Thanks so much. I'll find out about the Breton tech.

As for hot pads/trivets - I can deal with that. It's the staining that I worry about most - especially going from black to pretty much white.

Can you post a photo of your current kitchen and what you plan to change? Maybe you could keep your granite and change the backsplash.

I've had Caesarstone for a few months now. Went in in September, I believe. I don't put hot pans directly on it. Cleans up very easily. I do have some small gouges from when I dropped some ironstone strays, which shattered on the counter & left marks.

Thanks...

Lots of people talk about a scratch test - so I'll see if I can do that.

Navy Momma - I'm all in for new counters. :)

A scratch and stain test is for quartzite. Quartz won't scratch or stain in normal use. You might want to look into quartzite if you can't refrain from putting hot pots on a counter, but any counter can crack from thermal shock.

You can't clean quartz with abrasives--it will take the shine off. Just clean with mild cleansers. If you get a stain, which I've only seen mentioned on pure white quartzes, use Soft Scrub Gel with Bleach. That is the only approved stain remover for most quartz manufacturers.

I follow quartz posts pretty closely and have never heard of Difiniti. If it's Chinese, chances are it's not a Breton product. They've only authorized a few Chinese companies to use their technology. You can check on Breton's website if you know the manufacturer's name, not the trade name of the product. I'm not sure anyone knows how the Chinese manufacture their quartz. Ask more questions of your designer.

I will find out this week. Google doesn't tell me anything about where Difiniti is made.

I'd raise an eyebrow about the non-staining claims. We didn't dry the bottom of a cast iron pan and it left a nasty rust spot on the grey counter of the rental we're living in while our house is being renovated. I think the counter is Ikea quartz. I scrubbed at it initially and over many weeks and, while it's barely visible, I know where to look and can still see it. If the counters were white it'd be much more obvious. Other things have wiped off easily though--espresso drips, smushed blueberries, etc.

I've had Cambria quartz (Torquay) for nearly a year. I like it very much. It is very durable, but vulnerable to chipping if you hit an edge and I suspect could be damaged if something heavy were dropped on it at the right angle. I don't baby my countertop but I do use care when handling cast iron or heavy

I have had no staining from the usual suspects (wine, mustard, ketchup, turmeric, etc).

I never put hot pots and pans on any countertop without protection, so I can't speak to that effect. I keep a heat resistant corning glass shield under my toaster oven to protect the surface from excess heat.

Upkeep is easy. No sealing. I use a soapy sponge as needed to clean the counter, never abrasive cleansers or scrubbies.

I believe there are differences in quality among manufacturers. As noted above, I think you should only consider those using the Breton technology.

There have been some complaints about resin splotches in quartz patterns with movement. Although Torquay is very light and doesn't have much pattern/movement, I picked my slab to ensure there were no "bad" spots to be worked around.

You can stain quartz. It isn't easy, but it can be done.

I tried hard, and couldn't do it. (Ceasarstone organic white).