http://www.care2.com/greenliving/granite-countertops-dont-rock.html
Granite Countertops Don’t Rock
Recently I had a Realtor into my house to talk about what kinds of changes we’d need to make if we wanted to sell it. Our house was built in the ’50s and it has all original just about everything: Wood floors, plumbing, electrical, and kitchen and bathroom tile. My husband and I happen to love the slightly funky green tiles in the shower and yellow tile countertops with red accents in our kitchen. But I braced myself for the dreaded and expected suggestion to redo the kitchen and put in granite countertops.
I am sorry, but what is the deal with granite countertops? Why is everyone so ga-ga over them? Personally, I don’t think they are particularly attractive. I can understand the allure of countertops without grout, which is hard to keep clean. But is no one but me concerned about the fact that granite is a completely NON-renewable resource? Do you know what that means? It means we take it from the Earth and when it’s gone, it’s gone. No more.
The way I figure it, mining of granite so that your kitchen counters can look just like everyone else’s is a blight on the environment. Most of it is quarried from an open-pit mine, which then just becomes an open pit that is often used as a landfill. Nice, right? Plus there’s the issue of how far the granite has to travel; some of the mines are in desert areas of the United States, but others are in Egypt and India. That’s a long way to travel, and that’s so not green.
I like to watch HGTV, and invariably in every episode of “House Hunters” you’ll see someone running their hands over the kitchen counters and saying “ooh! granite.” On “My House is Worth What?” there is always a shot of granite countertops and a huge red arrow, indicating that this means their house is worth more money! I recently saw an episode of “Spice Up My Kitchen” that featured a couple who wanted a greener kitchen, and while thankfully they did not use granite countertops, they tore down all the cabinets and replaced them! Hello? What’s green about that? Haven’t they ever heard of a coat of paint and some new hardware? It did wonders for our kitchen.
Anyway, don’t get me started about people demolishing perfectly good kitchens and bathrooms, and dumping the results in our landfills.
The point is, maybe granite countertops aren’t the scourge on our planet I am making them out to be. But if you need new countertops, or just want them, and are going for the “natural” look, there are tons of eco-alternatives to granite that are very attractive (some even look similar to granite) and grout-free. I found this nice article on Sunset.com with five green solutions for kitchen updates, from recycled glass, aluminum, and paper to end-grain bamboo.
I find the bamboo and recycled glass options particularly pretty. I will have to keep them in mind if we ever decide to trade in our ’50s tile. (Our realtor actually suggested we keep it, which was good news for us.) As far as I am concerned, these options all rock. Granite? Not so much.
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34 comments
add your comment »I was referring to reclaiming old chemistry lab tabletops.
If the are already existing and are headed to a landfill, it seems like it'd be better to repurpose it instead as an industrial-feel countertop rather than letting it go to waste.
You gave me several facts that I did not previously know about those chemistry lab tabletops. Thank you for taking the time to research and post this.
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Oh and I forgot.
Glass is from sand which mined from the earth.
Aluminum also gets its start from the mining from the Earth.
Granite and quartz are recyclable and can later be used for pavers, tiles, decorative rock for gardens or crushed finer to possibly make glass??
The open pit mines actually have reclamition plans as they are being mined and many have become beautiful lakes for communities to use for public swimming and parks,fishing and natural wildlife preserves. They have also become prime lakefront property for a few lucky residents who realized the mine was there before they were.
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Just what to make a few things clear for you all. That chemistry desk you were talking about is soapstone which is mined from the earth and is sealed many times after with linseed oil which is what makes it darker and darker over time.
Quartz countertops are 97% crushed quartz stone mined out of the earth and 3% resin.
Concrete is crushed stone and cement which are both mined out of the earth.
HMMMMMMM
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Just what to make a few things clear for you all. That chemistry desk you were talking about is soapstone which is mined from the earth and is sealed many times after with linseed oil which is what makes it darker and darker over time.
