Modern Countertops for a remodel

I'm updating a midcentury home with modern kitchen cabinets and need a counter that says sophisticated modern, but says it less expensively than the 50/square foot that they want for Granite or Silestone. I'll go that route for lack of a better option, but I'd need to do it at the lowest price possible.

Does anyone know where I can get something that has a similar look for less, or a good place to get Granite/Silestone at the lowest price. Formica is too cheap IMHO, and I'm not loving tile at the moment, though I could go that route if necessary.

Steve Herbert

$50 sqf for Granite or Silestone sounds like a good price to me. In the Phx market those materials will generally price out around $80-$100+sqf once you factor in edge details, cut outs, and installation.

Another option is concrete, but it will only save you money if you do it yourself. We offer classes for the diy'er ( http://www.goredesignco.com/training/workshops.aspx ).

The cost savings by doing it yourself are as follows:

40 sqf Kitchen

Class: $700
Material Cost: $8 sqf = $320
Tool Rental: $200

Total Cost: $1220
Price per sqf: $30.50

Creating a one-of-a-kind artistic countertop yourself: Priceless

The other benefit of doing it yourself is the ability to express yourself through artistic inlays, integral features such as drainboards and sinks, color, etc.

i'd look at Paperstone available through the Environmental Home Center (not sure about the availability where you live), stainless steel (we've had custom fabricated countertops done pretty cost effectively) or even Ikea's wood butcherblock counters (about $150 per 8' section--if you can deal with the breaks between counters).

You can do granite cheaper, if you're willing to tackle some diy granite cuts, and install it yourself. There's a place here in boulder, co. called [url href=www.bouldergranite.com]boulder granite[/url], that sells granite slabs for around $20/sqft. Many of their pieces of granite are 25.5 wide (a good depth for a countertop) with one long edge finished with a bull nose. So, depending on your kitchen layout, you may only need to get a sink cutout, and then have the slab cut to length. You'll have to deal with the install yourself also, so, you'll need some strong friends.

Thanks to everyone that replied. Fantastic!

Steve

Don't rule out butcher block unless you already have. I've seen it applied to a couple of kitchens recently, and it isn't hippy at all! Very clean.

Here's an ok pic of a friend's kitchen. It really looks great in person. She's an interior designer.

Granite tile with a closely color matched grout gives you a look that is very similar to slab and if you DIY it is quite a bit less expensive. You can get edges bullnosed by a pro for something like $7-8 per linear foot and the tile itself varies in price, but you should find it under $15. A drop in sink rather than an undermount simplifies the task.

Wow - can't believe no one mentioned Concrete Countertops - you can check out at Concrete Exchange as there are now vendors everywhere in the US - total choice of color - and you can have any shape possible with neat features not available otherwise - like integrated cutting boards - etc.

how much do professionally installed concrete countertops run? We have been leaning towards quartz ourselves since we are lazy when it comes to maintenance and quartz seems very low maintenance.

Concrete Counters in SF bay area, fully fabricated and installed 125-175/sqft between 3 verbals I got early on...A bit out of my range!

If you shop around, you can get beautiful granite tile really cheap. We got black granite tile on sale at Home Depot for $4 per sq ft.

Also, I have seen several tile counter top installations where they used wood trim for the front edge of the counter instead of having the tile machined for an exposed edge. The wood trim can stained to match the counters or the tile. This option would simplify the counter installation and reduce the cost if you like the finished appearance.

I went to a home show this weekend and came across a 1/4 granite slab product that installs right over your existing countertops. I think prices were $45/ft or so.

www.granitetransformations.com

You may have already picked your countertop but if you haven't...
I gotta throw in a vote for the Paperstone or Richlite composite countertops. We used them for kitchen and bathroom countertops of our mid-century remodel. For the kitchen, we added a stainless steel trim to keep with the mid-century theme. The bathroom countertop was left without a trim.

The Paperstone only comes in black but it's a DIY project. The Richlite comes in a variety of colors but only comes from certified installers.

The richlite black looks nice, but it is quite hard to keep clean. Also, the Richlite certified installer thing is a real hurdle at first. However, if you call around, you should find a certified installer that will order it for you and have it shipped directly to your house with a slight mark-up. This is a pretty DIY friendly install. However, you cant hope to use your wood-working router bits or circ. saw blades. You need to buy a triple-chip circ. saw blade and a 2-flute router bit. Plus, it is useful to have a robust router as the richlite is tough stuff...chatters like crazy.

Two things-I just put the Ikea butcherblock in a couple months ago and it's pretty decent. i've got it laid out so there is only one seam. it's nice and modern, it's no concrete but then again it's not 50's formica/laminate. Another option may be LG HiMacs, it's an alternative to the stones and i think it's about $40/sq. they sell it at Lowes, i'd check it out.

A friend of mine got trailer truck flooring. Sanded it down and rubbed in whatever kind of oil you use for food surfaces. It's just like butcher block but it was dirt cheap and has more character.
~mike

I put in a new kitchen in our house on a very tight budget. We spent about two months researching countertop materials and ended up going with a maple end grain top. It was the best deal for the money. Granite was just to expensive and concrete is a LOT of work if you do it yourself and not to mention time consuming. We got our rock maple countertops from Lumber Liquidators for a very reasonable price. As for a finish we used a salad bowl finish over mineral oil. The salad bowl finish requires less maintenence and looks really nice, especially if you do a bit of wet sanding. For the money and th amount of work required on the install, you can't beat this. Plus it has a beautiful organic look to it.

Fireslate vs. Richlite?

Can anybody comment on Fireslate vs. Richlite in terms of durability and maintenance? Also, what are the prices for Richlite? Fireslate prices are easily available but it's a maze getting details about Richlite.

In response to tzdons' post, please see my earlier posting on this thread.

Concrete countertops are as, or often even more expensive than granite countertops. You are paying for a fully custom, handmade piece, created by an artisan.

To save money with concrete countertops the only option is to create them yourself. It takes years to master this medium, but a diy'er can accelerate the learning curve by attending a hands-on workshop. There are several companies that offer training; Cheng, Buddy Rhodes, CCI and ourselves included. Below are images of previous DIY'er workshops we have held in our studio as well as a piece created by a class. For more information about our classes, please visit our website at http://www.goredesignco.com

[IMG]http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f161/brandongore/WW1Training3-5.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f161/brandongore/WW1Training3-2.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f161/brandongore/WW1Training2-2.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f161/brandongore/WW1classcountertop2.jpg[/IMG]