Granite seam or Mega disappointment
I had my first time ever granite countertops installed I had total trust in the salesperson and the company. I got within 4 feet of my new granite countertops and there was this hideous seam right smack in the middle of the only long section of whole kitchen counter under 6ft. I could understand if they were short on material I would have paid more to avoid this eyesore. I was extremely disappointed. Am I crazy?
Comments (42)
Wendy Park-Sullivan
Original Author5 years agolast modified: 5 years ago
This is the picture of theam the next picture is showing the length of the counter.
jmm1837
5 years agoCould you post a photo or two? Did you sign off on the templating? A little more info would be helpful.
PROPrika Design
5 years agoThey did not do a good job. You should not be accepting this kind of workmanship when you have paid so many$$. You should ask them to fix it.
Miranda33
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agoYou may not have known that you need to be at the counter templating at the fabricator's so that you would have seen in advance how the seam would be placed before they come to your home. You would then have suggested a different layout. This being present at the templating layout is an essential step, and many people either don't know about it, or do, but think they can skip it. So this post is for anyone reading this, as it's too late for the OP.
To the OP - I agree with Hallett's comment that the seam is not the problem. It's that the fabricator put two mismatched pieces together. I don't know what you meant by "you would have paid more". If you mean you would have purchased another slab, that would be very expensive indeed. Better to have seen where the seam was planned, which pieces were going together, and change that as needed, given your counter layout.
Wendy Park-Sullivan
Original Author5 years agolast modified: 5 years ago
I came to look at the seam in the daylight and I also noticed these two cracks in the backsplash.- PRO
Granite City Services
5 years agoI am a fabricator. With stone like yours we STRONGLY encourage the customer to visit our shop after measure and participate in the layout of parts so they can have idea of the grain transitions before anything is sawn. If they won't or can't participate we make them sign off that they'll accept whatever we do so we don't get the "Well, I don't like it and I'm sure you could've done better." Often the amount of stone dictates a grain transition that is abrupt but unavoidable.
PROJAN MOYER
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agoYou must ASK where your seams will be. You must be present for the laser template. You must ASK , with kitchen layout and dimensions in hand, at the shoe shop when you select........do I have enough ? You may even tape off areas to avoid on the slab.
You .must. ask. You must approve and sign off. Granite in a boldly veined material such as this? Cam make the disaster you have.
pigeen
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agoFine but why wouldn't a professional to whom you are paying good money not warn a customer that they may not get what they think they are getting. Isn't that just what professionalism should be about?
greenfish1234
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agoIf you haven't talked to them about what you think you are getting they can't know to warn you that you won't. Can we see pics from further away? Sometimes these things are super noticeable when everything is new and then when you get you appliances out and step back it isn't bad at all. A beautiful cutting board may make it disappear
PROSpencer Marchand
5 years agoHow frustrating for you, we always talk through joint lines with clients right at the start of the design process. If your worktop run exceeds the standard slab size length it will require a joint. The joint itself looks very tight and neat, hopefully it aligns a door split under? If it doesn't i would definitely raise a formal complaint. As really it's not your fault, you are the client and they haven't provided you the right information for you to make a decision. Thanks Spencer Marchand Kitchens
Miranda33
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agoWhy wouldn't a professional to whom you are paying good money not warn a customer that they may not get what they think they are getting. Isn't that just what professionalism should be about?
I agree 100%. However, what we don't know is what Oldryder mentioned - some clients can't or won't participate in the layout. Perhaps they can't take the time off from work, or it's a long drive, or they just do not understand how important this step is. We don't know if the OP's fabricator asked the OP to partipate in the layout or not. I would emphasize that even if a homeowner has to take time off work, or make a long drive, etc. it needs to be done, no matter what.
pigeen
5 years agoSure but the salesperson could say, "Just so you know, a stone like this will need a seam and the pieces may not match up."
- PRO
JAN MOYER
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agoA salesperson will TELL you nothing. She is there to sell a slab, and could not care less what you do with that slab. Unless there is a computer diagram of how your tops are supposed be seamed, and supposed to look at install? You will get what you GOT......as above.
Never, ever, ever, ever go to a stone yard without an actual diagram of your kitchen, with all appliances noted. and with all dimensions noted. You have the slab pulled out and you inspect every inch of it, and use your hand as well. Be present at your arranged in home template, which should be done with a laser and on a computer. Make certain your sink and faucet are on hand at that appointment. Do not let a single thing be cut at the fabricator until you have signed off on a diagram, with seams and their locale and any possible necessary vein alignments and how those will look. It is ON YOU for ensuring a good result. The world is unfair. If your fabricator can not or will not provide that information? You have the wrong fabricator, and quite possibly the CHEAP HACK shop.. THE END,. That is the story of counter tops. It's your money.
- PRO
Granite City Services
5 years agoI am a fabricator. Many shops have software that allows the fabricator to take photo's of the slabs to be used and then overlay the cad drawings of the various parts. The overlays can be moved around so you can actually see how the grain transition(s) change depending on the locations of the parts. Once the fabricator has a preferred layout (or 2 or 3) the pics can be emailed to the customer for approval before sawing. It kind of amazes me that shops will do jobs without the prework with the customer needed to prevent this very avoidable problem.
sprtphntc7a
5 years agoyou have a very busy granite, in a good way!!
one problem is that didn't match the match the granite (bookmark)... you needed the "next slab" in that block to continue that flow. and they should have used different color seam filler to make it less visible. all of this should have been discussed beforehand.
i have the same granite and he used different colors to fill in the seam.
you have to be there for the templating at the shop to see exactly what u are getting. i went to mine and changed the peninsula and made sure the b/s was bookmarked to the counter.
overall, i don't think its horrible. they just needed to use different colors to fill the seam to have it blend better.
