Quartz resin quality differences

by **MikeC** on Mon Jun 11, 2007 8:07 am

Hi,

I've been looking at quartz resin worktops, and I am wondering if there are different 'grades'?
I have a sample of Arena Stone, that appears to have lots of small 'pits' in the surface, whereas a Luxore worktop I looked at didn't appear to have any!
Is this because Arena Stone is a cheaper, substandard, product, and Luxore a 'better' option, or is it just luck of the draw?
Are quartz resin worktops prone to these small pits?
I was told by the Arena Stone salesman that these are normal, and are evident in all their 'slabs' when viewed in natural light.
The Luxore salesman on the other hand told me that the surface should be 'perfect'.
With salesman being the breed they are (apologise to any 'salesmen' reading this), I thought I'd ask a professional for advice.

Thanks,
Mike.

by **timfoley** on Tue Jun 12, 2007 4:02 pm

Well Mike, firstly, thanks for joining our forum and thank you for posing such an interesting question, my answer to which I hope you find useful.

To begin with, all quartz surfaces are manufactured using the same process, originating from Italy and produced on a what is known as a Breton Machine after the company who makes it.
Engineered stone is manufactured by a number of companies and marketed by thier own brand name such as Silestone from Cosentino in Spain, Compac, another Spanish company, Technistone of the Czech Republic, Caesarstone from Israel, Arenastone, imported into the UK from Italy and Zodiaq from Dupont, the makers of Corian. Luxore is the trade name given to a Quartz distributed by a UK distributor/fabricator who again import this from abroad.

The properties of each stone are no different, aside from Silestone which incorporates Microban throughout the core of it's range and the only other distinguishing factor between all the stones are the colour pigments used in the manufacturing process. The most popular of these colours, certainly from the quote requests we receive, is the Black with Mirror flecks which, from our own range. we have called Spectrum Black yet is known as Stellar Negro under the Silestone banner, Diamond Black from Luxore and Azabache from Compac.

To offer you a greater insight here, Luxore is one of a number of titles for Quartz surfaces offered by UK distributors and as no quartz surface is actually manufactured here in the UK, the slabs are all imported from abroad.Arenastone is another example as is our own Prestige Quartz - http://www.kitchensfitted.co.uk/SolidSurfaces/prestige_quartz.php
The slabs are then machined to suit your project by one of a number of UK fabricators, many of whom offer templating and installation services as we do.

As with any man made product imperfactions can be present throughout the process and it seems that the quality control employees maybe at fault in your own case for allowing a flawed slab to be used for sample purposes. Not the best advertisement for a product but more a reflection on quality control than on the product itself.

It is a salesperson's role to tell you that his product is the best there is and I find it difficult to comprehend why a number of salespeople call me stating the same, forgetting that when they worked for a rival some six moths earlier they were spinning the same tale. Our role here has always been to present the facts and offer products we believe offer the consumer good value for money, so I can say without doubt that our own Prestige quartz surface is no better than any of the others available nor is it inferior. What you must consider when choosing is the price, the warranty and the available lead times and that has been the criteria in our choice of surface.

I hope this helps in making your decision a little more informed.

Tim

Quartz resin quality differences

Quartz resin quality differences

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