Hi Tom,
I just installed Emeral pearl granite on my kitchen countertop and my vanity. I am very concern because I hired an installer using pre-fabricated granite to do the job. (Only the island used a big slab).

Not only was I dissatisfied with how the installer joint/connect each pieces, I saw lots of scratches and layers of grouts material (I am not sure what it’s called, it is the material than joint one piece of granite to the other).

Can you please help my with my questions:
1. Do you know of a brand product that could prevent scratches or make scratches go away?
2. How do I prevent future scratches or damage to the granite?
3. Is Emeral pearl granite toxic/dangerous for babies?
4. Will sealant help with scratch/damage to granite? What brand of sealang and cleaning product should I use?
5. How do I get the layers of grout material away from my granite? 6. Do you have any recommendations how I could enjoy the beauty of my granite? I am sorry if I overwhelm you with my questions. I am very sad of this matter because I had spend a lot of money to install them in my kitchen and all my bathrooms countertop. Also, at the time of installation, I saw the installer use a small piece of blade to clean the glue like grout. Is this normal?

Thank you for your time to read my email and respond to all my questions.

Sincerely,
Caroline

Hello Caroline,

Sorry to hear about your troubles. Emerald Pearl can only scratch if impacted with a harder material. Even a knife will not scratch it unless you really give it a lot of force. Your granite was scratched during mishandling during fabrication or at the quarry overseas. You don’t have to worry about scratching in again with normal use.

Be sure to apply a coat of granite sealer. I recommend a product by Safestone International. You can buy a small bottle from HomeGranite on Ebay. See my article on granite sealer and maintenance. This might make the scratches less noticeable but,most likely, it will not change it much. There is no easy way to remove the scratches from the countertop surface.

The material between the joint is polyester epoxy. It should be clean and smooth to the touch if installed properly. You will need an experienced granite installer to redo the joints. The granite is non-toxic to your children. Sorry to confirm that your troubles are real. Try the sealer first and see if that help.

Best wishes,
Tom Cordova

This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 13th, 2006 at 9:59 am and is filed under Answers to Granite Questions..., Maintenance Help, Sealer Questions. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.