A quality natural stone countertop can elevate your kitchen or bathroom to a new feeling of luxury. Empire Granite in Dayton, NJ keeps the highest quality slabs of natural stone in stock at our showroom for you to view and select for your next renovation project.
A kitchen with a stone countertop automatically feels luxurious, and the natural veining within many marble, granite, and other natural stone countertops make your home’s countertop completely unique, much like a fingerprint. Also, any bathroom can transform into a luxurious and elegant spa experience with a beautiful, natural stone, bathroom countertop.
When you have a reliable company, like Empire Granite, you can be certain that your natural stone slab comes from reputable quarries that deliver natural stone that is both beautiful and sturdy, with minimal microcracks that can cause breaks over time.
The Benefits of Choosing Natural Stone Countertops
You may be wondering, should I choose a vinyl, natural stone, or some other type of countertop? This is the question many homeowners ask themselves when they’re building a new home or remodeling rooms in their existing house.
Homeowners might peruse many catalogs online or go into home improvement stores to see different counter samples in person. But, upon seeing them in person, they become enamored with natural stone countertops.
Here are some of the benefits of natural stone countertops:
Gorgeous Aesthetics
Granite, marble, and soapstone countertops easily elevate the appearance of a kitchen or bathroom. While of course aesthetics are generally subjective, the visible response people have to natural stone countertops is unmatchable.
High Durability
When properly maintained, stone countertops can last a lifetime. They’re incredibly durable, require minimal maintenance; and can withstand the spills, mishaps, and other accidents that often accompany day-to-day life.
When properly sealed, spilled wine and grape juice rarely damage granite, marble, and soapstone.
Each Slab Is Unique
Did you know that no two slabs of granite, marble, or soapstone are exactly alike? This means that whatever countertop you install in your bathroom or kitchen will be one-of-a-kind.
On top of that, you can also consult with a countertop fabricator to find the exact color and design pattern that’ll fit the character and color scheme of whatever room you’re remodeling.
Unmatched Value
Among all the countertop materials available on the market, not one will increase the value of your home the way natural stone will. Granite, marble, and soapstone will never go out of style when it comes to interior design, and—as we said before— they are the most aesthetically pleasing materials when it comes to installing countertops. They encompass both a timeless and contemporary air, which makes them very desirable for anyone shopping for a new home. There have even been homebuyers who have been swayed to buy a house based on the featured natural stone countertops.
Flexibility
Since each individual slab of natural stone is cut in a very specific way for your countertop installation, you’re able to incorporate them into whatever design you desire. Whether you’re looking to install a kitchen island that is shaped like a T or you’d like a circular vanity built in your closet, your natural stone fabricator will easily be able to custom-cut your slab of granite, marble, or soapstoneWith natural stone, you truly have the flexibility to design the counters of your dreams.
The Eco-Conscious Choice of Countertop Material: Natural Stone
Many of today’s homeowners environmentally conscious and are therefore interested in using green building materials in the architecture of their homes that minimize their carbon footprint and won’t compromise the quality of air within their home.
Natural stone countertops are the best option for eco-conscious homebuyers and homeowners.
An Environmentally Friendly Production
Granite, marble, slate, and soapstone are all mined from naturally occurring solid rock. The chunks of stone are then sawed into slabs with diamond-tipped blades.
Finally, the slabs may or may not be polished— depending on how rough and rustic or smooth and polished they’re being sold as.
Other than this process, there isn’t much else done in the manufacturing process. The process emits comparatively relatively less pollution than others. The energy used to produce natural stone countertops is far less than the amount used in the creation of engineered stone, laminate, vinyl, and other types of countertop materials.
Durability Equals Less Waste
Once you install those new natural stone countertops, they may just be the last countertops you’ll ever install again. The average length of time a natural countertop will last is well over 30 years— and especially when they’re properly and regularly sealed and taken care of.
When all is said and done, they might still be replaced— usually due to the new homeowner’s divergent taste in aesthetics.
During the same 30 to 50 years that your granite, marble, slate, or soapstone will last; laminate countertops would need to be replaced several times, meaning triple or quadruple greenhouse gas emissions as the former. Even wood countertops – hardwood, pine, butcher block—would also need to be resurfaced or completely replaced a handful of times.
Constantly needing to replace old countertop materials with new ones increases the waste that fills up landfills— not to mention all of the energy that goes into producing those materials in the first place.
Natural Stone Countertops Don’t Release VOCs
Volatile organic compounds are pollutants found in a wide range of building materials including laminate countertops. The release of VOCs into the atmosphere leads to what we know as ground-level smog. Additionally, they can cause a lot of adverse health effects when inhaled in large quantities, such as nausea, headaches, and loss of coordination among other things.
Natural stone countertops and their process of production don’t emit any VOCs, which means that they won’t harm your home’s indoor air quality or the air quality outside.
Ways You Can Go Even Greener with Natural Stone Countertops
If you are passionate about the environment, here are some tips for making your home improvement project as eco-friendly as possible.
Consider the use of recycled, reclaimed natural stone tile. Used granite slabs from former countertops, buildings, and other installations can be cut into stone tiles for countertops. The leftover remnants from cutting large stone slabs are also transformed into tiles. When you reuse old materials, you’re benefiting the environment because no new mining and minimal energy were used in the production of your tiles.
Consider the purchase of locally produced materials. The closer the materials are made to where you live, the less energy is used to transport them.
Use a non-toxic sealer. Select one that emits the least amount of VOCs that won’t result in harmful pollutants permeating throughout your home and in the outer atmosphere. Don’t be afraid to consult with a natural stone countertop dealer who can help you select an eco-friendly sealer.
Make sure you recycle your old natural stone countertops. If you’re looking to replace your countertops for whatever reason, this is the last tip we have for making the installation of your new countertops as green as possible.
With every step of your natural stone countertop journey, make sure you take all these tips into account to avoid the further overflow of landfills.
Many stone countertops sacrifice quality for a lesser price, but our quartz, marble, and granite slabs never do. If you’re looking for a high-quality natural stone countertop to make your bathroom or kitchen renovation totally unique and give your home a sense of luxury and elegance, contact Empire Granite today.