I think you might be ok with light color - I have dark and as a cook, it's a complete disaster. Pental knows of this problem for sure. I couldn't be more unhappy with my counter but I do think it's because it's darker.

I thought Taj Mahal was quartzite (natural stone) but I could be wrong. Quartz and quartzite are very different as Quartz is manmade. I believe Jospeh will have some feedback on this for you.

Hawaiijen- yes. Taj Mahal is in fact quartzite but one of Pental quartz man made color is also called Taj Mahal.

I've been looking at kitchen counter tops for 2 years and have considered everything from marble to quartz, to porcelain and quartzite and granite and now back to quartz. It seems like every one of these products has some sort of fault. I'm now considering Pentel "Misterio" for my kitchen counter tops. I selected this because I love the look of marble but don't want the hassle of maintenance that seems to come with it. Does anyone have experience with Misterio?

Mine is pental Grigio polished and has been a disastrous choice. It's not just the product you should consider but also how a manufacturer responds to problems. If you don't cook, don't have children, or aren't moderately concerned with appearance, it's fine. I'm stuck with mine.....

People seem to complain here on Houzz a whole lot about Pental Quartz. We wanted marble without the maintenance and went with LG viatera Rococo. We've had them for about 2 months now and couldn't love them more! It looks so much like carrara and doesn't show anything. No fingerprints or smudges. We are so happy with it!

Stay away from ColorQuartz. We are ready to rip out our concrete color quartz counter tops. The finish has flaked off and pitted. It also chips and scratches too easily. We have been overly protective of the tops, We do not cut on it, place hot pans or trays. Our CeasarStone White Quartz on our Island has held up great and gets used a lot more.

When we wipe them up they get hazy and cloudy.

We had the installing company out with the Rep for ColorQuartz. The rep to my face told me that we are too hard on and abuse our kitchen! Really!! People walk into our kitchen and ask us if we even cook in it!!

Follow up on my Quartz countertop. It developed a crack all the way through at an inside corner by the lazy Susan. The installing company replaced the counter and stated that they had never seen anything like that and that the inside cut may be a weak spot. I'm very happy with the company and have bought granite for other houses we have owned. However, I think I will stick with granite should we every need another counter.

Inside corners on quartz need to be radius, not 90 degree straight cuts. The only way to get around that is to put a seam at the corner.

bcalhoun10, That's horrible it developed a crack. My quartz is only on the island so there are no seams. When they replaced your countertop..did they replace everything or just one section and matched it to the other counters? When I had mine replaced due to resin pooling the new countertop didn't match the breadboard that they made me from the first countertop. The new one was whiter. I actually like it better but realized they may not always match if a piece has to be replaced.

Has anyone used Ceasarstone? I'm seriously considering Ceasarstone Pebble #4030, honed.

@foreverhouse...it was a huge slab that also had a seam by the sink. They took away the whole thing to make sure it would match. It looks great. While doing a little research on quartz cracking, numerous people mentioned that you should not use appliances that may heat up the counter for prolonged amount of time, such as crock pots and sandwich grills. Good to know....but they should warn the consumers of that.

Hi, have you considered "bianco macabous quartzite"? It's a Brazilian quart that looks a lot like marble but with more alongated veins. It's as strong as granite, if not more but beautiful like marble. Another option would be ceasarstone "statuario maximum" or "statuario nuvo" both look vey much like marble. Good luck

bcalhoun10, I do remember reading about that..I forgot all about it. I think people that leave their laptops had a problem with quartz. I use an iPad that's in a case so I don't worry about that. I have a type of marble in my other house and I use a thick cutting board underneath when I use my slow cooker..which is not very often.

Re laptops, one shouldn't leave them flat on any surface, quartz or otherwise. Heat build-up shortens life. I always have something at rear of mine that lifts it 1/4" or so for air circulation. We have Cambria. We use toaster daily & wife uses crockpot several times/mo. Both have feet that keep bottom surface well off countertop. No problems in 2+ yes.

I use my Nesco Roaster about once per week and it has not bothered my Cambria. It is on feet and does not generate a lot of heat below, I guess. My toaster is incorporated in my oven, so I don't have a counter top one!!

1. "Natural stone surfaces can be damaged by sudden and/or rapid change of temperature, especially near the edges, as well as direct and/or sustained heating of the top. Cambria may not withstand the direct transfer of heat from pots and pans and other cooking units such as electric frying pans and griddles, slow cookers, roaster ovens, and heat lamps. Therefore, the use of a closed-weave hot pad or solid trivet like a bread board is always recommended to prevent heating the product."....from Cambria's warranty page.

Love my quartz marble counters. I had a very lightly veined slab and some of the resin (holding the stone together) rose to give what looked like a tea -stain. The contractor immediately replaced it. Love love it

I am trying to decide what to put in our kitchen. I had decided on Cambria Quartz in a lighter color. I had black granite and it was horrible to keep clean. I wish I had a dollar for every time I had to wipe and re wipe those countertops. Lol. I read this entire thread tonight and now I am just confused again. I wanted the look of marble but not marble. Also we are adding 2 baths in this remodel. I was not even to the point of thinking of those countertops. Do folks usually use the same as what is in the kitchen? Color me overwhelmed.

DamBlues, we are using same Cambria quartz in our family room bath remodel that we used in our K reno, but the vanity cabinets are different to add a little variety. That isn't b/c of some grand design, but during our K reno we'd originally planned on using the same quartz on the hutch, but switched it to a wooden countertop. Thus we had extra quartz we're now using in the bathroom.

