I wouldn't call it a nanny cam. It is my Nikon that I set to 2 minute shots when workers are there. They are aware. My hope is to make a fun time lapse video of the transformation. Some days I forgot to turn it one. Some days I was at work and didn't know they would be there doing something, so it isn't 100%. There was a long period of cabinet painting (drama there) and the place was Dexterized, so not much painting footage I would guess as there was a sheet of plastic up and between the kitchen and camera. I haven't looked at the shots yet. It may not work - but I will share if it does.

So it's possibly okay if you oil? And what if that was not your intent?

I would demand they replace it with a new one without a crack.

Good luck getting this resolved to your satisfaction.

If you accept this, It's quite possible, if not probable, that you'll be kicking yourself down the road. :-/

Just hate to see you go thru this needlessly.

Oh, nightowl, we now know better than to ever mess with you! That's going to be a fun video. And I've been thinking the dun, dun, dun in my head when I say or write The Crack. How does one not? LOL.

During this whole house remodel, we're staying next door in my parents' granny unit at my sister's. I pop in unannounced several times a day, camera in hand. As I did during the soapstone install. On more than one occasion, this has resulted in pained expressions and reluctant admissions--the wrong furnace installed, for example. Vigilance is good.

Linelle, the soapstone company agrees that not being able to leave the stone unoiled is the biggest problem. I never planned to oil it beyond once or twice to see what it looks like. We have an appointment to look at it together on Feb 4, which is kind of a long time, but still okay with our schedule. We're at least six weeks away from a completed house. Designsaavy, I hear you. Kicking myself down the road is a major factor. I don't think there's anything they can do that will make this look unbroken, and I've said as much. They've asked if they can try. I'll allow them that. And I paid with a credit card, so I have some leverage.

Respectfully, I don't think the folks who wrote the article in the link that snookums2 linked to know exactly of which they speak.

They never specify the importance of using stainless steel or fiberglas for rodding over cold steel which should never be used. If water penetrates through an unsealed top or through a leaking sink flange, the consequences of the rusting rodcan be catastrophic. That is if you think paying me $800.00-$1,600.00 to repair the top and having a visible line is a catastrophe.

Polyester is not an appropriate rodding adhesive; it is not water resistant enough. I've had to re-adhere front edge build ups that were fabricated with polyester on sink repair jobs.

Rodding is old school and obsolete. Properly installed stone gets all the strength in tension it needs from properly installed cabinets and a mechanically strapped sink. Mechanical supports assure safe stone transport until the cabinets take over, negating the need for rodding.

Their ad shows Centerline Brackets which are steel on the flat. I'm not a fan; they are nearly useless.

"Rodding takes time but adds very little to the granite cost" Nonsense. It is a waste of time and material that customers have to pay for in order for the fabricator to stay in business.

Rodding is not appropriate for tombstone repairs. If the vandals come back you want the stone to fracture again, not blow up when the rods poke through. That's from a tombstone repairman that I interviewed.

The only point I was noting from that site was that they said rods should not be used to make repairs. That is, for the OP to pursue whether that is true or not since their contractor repaired the break using a rod - and to find out what type metal was used, ie, rust potential (prior post).

"Note that they say a rod is not acceptable for repairs. I would ask them why and find out if MIA considers it acceptable.

"Even after the countertop is installed, rodding will help protect weak areas from breakage caused by cabinets settling, or by misuse of your countertops (standing on them).

Caution: It is not appropriate to use a rodding technique for granite repair. To fix granite that has broken by inserting rods is simply a bad idea."

"

They never say why rodding a repair is a bad idea, they just say it is so. I substantiate what I say.

Standing on countertops is not customer abuse. You and your drunken friends can dance a Conga line across any top I've ever installed. If it breaks, I'll buy you a new top of your choice.

"They never say why rodding a repair is a bad idea, they just say it is so."

I realize that. That's why I suggested she pursue the notation on their website by asking them and also checking with the MIA (or any other appropriate organization).

The fact that they needed to use a rod to repair the crack tells me enough that it's unacceptable. No way would I accept that in my expensive soapstone. I don't know why they are waiting until Feb 4th except maybe they are hoping you'll change your mind by then. (The thinking being that as we get used to seeing something, it doesn't bother us as much.) Do not give in on this. That is not acceptable and uncoiled it looks bad.

I agree with cpartist. Don't give in on this! They are hoping you'll get used to it and accept it. You are not being unreasonable. You paid good money, so make them do it right. For me, it wouldn't even be an option to accept that.