- PRO
JAN MOYER
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agoWhere s the ENTIRE photo of the entire kitchen?
In order for granite to have a book match slab:
"When slabs are book matched, instead of polishing the same side of each slab, the processing plant alternates them so that they’re polished on OPPOSITE sides. When bookmatched slab"s are placed next to each other, they open up like a book and show a mirror image of each other".
We have no idea what a second slab looked like in the stone shop.i
There is no guarantee the next slab, or even the third........would have created that possibility of match. A much better alignment may have been possible with more material, or a different location for the seam.
PROAnglophilia
5 years agoOf course a professional should warn you and tell you. Of course, your doctor should be thinking about you and your specific problems and research them. Of course, your car salesman should help you evaluate your specific needs!
Shoulda, woulda, coulda. Three useless words. Just because someone SHOULD do something, is no guarantee that that person will. In today's world, it's the consumer who needs to be sure the right questions are asked. Wrong? Unfair? Probably, but I don't waste what remaining time I have in my now 75 years of living, thinking about those things. I just make sure they get done.
Margaret Bannerman
5 years agoI would definitely complain, for all the reasons listed above. You should have had a better job done on this.
Wendy Park-Sullivan
Original Author5 years agoThose are the two cracks in the finished job and no I never signed off on a template
Wendy Park-Sullivan
Original Author5 years agoThey clearly didn't like what I l don't see that white anywhere
notsewmuch
5 years agoI can totally see why you are disappointed with that seam. I will say though, with the pictures showing the whole counter it doesn't stick out like I thought it would. Your kitchen is beautiful. I really love the floors. Are they concrete? Or look alike?km kane
5 years agoYou know, after seeing the full photo, I don’t think it’s bad at all! There is no way anyone can match natural stone anyway. This granite has soooooo much movement that the seam isn’t the problem.- PRO
Patricia Colwell Consulting
5 years agoThere had to be a seam and unless your designer specified book matching it is the best you could you could do. This is a lesson learned and as mentioned the salesperson has no vested interest in anything except selling you the granite.I actually don’t find it all that bad when you post the whole wall. BTW naturla stone has fissures , what you call cracks.
greenfish1234
5 years agoReally looks good. Lovely kitchen. I think you will be able to forget about this one.
sprtphntc7a
5 years agooops, mine is not exactly the same but very similar.
i do disagree with JanMoyer in that when i picked mine out, i had them move the first 4 slabs and 95% of each slab was exactly the same out of that lot... very little change in pattern.
i needed 2 slabs.
looking at your new pics, the seam is not a clean cut. if they would have filled it with matching colors where needed, it would look much better.
Miranda33
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agoI am not sure I agree with Jan Moyer's post that the seam could have been at the sink. The strip in front of the sink is narrow, and many fabricators feel that it is too narrow to withstand the stresses of a sink full of water and dishes, and so would refuse to put a seam at the sink.
I agree with the others that now that I've seen the entire kitchen, it looks much better that seeing a close up shot. Any photo that is close up will magnify whatever issue you are photographing. And also, as mentioned, the seam itself is done very well, not an easy feat with all those colors. It's that they didn't match the pieces well, which simply may not have been possible with the single slab you have, and the amount of linear feet you needed.
This thread is a good lesson to the many others who will be reading it that one must go to the layout of the template before the stone is cut, no matter what. We've also seen threads about man-made quartz which had similar issues when the homeowner didn't go to a layout beforehand and the pattern in the quartz didn't match at the seams. So this requirement is not limited to granite.
I also want to mention how stunning that granite is. Let's celebrate that.- PRO
JAN MOYER
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agoA seam at the sink is done ALL the time. Some fabricators will refuse,,,,,,,,,it is perfectly safe. Yes there can be "identical" slabs. Doesn't mean they are book match
Wendy Park-Sullivan thanked JAN MOYER km kane
5 years agoJan is correct, seams at sinks are common - they minimize the issue the OP is complaining about (obvious pattern changes). Though i Don’t like seams at the sink because they seem to be rough and cut my shirts at the belly! If only i could learn to jwear an apron
Joy
5 years agoWhat a beautiful kitchen! So nice to see a different color scheme. Counter matching does not stick out, so much movement in your granite.
mark_rachel
5 years agoThe seam looks pretty good to me. I agree that the match could have been better. Were you there to template? I've had 2 kitchens done with busy & they made the seams very easy to miss. That's a shame, but I've seen FAR worse.
acm
5 years agoKitchen looks beautiful. Even you will stop noticing the seam once you're using the counters and have filled the space with the hubub of everyday life. Cracks and seams are normal in stone (that's what the waivers about "natural materials" are for), so you may have no recourse there.
Gorgeous kitchen. Give yourself time.
Boxerpal
5 years agoI like your kitchen. The stone is pretty with your cabinets and looks nice with your floors. I am glad you showed more photos as I was thinking it was going to be terrible. It is not. It is very pretty. How many slabs did you ask for? I know for me I really wanted the veins to match so ordered extra stone to be sure we could match the lines. I did not want a choppy look. I think overall it is very pretty.
millworkman
5 years ago"you have to cracks!!! not acceptable"
HOw do you know they are cracks? Natural stone has naturally occuring cracks called "Fizzures" which are perfectly acceptable.
Lorrie H
5 years agoA reputable company would have warned you about the seaming and suggested and discussed options prior to installation. I decided on a piece of marble for my kitchen but prior to the install someone from the Granite/Marble company came out to measure and look at the kitchen. He suggested that I reconsider the option I had picked, and explained why it may not be the best for my L shaped kitchen. As a professional thats his job to give you the best advice on the product he should know best.
HALLETT & Co.