Kitchen Concrete Countertops

HIGHLIGHTS:
Material definition: Simple mixture of cement, aggregate (often sand) and water. Tips for Selection: Since large amounts of energy are required for transport, look for a local fabricator. Use fly ash as a substitute for cement (at least 30%).
Advantages:

1. highly durable
2. easy to clean
3. no offgasing
4. recyclable as slab or crushed aggregate

Disadvantages:

1. high embodied energy for manufacture of cement
2. requires sealant to avoid stains
3. dust during installation

Average Material Cost: $60 to $75 per square foot

OVERVIEW on Kitchen Countertops: The kitchen is one of the most important rooms in your home, and the right choice for kitchen countertops is key to the successful execution and ongoing use of the space. Now more than ever, you can choose from a diverse range of kitchen counter materials. For each aspect of home design and remodeling you can also strive to make choices that are 1) Functional, 2) Stylish, 3) Cost-Effective, and 4) Environmentally Sustainable. These are the four key guiding principles in the GREENandSAVE strategy. You will find that in certain cases, one or two of the criteria take precedent over others. However, as you review the home improvement options that are right for your home, you may be surprised to learn that reaching all four is more achievable than you thought.

Selection Tip: In choosing a kitchen countertop material make sure to think through its integration with your kitchen cabinets, appliances, and the backsplash that will work best for your design and installation. Solid surface and natural stone materials typically need to be precut prior to installation versus tiles that can be cut and set right on the job site. Kitchen countertop backsplashes sometimes look great when they match the countertop material, but you can alternatively enhance the countertop material by choosing a different tile to run from the top edge of the counter all of the way up to the underside of the head cabinet. If you decide on the tiles, also take care in choosing the right color grout and look for new tile grouts that are stain resistant.

DETAILS on Kitchen Concrete Countertops:
If you ever thought that a kitchen remodeling project would not involve concrete…think again! Most people only think of concrete in terms of buildings and sidewalks, but when this amazingly versatile material is used to make a kitchen countertop, the result for your kitchen design could not be more different.

A concrete countertop is thin and graceful, not thick and clunky. It's pigmented, and the finish surface is smooth to the touch and polished to a low sheen. What a concrete countertop would look like in your newly-remodeled kitchen, however, will depend on who makes it. There are no industry-wide standards to which a fabricator must conform, and no two fabricators make it in the same way.

If you could see a large piece by each of these fabricators, you would also note another characteristic of this type of countertop - the color and texture will vary within each piece, and no two countertops are identical, even when made by the same person.

This wonderfully versatile material, however, does have a downside. Over time concrete countertops may develop tiny hairline cracks. These will not affect the structural integrity of the countertops, but many people who are remodeling their kitchens find them disconcerting. Concrete is porous and stains badly if left unsealed, and no perfect sealer exists.

Concrete counters can be stained and glazed to nearly any color, so coloring is not an issue. They typically come in between 1 1/2- 2 inches depending on your preferences. Despite popular opinion, concrete weighs about the same per square foot as granite. There are special sealers and coatings that seal out all possible stains and colors that you do not want.

The real advantage with these counters is that they are new. Everyone has been so tunnel-visioned on granite for so long that nothing else would do. The problem now is that you can't find a home that doesn't have the same counter top as every other home. Pretty soon granite will be just as dull as people think laminate is now, if only because everyone will have it.

Concrete counters are the now. They have been out long enough to amend the early problems, but not long enough that you see them everywhere. The materials and process are fairly inexpensive so the counter itself is not the costly venture of other solid stone materials.

Then there is the cost to consider. Although the raw ingredients for concrete are relatively inexpensive, creating a concrete kitchen countertop is a very labor-intensive activity. The cost per running foot of counter from fabricators ranges from about $170 to $225. This is comparable to the more expensive granites, and more expensive than a solid surface material such as Corian.

So, if remodeling your kitchen is in your future, take a look at the idea of a concrete countertop as a possible showpiece that sets the most important room in your house apart from your neighbors’ next door!

GREEN Considerations: One of the most environmentally beneficial ways to use concrete is to incorporate fly ash because it is a waste byproduct derived from burning coal. Fly ash is a valuable additive that makes concrete stronger, more durable and easier to work with.

Fly ash aids the formation of cementitious compounds to enhance the strength, impermeability and durability of concrete.

Two main classes of fly ash are used in concrete, Class F, and Class C.

Class F: Reduces bleeding and segregation in plastic concrete. In hardened concrete, increases ultimate strength, reduces drying shrinkage and permeability, lowers heat of hydration and reduces creep.

Class C: Provides unique self-hardening characteristics and improves permeability. Especially useful in pre-stressed concrete and other applications where high early strengths are required. Also useful in soil stabilization.

Also consider looking into:

1. Composite quartz
2. Alkemi
3. Eleek Metal Tiles
4. Fire Clay Tiles
5. Oceanside Glasstile
6. Enviro Glass