If you are redesigning your kitchen and going to have it fully refurbished, one of the most important things to consider is the worktops. They make a very big visual impact in any kitchen, to the extent that if your old worktops are looking past their best you can make a huge difference to the kitchen just by changing the worktops and nothing else.

However, whatever you are doing, you need to choose the worktops that appeal to you most, and the fact is that there are many different materials from which to select, and they all have their pros and cons. So, you can choose from natural stones such as marble and granite, man-made stones like quartz or sintered stone, laminates, wood, concrete, stainless steel – the list goes on.

More and more people today are choosing natural stones for their intrinsic beauty and long life. Of the natural stones available, granite is extremely popular because of the very wide choice of colours available and the intricate patterns and veining that many of them have. Indeed, many of the exotic granites have huge flowing waves in them. For this reason, it is always a good idea to choose the exact slabs will be used for your worktops so that you can match them as you choose.

Hard As A Rock

Apart from the huge choice of different slabs, granite worktops in Brentford have many other benefits. Whoever coined the term “hard as a rock” may well have been thinking of granite as it scores a 7 on the Mohs scale of hardness. That means that, although it is never a good idea to chop foods directly on any worktop, whatever the material, it is very difficult to scratch granite work surfaces. You will probably do more damage to the knife!

Granite is also totally heat resistant, which is another very good thing in the kitchen. You can place hot pans from the oven on granite without doing any harm, although experts always recommend using a trivet with appliances that emit heat for a long time such as crockpots.

One thing that does need attention with granite worktops is sealing. Granite, despite how hard it is, is actually porous, so your worktops will need to be sealed to prevent any stains from spills. Some of the very dark granites may actually not need to be sealed, but even so, for the small cost involved it is better to be safe than sorry. The best sealers on the market will last for as much as ten years in any case, before they need resealing. With that said, although granite is resistant to acids such as lemon juice, it is best to wipe up any spills as soon as they are noticed, because repeated spills could wash away the sealer over time and mean that the worktop will need resealing sooner than anticipated.

For more information on granite worktops, and to see some of the many slabs that we have available, make an appointment to come over and see us at Marble & Granite.