| Author | Message | ||
     Jimduncan69 |
i figured you never know why not ask here. i have seen some of the strangest questions answered on BadWeb. So anyway i posted this on another forum but i will copy and paste it here. We had desert brown granite countertop installed about 3 months ago. when they installed them they looked like they where dirty. so we didn't think much about them at the time. after the installers left we went about cleaning them with soap and water. using what the installers told us. they came clean but never really shined like i have seen other granite counter tops do. so we called the company to come back out and take a look at them. which they kindly did. the tech said there isn't much he can do about the situation. so he put a wax/polish on it. it looked amazing after he did that. well one week later after one cleaning it is back to looking hazy again. so i call them back up. they tell me "there is nothing they can do about it and that is just the way desert brown granite is". so my question is, is desert brown granite normally hazy looking or is it normally glossy? also what route can i go when i am dealing with them? thank you for any and all help! | ||
| Hex |
All granite should polish to a high shine. If it has micro and macroscopic porosity, it should still take a shine, just like glass. They may need to come out an resurface it which will be a PITA installed. Progressively varying fine silicon carbide or diamond grit with a buffing wheel, underwater, will do the trick. Get another professional opinion. | ||
| Sifo |
I've seen granite being polished. You really don't want that done in your kitchen. As Hex said it's grinding and polishing with water involved. I would expect it should take a polish just like other granite, but I'm not an expert by any means. You might ask to see some sample pieces that they have on hand. You did get to see the actual stone you were picking out didn't you. They should have more of them ready for customers to choose from. Let them convince you that other pieces of desert brown don't have the same shine as the rest. It would have been great if they had told you that when you were picking it out instead of after it's installed. | ||
| Jimduncan69 |
Hex, i know it would be a big PITA to polish it in place. beside the place we got it from said that they don't polish them. we picked out the slab at there shop. i don't know if it was there lighting or if i just didn't know what to look for. but i don't remember it looking hazy there. what i think is that the place they got the slab from did a crappy job of polishing it and they are trying to weasel there way out of taking responsibility for it. | ||
| Spiderman |
Sounds like a bad piece of granite... I would have another company come out and take a look. | ||
| Hex |
It could have been "burnt" in the last final polish if they let it get too hot or dry. This looks hazy, crazed, uneven polish/dull areas, and sometimes slightly more crystallized. Look for unevenness of surface polish, you're going to have to show the boss you know what you are looking at, and how 'disgusted' you are with it, (and he's heard it all before.) Burnt, happens more with marble, but it can happen with granite as well, methinks. Amateurs. (I USED to be a stoner.) | ||
| Jimduncan69 |
i think spidy is right. Tom we did pick it out. i won't mention the place we got it from yet. i still want to see if they make it right. but they do have VERY DEEP POCKETS and are know for customer service. i will just say that we bought it from a big place that has a smaller company do there granite countertops for them. i just want to have as much info as i can so i don't go in there looking like a jack a$$. | ||
| Sifo |
i just want to have as much info as i can so i don't go in there looking like a jack a$$. Smart move. You have one chance to take your best shot. This is where I think it would be wise to try to work with them. Let them show your how all of that type of granite looks like that. If they fail to do so, you have a lot of leverage with that person. Let them "educate" you, but make them show you that they are right. It might not hurt to talk to a local competitor and ask their opinion. | ||
| Jimduncan69 |
Well i called a few places today to get some advice. i learned that my granite has a 15 year sealer on it and it can get hazy looking. so a guy told me to "on a spare piece" which i have. take acetone and wipe it down. what that does is strip the old sealer off. they left me a cutting board so i taped off half of it and wiped one side down with acetone. once that dried i applied a enhanced sealer for natural stone to it. when i was done i peeled off the tape and the guy was right. one side looked hazy and the other side the colors looked dark and rich. so i immediately took it into Lowes where i bought my countertop from and show'd it to the managers there. i also explained what there fabricators said to me. the managers mouth dropped. he told me they will make it right and replace my whole counter no problem. i was very relieved when i left the store. i feel they did the right thing and i didn't even have to stand my ground. i will keep you posted on what happens next. . | ||
| Svh |
Big ups to Lowes. Never have cared much for their service at the local one but from what I hear other stores do a wonderful job. Congrats! hope it works out better for you this time. | ||
| Mndwgz |
Pledge... Wifey swears by it, uses it weekly, and ours are shiney. (and there's a can in the garage for the Buells) | ||
| Sifo |
I've had lot's of problems with purchases at Lowes. They have always been able to make things right though. They were involved in a big class action suite on a tile flooring system that should never have been sold though. All the big box stores farm out that kind of work to local tradesmen. It can be a real crap shoot who will wind up doing the work on your house. Good luck with the final resolution. | ||
| Gentleman_jon |
Nice work Jim!! | ||
| Court |
Quite cool . . . you learn something every day. | ||
| Jimduncan69 |
Sifo, i know exactly what product you are talking about. boy was that stuff a bad idea. i installed one job of it. i am amazed i never got a call back on it. i can tell you first hand that lowes is very good with customer service. i have installed flooring for them for the last 5 years. they are very strict on us as subcontractors. they will do what ever it takes to make the customer happy. the trick is to get the corporate office involved. because sometimes the store managers can be Douche Canoe's. but not always you just have to feel it out. |
