HELP! Granite seams nightmare

7 years ago

last modified: 7 years ago

I'm desperate for any advice. I had granite installed on Monday, while I was away on business, and came home to this nightmare. Luckily my wife took photos of the installation. My contractor informed me the installer had to cut the slab short on site because the wall wasn't square. Now I have a counter that looks like a puzzle. What's more is the seam is quite noticeable and it looks like there was no thought given about where to join these two pieces because they do not match in color.

Am I being too fussy or is this a bad job? Is there anything that can be done to fix it?

One other thing, I have TWO seams at my sink. Nightmare!

I would be grateful for any advice. Thanks in advance.

Featured Answer

alicejean

7 years ago

This is a horrible granite installation. Hope you haven't paid for it. Sorry this happened to you.

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Comments (30)

smit2380
7 years ago
You are not being too fussy. That little piece is crazy awful. They would have to completely redo all or portion of it.
mikekat91 thanked smit2380
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Judy Mishkin
7 years ago
no excuse for the patchwork, that should have been templated correctly. as far as the other two seams at the sink, the seams are fine, you need to ask why there are two. (think back and recall if they ever said anything about it hard to get everything out of 1 slab and you didnt question what was going on...)
mikekat91 thanked Judy Mishkin
PRO
Patricia Colwell Consulting
7 years ago
Exactly someone screwed up and it wasn’t you get them to replace that now and i agree hope you did not pay with cash or cheque.
mikekat91 thanked Patricia Colwell Consulting
wacokid
7 years ago
Can you post a picture of the entire job?
mikekat91 thanked wacokid
shars55
7 years ago
I would make them rip that mess out. It looks awful!
mikekat91 thanked shars55
susanalanandwrigley
7 years ago
Depending on your layout seams may be unavoidable and as seams go, given the pattern in your granite, these don't seem bad. However you should have been involved in the decision as to how to lay the template on the slab and determine what goes where, including where the seams are. The patchwork is inexcusable and the templating should have accounted for uneven walls (which everyone has). Possibly a backsplash will help hide the uneven parts against walls, hard to say without a broader view of the project.
mikekat91 thanked susanalanandwrigley
mikekat91
Original Author
7 years ago
Thanks all. I'm going to hold off on paying the remaining balance until they come up with a solution.

The counters were cut from 2 slabs, not 1. I will try to post more photos later on.

Thanks again
mikekat91
Original Author
7 years ago
Susan the pieced area is a bar that extends into our family room.
mikekat91
Original Author
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
more photos
ker9
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
They matched two different slabs for the seam to the right of the sink.

(edit: this is not the OP's kitchen, it was posted to show what a quality seam looks like, sorry for any confusion)
mikekat91 thanked ker9
Judy Mishkin
7 years ago
i can see why you needed 2 seams, the sink part is very large. really, its about the crazy pieced bit on the one end and that is totally on them. you may choose to not have everything ripped out if they give you a nice chunkachange to keep it as it is now, but if you werent planning on a sidesplash its going to show.
mikekat91 thanked Judy Mishkin
mikekat91
Original Author
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago

ker9 your granite looks great. I can hardly notice the seam.

This is our bar nnigrt
PRO
ILLUMINATIONS LIGHTING
7 years ago
Don't let them make the excuse of your walls not being square because that little strip they cut? It looks to be the same size all the way down! Someone measured wrong. And those seams? Atrocious would be the word! :(
mikekat91 thanked ILLUMINATIONS LIGHTING
millworkman
7 years ago
Hopefully you still owe them money. Were it me they would be removing the entire mess and I would be looking for a new company. I am guessing you were not at the templating nor approved the payout at the fabricator? Did they actually measure and template the cabinets?
mikekat91 thanked millworkman
wacokid
7 years ago
To me, the piece at the sink looks like they used the same slab and they cut it because it is to big to keep in one piece? But it looks like they may have "finished" the two pieces differently? Using different sealers? Or it may just be the picture. The seem looks fine to me. The piece at your bar: It is not easy to cut a piece of granite, or anything else to wrap around a wall. Not an excuse, just letting you know. It should have been done better. The small piece at the end sucks, but no one will ever notice it. The seem there I do not think you could do much better. It looks like a very difficult type of granite to match? You have some big pieces of granite, it looks great and will look awesome when you are finished.
mikekat91 thanked wacokid
mikekat91
Original Author
7 years ago
I'm waiting to hear back from granite company. I will post updates.

wacokid, that is not my kitchen pictured above with the sink in the island. I wish it was because that granite job looks perfect. And the granite appears to have more movement than mine which was probably more difficult to match than my granite.

I was not home for the templating, my wife was and she said she didn't pay much attention to him but he did use a measuring tape.
Judy Mishkin
7 years ago
he ought to have had a bunch of pieces of balsa that he was cutting and attaching together.
mikekat91 thanked Judy Mishkin
PRO
Brickwood Builders, Inc.
7 years ago
Generally the person on site during the template talks with the fabricator's rep and works out all the details while everyone is on site. No two people want it done the same way - so they have no idea what one consumer wants vs another. Also each fabricator does things differently. The consumer can have some input on location of seams, but the seams must be in a place where there is adequate support and the fabricator gets the final call on that.

