't know how easy it is to find 'pourable' epoxy that's intended for repairs after installation. (we used to use it for making composite structures, as you can spread it really thinly). You'd likely want to find the thinnest (least viscous) formula if it's a very narrow crack.
Based on the flexibility of the flat bar stock, I decided to use square 1/2" tube stock.
Using a 3/4" MDF subtop, I routed channels 5/8" wide and 9/16" deep. I then filled these channels with polyurethane glue, set in the steel bars, and finally I used a drywall knife to spread and flatten glue over the top of the bars.
Here are pictures of my actual work:
The cabinets are backed by a 2x8 pony wall. The MDF is glued and screwed to the pony wall and all cabinet frames. The steel bars span everywhere except the sink cabinet.
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Best Answer
There are a lot of bad fabricators installing granite these days. I have seen everything from edges that are waxed instead of polished and tops that are dyed to make them look like a more expensive stone than the fabricator purchased. If they did a bad job there is no reason to believe any of it is done right.
Do the water test suggested above. It will tell you if it needs sealing. It likely does. I would also watch the edges. If they start to go dull in a few months then you really got taken. Polished edges will last a lifetime. Waxed edges a few months. Polishing takes about 15 minutes a foot with very expensive tools. Waxing takes seconds with cheap wax. This is only one example of many tricks to pass off bad granite countertops.
All granite countertops are not created equal. If you purchased from a guy with lawn sign working with only a cell phone as many today do you got what looks like a good price for a countertop but wait until you try and get warranty work. Good luck because if your installer did not know if it was sealed and you are already doing corrective work you are likely to be even more disappointed in the future as the top ages.