Swanstone counters

[dgbldr]

Any of you using 1/4" Swanstone over particle board for kitchen counters?

What's the good, the bad and the ugly? How much cheaper are they than an all-solid surface counter?

I have a customer who wants it, but I have no experience with it.

dg

[GaryJR]

dg,

I have used Swanstone and Lifestone(United Marble) on shower surround walls. The swanstone 1/4" panels are intended for wall use. I'm not a big fan of them (I just don't like the look) but the product is very good for it's intended purpose. No grout lines, clean look and the panels come in many many colors.

I would find out what your client wants or can spend on counter tops. Price out the least expensive granite top, laminate (formica) top, and then price out the swanstone gerry-rig option. More times than not you can get your client to spend a little more on something they really want.

When you consider the labor to fabricate the Swanstone as opposed to what you can purchase, you may find your shop made top comes out very close in price.

[VTNorm]

The last Swanstone bath I did was a couple of years ago, like Gary, I just don't like the 'look'. Supposed to be a granite pattern but it looks cheap to me.

A single 1/4" panel, 36"x72" 'granite' was just over a $700. A 3 panel kit of plain white panels (36x72) was almost $1200 - this is pricing from the fall of '05.

I remember eating up a couple of blades cutting the stuff.

-Norm

[dgbldr]

Gary, I don't propose to fabricate anything. I would have a countertop fabricator do it.

This particular client wants a seafoam green color that is available only in a couple of solid-surface materials and Swanstone. So granite, laminate and other materials are not being considered.

My question is more in the way of how much cheaper is a Swanstone countertop (1/4" solid over particle board) relative to Corian for example. And what are the advantages/disadvantages.

Again, this is for kitchen countertops:
http://www.theswancorp.com/products/...ters/index.php

NOT shower walls.

dg

[GaryJR]

dg,

The only person that can give you the most accurate answer on cost comparisons is your fabricator.

I was under the impression you were going to fabricate the tops.


How about Silestone or Zodiaq they make a lot of colors and it’s really nice material. Formica also makes solid surface material. Maybe they have seafoam green,

I guess if it must be seafoam green then there is not much of a choice if Swanstone is the only one making it.

[dgbldr]

Thanks Gary. That's why I'm looking for someone who has actually used the Swanstone product.

The approximate desired color is available in Corian, LG solid surface and Swanstone. My fabricator does all of the "real" solid surface materials but not Swanstone.

Before I waste time looking for a Swanstone fabricator, getting a quote, checking him out, etc. I want to find out if 1. Swanstone is substantially less expensive and 2. There are any issues with it.

dg

[Adam Greisz]

Are you sure that you cannot find a seafoam green granite. I have seen them in the shops in the Pac NW. I believe that they were from South America. All of the manufactured stones consistency is too even. Real stone has so much more character. If you cannot do it in real stone there are many nice formicas or stained concrete in green tones.

[DreamBuilder]

I'm certified in Corian, Gibraltar and Swanstone. The price point of Swanstone, when first introduced was less than half of Corian, but that was when Corian was selling for $200.00/lin.ft. Corian in the Ohio market currently sells for $75-$100/lin.ft. Swanstone never really took off except in the commercial market. I can't remember the last order that I had for Swanstone. Corian used to market a product call Solid Surface Veneer (SSV) that was bonded to a particle board substrate with contact cement, but Dupont had numerous problems with the product and has since quit producing it. All the Swanstone that we ever used for counter tops was a 1/2" material and the 1/4" material was just for the shower enclosures. Swanstone takes on a very "plastic" look over time.

[Livin'theDream]

dg:

I had a Swanstone counter display put in my first showroom. The texture of the product then was unappealing. It felt like it had small fiberglass strands in it. I don't know if that's still true; it's been seven years. The other "biggie" was that their color consistency from batch to batch was quite different, making the integral sink a poor match for the counter.

Kathie

[Stacey]

We're also certified for Swanstone. We have been for probably 5 years or so.

Pros
The sink/countertop can match the tub surround if you aren't doing tile.
The material is very tough and withstands nail polish remover, curling irons, etc. So it's great for a kids bathroom.
Material comes pre-molded with coved backsplash and nosing all in one.
The are some very nice shower accessories that can be added - shower seats, shampoo dishes (recessed) and window trim.

Cons
More expensive for us to fabricate (time not material) than corian or other solid surfaces.
Tooling should be diamond not carbide.
Color matching from peice to peice can be difficult.
Lead times can be long if the color chosen isn't common.

We don't do many fabricated c-tops anymore. We try to buy one peice sink/counters for bathrooms from the factory. We do like the shower surrounds and shower pans due to the flexiblity of shapes and colors. I will probably always include Swanstone as part of our product offering. We like Swanstone in laundry rooms and garages. It's really tough stuff.

[dgbldr]

Thanks Stacey. This is a U shape kitchen counter, so will have 2 seams. No integral sink.

The preliminary quote I got is only slightly lower than Corian, so it looks kinda pointless. Glad to hear it's tough and wears well. I'll let the client take his pick.

dg

[Kowboy]

I'm certified in Corian, Gibraltar and Swanstone. The price point of Swanstone, when first introduced was less than half of Corian, but that was when Corian was selling for $200.00/lin.ft. Corian in the Ohio market currently sells for $75-$100/lin.ft. Swanstone never really took off except in the commercial market. I can't remember the last order that I had for Swanstone. Corian used to market a product call Solid Surface Veneer (SSV) that was bonded to a particle board substrate with contact cement, but Dupont had numerous problems with the product and has since quit producing it. All the Swanstone that we ever used for counter tops was a 1/2" material and the 1/4" material was just for the shower enclosures. Swanstone takes on a very "plastic" look over time.

Dream:

Solid Surface Veneer was manufactured by Ralph Wilson Plastics aka Wilsonart, not DuPont. It was such a bad product there is a class action lawsuit settling claims with consumers, but fabricators took a thirty-three- cent-on-the-dollar pounding.

A friend of mine was an expert witness in the case.

Kowboy

[DreamBuilder]

Dream:

Solid Surface Veneer was manufactured by Ralph Wilson Plastics aka Wilsonart, not DuPont. It was such a bad product there is a class action lawsuit settling claims with consumers, but fabricators took a thirty-three- cent-on-the-dollar pounding.

A friend of mine was an expert witness in the case.

Kowboy

Kowboy,

You're probably right. The shop i worked for before I went out on my own was certified for SSV. You had to pay $5k to buy into a market. I only fabricated a couple of tops with it. It looked good until it starts to delaminate. For some reason I thought it was made by DuPont. Thanks for the clarification.

Phil

[bobkni]

Wilsonart did make the ssv not Dupont. Have you seen the granite/quartz ssv? http://www.granitetransformations.co...untertops.html
I have only seen 1 installation and it was terrible, seams and sharp edges everywhere, it certainly did not look like the display I saw at a mall show. The homeowner thinks it is real granite which it is not. $50 or $60 sf installed I believe.

[dgbldr]

Bob,
I did see the Granite Transformations product. I think it's a franchise. The shop in my area will only work directly with HOs. I'll let you guess why :)

Yes, the stuff looks pretty bad, it's as expensive as slab granite and you can't do undermount sinks or radiused corners because you can't bend granite.

dg