Quartz countertops are 97% crushed quartz stone mined out of the earth and 3% resin.
Concrete is crushed stone and cement which are both mined out of the earth.
HMMMMMMM
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Just what to make a few things clear for you all. That chemistry desk you were talking about is soapstone which is mined from the earth and is sealed many times after with linseed oil which is what makes it darker and darker over time.
Quartz countertops are 97% crushed quartz stone mined out of the earth and 3% resin.
Concrete is crushed stone and cement which are both mined out of the earth.
HMMMMMMM
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I saw a great "repurposing" kitchen overhaul a few years back. The couple turned an old car garage (mechanic's garage) into an apartment. They had a very industrial look and feel to the place, but not in an extreme way.
They took old glass cabinets from a doctor's office and used them for the kitchen cabinets.
They took various carpet remnants and stitched them together into a unique carpet that looked smashing.
The very best bit was they took the hard black countertop previously used in a school chemistry class and created a kitchen island with it, along with reclaimed stools from the same classroom.
The countertop was tough and durable, allowed easy food prep and cleanup and best of all, gave new life to an object and kept it out of the landfill.
I am usually not at all attracted to the industrial look, but that apartment made me rethink my opinion.
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Granite is simply a rock. That is what makes is beautiful. It does not need to be resealed twice a year, waxed or any other scare tactic corian companies came up with in order to sell their products. Granite has been installed in homes for more than 30 years and has not lost its appeal. FYI - Cement is made from limestone that is quarried much like granite. Quartz countertops are made with crushed pieces of natural granite materials mixed with a resin that releases silica in the air during manufacturing that is deadly to those who work in the factories. I have been to the factories and have seen it, unlike so many who want to pretend to know what is green.
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yeah what will people do in ten years when the realtors tell them "oh granite? its sooo yesterday you need to update."
already stainless appliances are getting old or "dated" as they say on the tv shows the next new thing is ...i think i saw bronze- it was beautiful but very expensive and it'll be out in ten years or so.
HGTV had a show "living with Ed" as in Ed Begley- a great show for learning to live green i think it is now on Discovery Home channel
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Granite is cold, hard, and very busy-looking. I don't think it is attractive for many reasons (including the environmental irresponsibility). It takes too much maintenance (sealing, waxing, etc.) and it's busy-looking surface makes it hard for me to tell if I have cleaned all the crumbs & drips - I don't want the dirt to be invisible; I want it GONE! My sister got a very expensive granite and when she sat a hot pan on it, it CRACKED! It's very hard to replace a section of granite - you will never find a match!
To me its like people waving at trains: they are more concerned with being "in" and "impressive" than with true quality and usability - like quality stainless being far superior in every way to silver for eating - not to mention safer! And linoleum being much easier to keep (no grout) and much warmer and kinder to your feet and legs than hard, cold, ceramic tile! The linoleum in my kitchen is so much nicer to walk on and so much easier to keep beautiful than the ceramic tile (which I hate) in my bathrooms.
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why is this inappropriate?
Granite is cold, hard, and very busy-looking. I don't think it is attractive for many reasons (including the environmental irresponsibility). It takes too much maintenance (sealing, waxing, etc.) and it's busy-looking surface makes it hard for me to tell if I have cleaned all the crumbs & drips - I don't want the dirt to be invisible; I want it GONE! My sister got a very expensive granite and when she sat a hot pan on it, it CRACKED! It's very hard to replace a section of granite - you will never find a match!
To me its like people waving at trains: they are more concerned with being "in" and "impressive" than with true quality and usability - like quality stainless being far superior in every way to silver for eating - not to mention safer! And linoleum being much easier to keep (no grout) and much warmer and kinder to your feet and legs than hard, cold, ceramic tile! The linoleum in my kitchen is so much nicer to walk on and so much easier to keep beautiful than the ceramic tile (which I hate) in my bathrooms.
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