Too late for you, but consumers need to be proactive in the planning stages and be involved more - particularly if they are not using a designer or design/build contractor or they are buying direct from the fabricator. There are many, many details that need to be discussed. Amount of overhang in each area, location of seams and whether matching of material at seams has been factored into the amount of slabs purchased and the cost (if not, ask that it be, but be willing to pay for the extra material), cuts around walls (such as your bar), how bowed walls will be handled, how it will be dealt with if a door or window casing is in the way of the overhang, what will happen around cooktops or ranges, how will the sink opening be cut (will it overhang the sink bowl or will there be some ledge reveal of the undermount sink and lastly - when can I come and look at the template on the material before it is fabricated. One cannot assume anything - every fabricator is not equal in terms of quality or how they communicate, and there is no standard that applies to every situation.

I would not accept the small piece that was put in at the end of the countertop. I don't think I have ever seen a fabricator that couldn't work that out on site better than what was done here - unless there was something in the way to prevent them from getting the granite in and pushed down (which sometimes happens if there are already cabinets above). Worst case would be that they would have to cut a hole in the sheetrock on that side and push the granite in, and then someone would have to figure out how to fix the sheetrock (but even that can show around the front edge of the granite and be almost impossible to cover up nicely). Can be a double edged sword and is part of what makes remodeling so difficult.

I also believe that the cut around the wall could have been closer. Doubtful they would be able to get it perfect, but it should be close enough that a small bead of caulk or a backsplash would cover it. We generally ask that they finish that cut on site so that it will fit. I think the seam issue is typical of a job when the consumer (or their representative) is not on site at the fabricators to lay out the template on the material before cutting and goes back to communication.

Hope you get some resolution.
mikekat91 thanked Brickwood Builders, Inc.
mikekat91
Original Author
7 years ago
Thanks for your input Brickwood Builders. Everything you mentioned makes perfect sense. I really thought I covered all the bases with both my contractor and the granite fabricator. We chose our granite and were told 2 slabs would have to be used, one for the bar and the other for the remaining countertops. The bar overhang was set for 14 inches, the sink zero reveal, and the seam would be in the location it is and I was assured that the adjacent piece would match the seam because it was to be cut from the next consecutive slice of granite. The only thing we didn't do was go back to the fabricator to look at the templating. Big mistake.

I did get in touch with the owner and he is going to come to our home and look at the job. I will post updates.

Thanks again for your time.
smit2380
7 years ago
Given that much of this install was unfortunate, it seems appropriate to ask whether you have adequate support under the 14 inch overhang.
mikekat91 thanked smit2380
mikekat91
Original Author
7 years ago
smit, adequate support is nothing but a knee wall and base cabinets. Trust me, I asked the granite company personally and according to the fabricator, the granite I got is very strong, therefore the steel brackets were not necessary. I was reluctant to agree, having read 10 plus inches should be supported, but he's supposed to be the expert, I'm just the customer.

Thanks smit
smit2380
7 years ago
If I were you, I would read the marble institute's homeowner's guide before meeting with the owner. That unsupported overhang is a lot bigger than industry standards. At this point, it is unclear how much faith you should put in his expertise. There tend to be more pros on the garden web side. You might try posting about the overhang over there for confirmation of your fears. I am sorry this happened to you,
mikekat91 thanked smit2380
millworkman
7 years ago
"but he's supposed to be the expert, I'm just the customer."

But your insurance and money if it hurts someone when it collapses.
PRO
R G MILLER (YBC)
7 years ago
I agree with previous post, I would get supports on that overhang. There are invisible supports as well as decorative ones.
User
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
Support was required. That is up to your KD to design and integrate because it involves aesthetics and engineering tradeoffs in decisions that only you can evaluate the priority.

No reputable granite installer would install onto cabinets without support. And no reputable KD would design that without support.

You're dealing with hacks in both the KD and the granite fabrications. I'd be even more concerned with a GC who would be dealing with those hacks. The entire job is now highly suspect. Not just the stone install.

Get them to remove that giant bone crushing safety hazard, give you your money back, and start over. With a different non low bid GC.
wacokid
7 years ago
fyi, The granite company I used uses lasers and a computer program to measure the template. I was then able to see how the granite would be laid out and cut on my actual slab from pictures they emailed me. I could change it if I did not like it. Mike, let us know what happens, good luck.
jln032562
7 years ago
Absolutely terrible granite installers. poor planning. you need them to be accountable. After doing remodels for decades, I have never, ever experienced such a God awful install. I had pieces break and crack, but they replaced at their cost. Very difficult to match but can be done with an stone artisan. This is a recent granite deck that took one slab. your granite is not high priced per square foot. Spend the money on more than one slab if it is at all questionable. I purchased 3 slabs for this high end Master Bath. Granite was about $45 a square foot but honestly you could get some pretty nice pieces like yours and replace the one you have for less money. if you spend more you can get a piece of granite that possess grain that can possibly be matched if, and only if, your counters are too large for one slab. The edge that has a filler (ridiculous) can be covered with a back splash piece of granite. Hide it if you can. Be creative for large counter tops and some times tier them to prevent unsightly seems and please the eye.
PRO
Baker + Hesseldenz Design, Inc.
7 years ago
That is lame. They cut the slab too short and are trying to get out of having to replace it.
PRO
GannonCo
7 years ago
This is what happens when a Co uses underpaid, uneducated , probably illegal workers.

They sell the job and pick up day laborers handing out Co shirts so they look like a pro crew. Yeah, lets keep sticking up for them when talented, educated workers can't make a living because of undercut pricing.

Do yourself a favor and hire another Co and have GC pay for it there is no way a Co that would add a piece like that would ever be allowed back in my house.

HELP! Granite seams nightmare

alicejean

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