I won't get used to this. As the oil evaporates, the rest of the stone looks great and The Crack looks worse and worse. There it is, in one of the most conspicuous areas screaming, "$$$ for THIS?" The installer can lollygag all he wants. Time strengthens my resolve and familiarity breeds contempt for ... dun-dun-dun, The Crack.

Personally, I would press to get it out sooner rather than this Feb 4 meeting silliness. All the sooner a new stone can be found and fabricated. Perhaps by a different fabricator?

A family member of mine had a similar thing happen. Fabricator dragged it out. She finally made a small claims court complaint and prevailed. Was pretty simple. Of course, there isn't a cash register to pay out at court, so she still had to pursue payment. I think ultimately they allowed the guy to replace rather than pay as it was probably cheaper for him and they just wanted a crackless counter.

I called my credit card company to see if there's any time constraint for disputing a charge. There isn't, and the delay with the installer is consistent with the scheduling framework they've used since the beginning of contact last summer. As to matching the slab, the other big soapstone company in my area didn't have the Virginia material. My installer told me from the beginning their supply was erratic, but they do carry it.

I can live with small differences in the stone. Most of the Alberene Churchill I've seen is similar, varying primarily in veining, but since I like this stone even without many veins, I could live without a perfect match. The big farm sink lies between this slab and the next one, so it wouldn't be smack up against any other slab, except for behind the faucet and under the window sill.

We wanted this particular stone because my husband's family comes from near the quarry. Sentiment was also a factor (not the biggest one) in choosing the Blue Star rangetop over the other contenders, as BS is out of Reading, PA, where the other side of DH's family is from. I'm the cook, but DH likes the idea of having family connections to support him as he cleans up.

Glad you're getting angry and determined now. You are right to. I'd strike while the iron is hot so to speak, while you're feeling like this and ask for a meeting next week and not wait till Feb. .

I spoke to a guy from Green Mountain Soapstone at the surface show in Vegas today and told him about this. He says the harder soapstones repair with epoxy nicely, but the softer ones get chips that look funny when filled. That looks like the case here.

Thanks, Joe, for asking for me. Albarene Churchill is supposed to be one of the harder soapstones. If it's not ... gah.

Mystery Solved. (dun, dun, dun). At 1:24 no dent. At 1:26 "The Dent" (dun, dun,dun) The Likely Culprit :blue hat. The likely mechanism of injury: cement board. Note smudge on front left 1/3 of hood in photo 2. It was the finger smudge that drew my attention to it. Likely scenario - Blue hat brings in the cement board, whacks the hood while placing it on the floor under the hood, says to self "oh no," and then feels to see if there is a dent.

Book him, nightowl.

Are they using the counters as ladders?

Yep! Already discussed!!!

Just WOW. Can't believe they're standing on the counter. So, I guess the ceiling wasn't painted before the island was installed.

The ceiling was painted. Guy was putting the lights back up.

That's fantastic that you have pictures. We tried to do a time-lapse but our contractor was super self conscious and him trying to dodge the camera was affecting his work.

My soapstone installers used epoxy on the seams and some contraption to pull the ends tightly together. The seams are barely visible and only on close inspection. Some of them can't be felt ; that is independent of being seen which is more a function of the epoxy color. I think you are saying that the seam is much more visible than in these pictures (I could not see the fixed seam in your pictures until I went back and forth a few times). If not, depending on the support underneath your drainboard, if they use those clamps, I don't know how it is different structurally than a seam. If someone stood on the countertop and cracked it that is one thing, but if it was cracked in transport that is another and can probably be adequately fixed and structurally sound with the right support underneath. If you are having difficulty finding matching slabs, maybe you can get a small settlement from your company for the crack and turn lemons into lemonade. Certainly getting a new slab is preferable but having a mismatch may be worse than a barely visible Crack that will be covered up with dishes most of the time. Epoxy seams are done around sinks all the time and leakage is not usually an issue.

I guess I should have expanded the pic. I thought he had a paint brush in hand. :-/ Good for you that you have those pics.

scrappy25, here's a picture of The Crack taken yesterday. It's not an intentional seam. As the oil evaporates, it's more and more visible. I hate it more every day, but I have another week until they come back. Fortunately, the timing on that turns out to work okay with the rest of the schedule.

Algeasea, only you can determine if replacing that is worth any possible mismatch on the new seam end and the extra searching and delay. There are several warts in my kitchen that I chose to live with and some that I insisted be fixed. Some of the fixes caused other warts. One year later I don't notice any of the warts anymore but just enjoy the kitchen.

One thing you should not compromise on is function so the structural stability is key.

Wishing you a good resolution that makes you happy!

Horrifying, but what kind of ladder would be used to work in that area or change the bulbs?

