| One of the most important decisions for your | | | | unlike granite, no sealing is necessary to |
| kitchen design or re-modeling is the | | | | preserve the shine on its |
| selection of your countertop material and | | | | surface.Scratch-resistance - Since only three |
| style. For kitchen countertops quartz based | | | | other minerals are harder than quartz |
| surfaces are hard to beat. Durability, | | | | (diamone, sapphire, and topaz) the surface is |
| consistancy, and a selection of colors make | | | | very scratch resistant. Excessive force or |
| these materials worth considering.Using a | | | | pressure could still cause a scratch but the |
| quartz based material like Silestone | | | | slip of a knife is unlikely to leave a mark |
| countertops does provides a number of | | | | as it would on other surfaces.Strength - |
| benefits. Silestone countertops are composed | | | | Silestone countertops have about 4 times the |
| of a natural quartz material combined with | | | | flexural strength of natural granite. This |
| resins and pigments. Silestone is 93% natural | | | | added strength makes it less likely for |
| quartz and 7% resins. There are a number of | | | | damage to occur in transportation, |
| colors to choose from so it is no problem to | | | | installation, or in everyday use.As an |
| find one that goes well with your selected | | | | alternative to a natural granite countertop |
| cabinets.Stain-resistance - Since the surface | | | | Silestone is worth consideringRay Breitenbach |
| is non-porous it is highly resistant to | | | | writes for Simple Home Repairs. Please visit |
| stains from your daily household products | | | | for more information on how to perform you |
| (coffee, wine, cooking oil, make-up...) and | | | | own basic home repairs. |