We are very happy with Carrera Grigio, looks beautiful!

We have dark PentalQuartz, matte finish. It is hard to clean. I have to make several passes, first with sponge and then with paper towels. Even then, it never looks that good. We got this to replace Formica, which frankly was better.

I just love my white quartz counter tops, though soft scrub with bleach has become my best friend. They are difficult to keep from getting stained...though the stains come right off with the soft scrub. I have not had sunlight (or humidity) issues and they are constantly exposed to both (being in SW Florida). Even though they are much more high maintenance than my concrete countertops, I wouldn't trade them, because of how they look.

Kelly, I have quartz countertops and have had red kool aid stand on a countertop over night. I have NEVER had a stain, etch or anything like that. Are you sure they are quartz and not quartzite?

@Elizabeth Gardner are you still liking the Carrara Grigio? That is what the counter top guy suggested to me. This has been a horrible addition/remodel. Our builder and friend became very ill and passed away so we are way behind schedule and have a new builder assisting us. The budget did not include the Cambria, even though that was what I had indicated I wanted. Trying to figure out if I can handle the additional costs of the Cambria. UGH

We are thinking of Pental Quartz in the bathroom, including the shower walls. In a light color. I have heard pros and cons on this product, but I am wondering if it is just the dark colors. I have black granite in the kitchen and it is a real pain to keep clean, so I am hoping that it is not Pental. I prefer their colors. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

The Pental product spots easily and is difficult to clean. Much better products available. I've never regretted a selection more.

We have now lived with our new quartz countertops for a couple of weeks and am shocked at the level of care they take. They look fine if your looking straight down on them. But if you look at a angle you can see wipe marks. Kind of like etching on marble. You see it in a certain light and at a certain angle only. Plus a lot of imperfections. Or it’s just simply damage from shipping and or handling of them. It’s a bit of a process every time you wipe them though and I was not prepared for that at all because of the “carefree “ reputation they have. So wished I had just gone with marble as the level of care seems similar but the wear is more natural looking. Regrets.....

Sorry. I've found them to be the worst possible product.

@ldecor54 I’m so sorry to hear about your experience. We have LG quartz and haven’t had any issues at all! It’s the most low maintenance thing in my house. But ours are white with grey veining and looks like Carrara marble. So maybe smudges just blend in. What color is your quartz and who makes it? It shouldn’t have a lot of imperfections either. You may want to reach out to your fabricator and ask them why your quartz has damage like that.

Yea, as I posted earlier, we've had our Cambria 3 yrs. now & my wife still talks about how much she loves it.

Idecor54:

They this, please.

Bruce, we have had our Cambria Bellingham for 2.5 years now! I can't believe it. I still love my counter tops! Not one single problem. No stains, no smudges, no streaks, no chips!!

Idecor54, I am sorry you are having so much trouble. You need to get with your installer and find out the problem so they can fix it.

I’m the original poster..I purchased the MSI Carrara Grigio that looks like marble. My original slab had a white spot of resin pooling that my fabricator replaced with a new one. I’ve had enough time with it to say I’m still happy with it. It looks brand new with no problems whatsoever. I feel bad for the people that are having problems with theirs. I just had Thanksgiving here and the counter was a mess during the prep. I gave it a wash afterwards and it cleaned up perfectly.

I have dupont zodiaq London sky which is a white/grey marble look. I’ll be calling the contractor Monday as everyone has advised. Can’t imagine going thru the replacement process since we just got back into our kitchen after four months. But I know I can’t complain without being prepared to do what’s necessary. Fingers crossed and thanks everyone for confirming that quartz should not be high maintenance.

Joseph corlett: what??

I think he meant try this and click on the link.

Thank you kathi

"Joseph corlett: what??"

Google "Magic Countertop Cleaner" please.

Thank you Joseph will do

Read my YELP on Ceaserstone counters. NEVER choose a dark color of quartz. Every crumb and fingerprint shows and we clean our "deep ocean" quartz about 20 times a day. Also, every scratch shows up white!!! I dropped a knife on it and it chipped. My husband tried to open a spice bottle by tapping on the lid while it sat on the counter and lots of little white flecks showed up under the bottle. The reps were supposed to come and fix it but never showed up. No matter what anyone says, Quartz does not hold up like granite, or maybe it is just Ceaserstone!

After reading the pros and cons and considering the price, I went with large porcelain tiles that look like charcoal grey slate. I am very happy. Thank you so much for all your help.

I had posted earlier about smudges and water stains on my white quartz. I have found that a wiping them down with some diluted white vinegar removes any stains or smudges. Very happy with them now.

Hi Lovetodecorate..

Granite and quartz are very different in looks. Quartz has a more consistent pattern since it is engineered. Granite is more random and sometimes more of a surprise once you get it home and installed. Happy remodeling!

Granite

Quartz

We have white quartz and absolutely LOVE it...it was costly but so worth it. Easy clean and look s beautiful. I am very much done with granite. IF i redo my bathrooms I am doing white quartz as well.

Lindylou2 did you choose the Pental Misterio quartz for your countertops? I’m looking for quartz and liked the color.

For Pental Quartz counter problems: were they "polished" or "honed"? I've "heard" the honed are miserable, but the polished work very well.

Miserable! That’s the right word.

I love my ocean jasper quartz countertops! Have had them almost a year now. Easy to maintain.

Here is our two cents on How To Choose The Perfect Quartz Countertop For Your Home?