My first instinct was....absolutely no. Do not accept this. For me the issue is that replacing the stone down the line, should the need arise, plays havoc with your backsplash tile and is just a huge pain. Plus you're paying for their mistake. But when it comes to counters I basically do whatever treb says.... I'm happy you got a great resolution. Sounds like you're working with good people. Although they should have brought this to your attention and not the other way around.

By the way, where are you located? I'll take your broken piece! I'm in Cleveland!

eam44, I'm in the SF Bay Area. I'll ask the installers to ship it to you. LOL. It's a big enough piece, maybe seven feet long, they could cut off the broken part and still use it for something.

Even if the crack were so thin and tight making it negligible, and even if the repair happens to be strong enough and the rod won't rust, soapstone is a living finish - its coloration is a dynamic variable. The epoxy color won't change. It was tinted black.

OP is also up in the air whether they prefer the stone light or dark. That would no longer be an option and a lot of maintenance would be necessary to keep the stone dark day to day.

It looks like a crack, not a seam.

re: how to work in the ceiling area or change bulbs over the island.

- I was advised the lights would be up before the island top was placed. I was assured again that would happen when I noted the timing of things didn't make sense. (in retrospect, I was assured of more things that didn't happen... anyway) I have in an email the GC stated his guys wouldn't stand on the island. So, if it had broken, I would guess it would have been on them. But, luckily all's well that ends well.

- light bulbs - my 6'4" husband had no problem with that.

Hmm does your gc guys work for my painter too? Mine swears they always just drop cloths and bring ladders.... And yet I can spend hours popping off paint drops from brand new granite and appliances. Plus the cooktop his guys dented while standing on it.... But he is the bosses brother so it must be me right

One has to wonder why they don't worry or care about damaging property.

We had an electrician on site today. When I walked in, he was on a ladder. When I checked back later, I found this on the counter:

It's bad enough standing on counters even in socks but what a nerve doing this with work boots. I guess these guys don't get nervous that something could happen to the counter never mind how filthy and gross the bottom of shoes are.

Ug. Cracks and feet. Now it really has to be replaced.

Is anyone else a serial remodeler enough to remember BayAreaFrancy? I kind of remember her also having more than one post about her CRACK. Her soapstone crack, of course!

Fori-I remember BayAreaFrancy and her soapstone crack. I know she was going back and forth for a long time between where she got her ss and the fabricator as to what caused the crack. I have wondered whatever happened there . . .

A properly installed countertop should bear the weight of a crew without failure.

But that doesn't make it okay to stand on in boots. Gross.

And if you do it anyway at least have the sense to clean it up so the homeowner doesn't find out!

It's like I'm always telling my kids: if you're going to fight, have the sense to do it where I can't hear you.

Update: My soapstone installer returned today. They will be replacing the section of the counter with The Crack and matching it closely to the rest of the stone in my kitchen. It took a while for him to accept that I really am sure I want it replaced. I stayed calm, he talked too loudly but not as aggressively as he did before, and I repeated myself until he got it. My contractor backed me up completely and also kept repeating that The Crack had to go.

Thank you all for your comments and advice. The support and expertise here is amazing.

Make sure that they show you the exact piece they are wanting to use as replacement so you can see if it will match-up with yours......before they cut it for install.

Good luck with a positive resolution

:-)

Update on The Crack: It's gone, though not without some drama. The fabricator scheduled the fix, then called to say, oh, sorry, he had something else he had to do instead, he'd be there four hours later than he's said. Then he emailed my contractor a photo of the slab he wanted to put in and it had another breakhe'd epoxied back together, this time right behind the left side of the sink.

Talk about unclear on the concept.

My contractor called the guy, told him in no way was another crack acceptable, don't come, do it over, and stop with the BS. Then he called the company with the same message (and I know he was professional about it, which I wouldn't have managed).

Two days later they tried again. They sent photos ahead of time for me to approve the new stone. They came on a Saturday and spent five hours taking out the section with The Crack and installing the new one. I stood watching the whole time like an Angel of Doom. Here are the results.

You guys were all so helpful in coaching me through the process of addressing this. Between you all and my contractor, I got the outcome I sought. Now we're on track to get our final inspection this week. Yay!

Congrats & Thanx for the update! Looks great!

I'm glad to read it all worked out.

Gorgeous stone. Glad it worked out well in the end. Thanks for updating this thread, too.

So glad everything turned out well and now you won't have to kick yourself. ;-)

I know, right?

That is gorgeous - GOOD FOR YOU!!!!!

And I want more on Nightowl's time lapse set up.... Do you live close so you turn it on? I am 1/2 hour away - maybe I need to get a wildlife camera?