Granite, quartz and marble counters, along with many other natural stones, have pre-set slab sizes. Most slabs are 9 feet by 5 feet, although you can certainly customize marble counters to be much larger, assuming natural stone exists at such a size. However, most homeowners prefer to stick with industry standard sizes in order to avoid high custom-size costs.
Does this mean you’re doomed to have a kitchen or bathroom featuring marble counters with obvious seams?
So-called “invisible seams” are possible, but you need the right marble counters and marble installation team to pull them off. Keep in mind that marble or any natural stone that doesn’t have a lot of design and color variance may be easier to match. It’s going to be nearly impossible to seamlessly match marble counter slabs featuring elaborate whorls, swirls and color changes.
Marble Counter Magnificence
A quality marble counter installation team will cut the first slab and hang it beside the next to make sure the seams and designs align. Common seam matching problems include veins that don’t meet, chips resulting from a subpar cut, an “out of square” cut approach, incorrect adhesive colors and slabs that aren’t close enough together.
Unfortunately, poor seam alignment is a somewhat common complaint, and that’s just from homeowners who speak up and know what seamless really looks like. In an era of gourmet, plus-sized kitchens, it’s pretty tough to rely on just one slab to make up each counter. Homeowners deserve a seamless look for their investment.
Seams Perfect
If two slabs don’t naturally match and colors don’t overlap through the seam, you can’t achieve a seamless look. Luckily, color and vein matching can be done with state-of-the art technology, and some traditionalists can match slabs in shops. Some marble counter installation pros rely on the latest technology to save time, but the equipment is expensive and a manual approach is still the most common, which is why you need a reputable marble counter installation crew with experience.
All tiny chips must be eliminated to achieve a flawless, straight seam edge. Your marble counter crew might dress seams on a CNC machine, they might glue special strips onto the seams before cutting to stop chipping, or they sometimes back-bevel and manually dress seams with a resin pad.
Slabs have to be leveled to avoid peaks and dips in the seam. Marble counters that aren’t flat will have seam deflections, which is sure to drive homeowners batty.
Finally, the right adhesive for seam gluing is a must. A top polish is the finishing touch, and something not all marble counter installation teams provide.
As you can see, while it’s technically possible to install marble counters yourself, to get the best and results, you need the skill, tools and experience of an expert.
Call Intermountain Stone and Marble today to get your new marble counters — and a seamless result.
