Marble and Granite Worktops Herts, Beds and Bucks
MARBLE & GRANITE WORKTOPS LTD

Granite Definitions and Samples

Why choose granite?
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Granite is the perfect material for kitchen worktops. It is a very hard and resilient stone which can stand up to a lifetime of hard use if looked after properly.
 
The word granite derived from Latin, literally translated means grain due to the grain that can be seen within the stone itself.  Granite is not a material or product which has been manufactured.

Granite is over 100 million years old, unbelievable but true.  Granite is an igneous rock made up of molten lava, comprised of the minerals quartz, mica, and feldspar.  It is the composition and varying amounts of these minerals that give granite its unique look and varying colours.

Granite has been naturally formed by a process of immense heat and pressure under the earth’s surface, and then the lava solidifies very slowly which eventually becomes exposed to the natural elements of the atmosphere.  This process does not occur in a controlled situation e.g. in a laboratory and therefore when the stone cools down, the makeup will be different throughout the stone.

Extracting the Granite

To extract the granite from a quarry, digging, cutting and blasting techniques are used. Granite quarries can be huge and the excavation of the granite can go very deep. The mining process involves a great deal of man power and specialist equipment in order to mine and move the massive pieces of granite from the earth.

Once the granite is removed from the earth it needs to be cut into manageable size blocks for storage and transport.  Usually the blocks are sent to Italy by ship where they are cut using huge saws to create the smaller slabs.

The thickness of the slabs cut can vary on the intended use of the stone.  For example a granite kitchen worktop would usually be cut 30mm thick, whereas an upstand or splashback would be 20mm thick and granite tiles can be as thin as 10mm. Once cut one side of the slabs are polished by using a combination of grinding and polishing machinery and finally the slabs are ready for shipment to the wholesalers around the world.

The slabs are sold to fabricators where they can then be cut down further to the appropriate size for kitchen worktops, and bathroom vanity tops.

When Choosing Granite

Black absolute, of all the granites has the tightest grain formation in its makeup, and therefore weighs the heaviest, where as with different granites, the grain formation is coarse.  We always choose premium grade stone.

You must understand granite is a material which is not consistent in colour, and pattern which can have natural veins, pitting, possibly very small holes and occasional marks which appear to be small cracks on the surface, but are natural occurrences in its formation.  Never the less granite is the preferred choice by millions, even for those, who unfortunately cannot afford to have granite.

For these reasons when choosing granite you have to be sympathetic and understanding, otherwise granite should not be the preferred choice for a kitchen worktop.  Diamonds are formed in a similar way to granite and its value is measured not only by the carat but by the clarity and the amount of natural so called flaws found under a microscope.  Even diamonds have natural markings. No diamond is absolutely perfect.
 
We have commissioned over 2500 worktops for clients over the years  Customers understand that granite is natural and can have natural markings.  All our customers are very important to us, as most of our work is through recommendation, so we cannot afford to provide our clients with inferior products and workmanship.  “What I would not except in my home I would not offer to my clients“, this you can be rest assured, and I am fussy.
Granite Samples - We can send you a sample of any of our granite products depending on availability for you to have a look at. We do have to charge £3.00 for any single sample or £5 for 2 or 3 samples in order to cover the postage costs and this is available to mainland UK deliveries only.
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