Help on choosing new countertops - does anybody have Corian????

[hammersley]

I currently have tile countertops - the small ones and the grout is driving me crazy - so I'm getting rid of them now. I've looked at lots of different tops, and wanted to know what you folks think of the Solid Surface DuPont Corian? Does anybody have them?

 

[rubberneck]

We looked into corian, and i think it makes for a very nice surface, however we ended up going with granite. I think a lot depends on the look you are going for, but the price difference ended up being almost nill. I do know the price of the corian varies drastically depending on color/patern and edge treatment. I have the corian in my trailer, but honestly havent had it long enough to pass judgement. Im sure someone will chime in. But the granite is awesome.

 

[duaneparks]

Had it in the last house we lived in and really liked it. I know it's not exactly inexpensive, but it sure held up well and didn't stain at all (for us).



I did manage to make some places in it with a knife while I was chopping up some chives once, so we bought a chopping block made out of matching Corian to use, and repaired the scratches.



If/When I do the countertops in our present house, I think I'll want the Granite just to have something different.



Duane

 

[Mitch Rockwell]

WhenI built my Brother's house he wanted solid surface in the bathrooms. I checked out Corian, and decided not to go with it because of price. I found an alternate solid surface top called Gemstone. My local countertop guy had several color samples to choose from, which is a plus, and the price was much nicer. He also told me to stay away from some of the solid surface selections at big-box stores(one that comes to mind is Swanstone). Solid surface is a great way to go in my opinion, in a kitchen setting it won't de-laminate if a hot pan is placed on it without protection, unlike conventional laminate tops. I've even seen some laminate tops that come apart from the use of deep-fryers sitting above the actual surface. Solid surface is relatively easy to clean and can last a long time. In all, it comes down to what you have in the budget, and what your individual tastes are.

 

[me4osu]

We looked at Corian

Looks great, and it won't scratch. However, you can't set anything hot on it (it melts). Plus, just a curved backsplash (ten years ago) costed $60. 00 per foot (material only).



We found a good cabinet contractor and put in some good quality formica (much less dinero).



We used to live in a rent-house that had tile counter tops. I hated them and so did the Wife.

 

[BV]

Corian substitute

We also looked at the Corian counter tops and found it expensive so we went with Wilsonart SSV (Solid Surface Veneer) for about 1/2-2/3 the cost.



The Wilsonart material acts just like Corian in that you can't put hot items on the surface and resists most stains. Nice thing is the price and so far (4 years now) still looks good.

 

[Koa Man]

I went with granite on the advice of a contractor friend. Originally was going to use Corian, he said go with granite. Did some shopping around and found a nice black granite counter top cheaper than I could have gotten the Corian for.

 

[CumminsAholic]

I own a custom cabinet shop. We make our laminate tops, but have corian and graite done by another company. Anyways... Around here it's quite a bit cheaper than granite and quite a bit more than laminate. We charge about $20 a foot for laminate, I think corian is about 140 a foot. It's nice stuff though. We did a kitchen this summer that had 50 feet of it,quite a bit. It's hard to believe that it has any splices, you have to REALLY look to see them. I guess it depends on prices in your area. Granite is nicer, but there's nothing wrong with corian. The nice part is if you happen to scratch it you can sand it out

Corey

 

[Wheaties]

. . ditto what CumminsAholic said. Corian sands out if you scratch or stain. Plus you can put a fancy edge on it if you wish with standard carbide router bits It's really tough stuff.



Matt

 

[jpeterson]

http://www.cosentinousa.com/



We are using their Silestone product in my in-laws house, it is similar in construction to the aggregate composite flooring used in schools etc. . Tougher than granite, non-porous, and more heat resistant the Corian.



Might be worth checking out, we are just doing the island the rest will be laminate countertops.



Jeremy

 

[dresslered]

We have the Corian in the kitchen, bathrooms, and one of the showers. We really enjoy it except for the people before us that installed it chose the color white. This has turned out to be a maintenance nightmare. Coffee cups and red wine leave nasty stains. Though it does clean up with some mild cleaners, it just seems to require a little too much attention. If you end up going with it, choose a darker color.