If you’ve ever gone through a renovation, you know it’s not a simple process. Renovating the kitchen requires many steps necessary to achieve a successful project. In addition to the choice of coverings for floors and walls, it is necessary to invest in appliances and in the material for the kitchen countertops – and it is at this point that some doubts may arise.
Why is important to search before choosing your countertop
Are you looking for the perfect material for your kitchen countertop? Well, this is indeed one of the most important home improvement choices!
The kitchen countertop has several important and useful functions in everyday life, such as supporting food, dividing integrated ambiance, or even becoming a table for faster meals.
Choosing the material that will be used on your kitchen countertop is a very important decision: in addition to all its usefulness, there are many materials that can be used to build your countertop, and this wide variety of materials available on the market can influence negatively or positively in your routine.
There are many possibilities for you to make the perfect choice for your kitchen, but it’s important to know that even within those choices, there are other varieties that might fit even better with what you’re looking for.
If you choose to make your kitchen countertop using stone, you will have to choose between the options available on the market: marble, quartz, quartzite, and granite. Among these options, each one has its qualities and benefits, as well as its cons, so it is essential that you find out about every detail of the materials that will be used in your kitchen countertop.
For example, some stones are better to be used outdoors and some are better indoors, just as some are more practical to clean and some are not. In other words, the material that will be used in your kitchen countertop will depend on your needs.
In addition to a stone countertop, you also have other excellent material choices to use in your kitchen countertop. Want to learn more about the options? Read on.
Kitchen countertop: the most used materials for you to choose the ideal one
If you’ve come this far, you understand the importance of choosing very well the material to be used on your kitchen countertop, and among those on the market you have 3 options: stone, wood or stainless steel.
Want to know more? Here are some options, the advantages and disadvantages of each of the most commonly used materials today.
Stainless steel
One of the options that ensure greater asepsis for your kitchen countertop for being waterproof. If you’re looking for resistance to heat and bacteria, this is the perfect material for your kitchen countertop, as this is a favorite in industrial kitchens. However, it is not very common in residential kitchens, as it has a high production cost.
The biggest advantages of stainless steel for the kitchen countertop is the fact that it is a super hygienic, practical, and durable material.
Even so, just as it has advantages, it also has its disadvantages. Stainless steel is a material that scratches very easily, in addition to what has already been mentioned: it has a high cost in the market.
Wood
This is certainly one of the prettiest options for your kitchen countertops and it is one of the most versatile materials, as wood makes up well from more rustic to contemporary ambience.
Plus, your kitchen will be cozier and you’ll have the bonus that wood is an extremely easy material to install. The most used woods are oak and walnut.
However, despite being an easy material to be installed, wood has low resistance to heat and impact from sharp objects. Therefore, it is necessary to carry out maintenance constantly due to the high contact with water.
Granite
If you are looking for a tough and durable material, granite is ideal! This is a natural stone, with unique colors and patterns, which will make your kitchen countertop special!
Unlike stainless steel or wood, this is also a highly heat resistant stone. It is also the most used option in kitchen and bathroom countertops.
In addition to these features, a granite kitchen countertop has the advantage of being extremely easy to clean and maintain, and an excellent cost-benefit ratio. Furthermore, it is also impact-resistant, but it’s not always resistant to acidic products or foods.
Marble
Are you looking for a sophisticated kitchen countertop? Perhaps this is the most elegant option: marble! A natural limestone rock with each vein of its composition unique.
But a kitchen can’t just depend on aesthetics, can it? In addition to its sophisticated look, marble is also a heat-resistant stone and an easy-to-clean material.
But, it is also a high-cost material and, as it is very porous, it must be sealed with an anti-stain and anti-bacterial resin, in addition to having a low impact resistance.
Porcelain
Porcelain kitchen countertops are known to be quite resistant. Among its main advantages are its durability and impermeability
It is, without doubt, one of the materials that offers more finishing options, as it is made from the same coating that is used for floors and walls, with infinite options available on the market, allowing projects with unique combinations. You also can choose to sculpt (or mold) the tub using the same material.
Concrete
Like wood, concrete is quite coherent for finishing rustic kitchens and those with more contemporary features. It is a very resistant and economical material. There are techniques that allow you to color the material, allowing more varieties of finish.
The advantages of using concrete to make your kitchen countertop is that this material is versatile for decoration and very economical as it is produced using only cement, sand and water.
However, it is necessary to apply a specific product to prevent infiltration, as this material is very porous and poorly stain-resistant, in addition to being unhygienic, and the use of stone or glass boards for handling food is recommended.
Now that you know different types of materials to make your kitchen countertop, you can choose the best option for you according to the use you will make of it in your daily life. Remember not to choose based only on aesthetics, but on your real needs.
Was this article useful? In case you are interested in natural stones countertops, you definitely should check our article “Find out the best options of stone countertops“. There you will be able to learn more about stone countertops and be better guided in your choice.
Also, Check the stones available on our website and get an estimate with us.
