The Advantages and disadvantages of Concrete Kitchen Area Counter Tops

1. Few kitchen countertop products are trendier at the moment than high-end concrete. Rock solid and difficult as granite or slate, concrete can be a much better fit in contemporary cooking area styles than any of those natural stones given that it exudes a modern-day industrial aesthetic. Contributing to the mystique is the truth that concrete can now be etched, acid-stained, stamped, and sealed to produce a counter top surface that differs from nearly any other available material. Modern concrete cooking area counter tops are no longer cold slabs of gray concrete (unless you want that)-- more often, they are warm and gleaming surfaces that are utterly practical and likewise extremely trendy. Installation of Concrete Countertops Concrete countertops may look like enormous slabs, but in reality, they are typically just 1 1/2 to 2 inches thick. The impression that they are much thicker slabs is generally the result of a drop-front edging on the countertop. Still, these are very heavy counter tops, weighing 19 to 25 pounds per square foot. Installers sometimes need to strengthen cabinets and sometimes even the floorings in order to bear the substantial weight. While concrete counter tops are in some cases formed and put on-site, more often they are produced in stores after a professional takes precise measurements of your cooking area space and goes over all finish alternatives with you. In the shop, kinds are built and the countertop is poured, complete with whatever sink cutouts, coloration, or additives are requested. Throughout fabrication, the counter top slabs are generally reinforced with fiber or metal mesh of some type to give them strength and rigidness. After fabrication, the counter top is allowed to cure completely, and the surface area may be ground and polished to whatever complete the customer has an asked for. Some sort of sealant is applied, frequently a very difficult epoxy. When treating and finishing is total, an installation team carefully delivers the counter top to the work site and installs it. As part of the installation, the crew might develop or install support frames for sinks, because it is necessary that the counter top itself not bring the weight of the sink. If the sink is an under-mount style, it is set in location initially, then the counter top is installed over it. The counter top is typically abided by the cabinets with construction adhesives after being thoroughly leveled and shimmed. Advantages and Drawbacks of Concrete Countertops Concrete counter tops have numerous virtues, particularly its capability to be formed and formed to exactly match your cooking area measurements and ended up precisely to your preference. With other countertop products, you are often limited to whatever colors and designs are readily available, but concrete deals you a wider range of choices. Only ceramic tile comes close to offering a comparable variety of choices. On the other hand, if you are conditioned to consider concrete as an utilitarian structure material used for slabs and structures, you might imagine that concrete counter tops are cheap and easy to set up. Absolutely nothing could be further from the fact. Concrete is a high-end, exceptional material when utilized in kitchen area counter tops, and fabricating them requires a great deal of ability and experience. These are among the more pricey of all countertop materials. Pros They can be custom-sized and shaped to any kitchen setup. Concrete does not scratch and is impervious to heat. Products such as glass fragments, stones, shells, and fiber-optic lights can be embedded.

2. Concrete makes for an extremely long lasting and lasting surface. The how to update your laminate countertops without replacing them surface is easy clean-up and keep, provide regular sealing is done. Concrete countertops usually enhance property value as a "premium" product. Cons They are expensive, costing as much as $150 per square foot. Annual sealing is needed to prevent staining. Their weight can strain cabinet frames and floorings. Repair work are nearly impossible, and cracking in some cases does take place. Maintenance Assuming the countertop has been sealed at first with a good-quality epoxy sealant, continuous maintenance requires just the application of a great water-based wax sealant every 9 to 12 months. Yearly sealing will guarantee the surface resists staining and will decrease the possibilities of a concrete counter top cracking over time.