Her is some info to think about...My mother and I have Kashmir White counter tops. They came from the same yard, installed on the same day, sealed by the same factory. Looked identical. 8 years later, mine is gray and hers is still white. Two differences that I know. I have always used a daily granite cleaner, different brands. She has used windex, even when told by her daughter not too! My kitchen is sunny and her kitchen has very Little direct sun.

@shead how long did you poultice for? im having the same issue too. and how has it held up since?

i am experiencing the issue with darkening. i will try the peroxide poultice thanks Shead!

I didn’t use peroxide poultice. I used an acetone poultice. I left it covered for 24+ hours and then removed the plastic wrap and let air dry.

You will read upthread that my results only lasted a few months even with sealer. We knew by then that we’d be moving within a year so I never tried it again. We sold in July 2018 so I’m not sure what it looks like now.

I have viscount white and same thing has happened I attached pictures

Those dark areas were a lot lighter

Pic 1 and 3 same island 4 yrs later

If Corian would have had this problem, it would have flopped bigly, but somehow the stoners get a pass. I cannot figure this out.

Omg!! My husband asked me to google our problem and I just went ahead thinking I wouldn’t find any info as to why our white Kashmir was darkening... and read this question right away.... not that I found an answer right? Any professional installers out there that might give us there opinion ? Here is my problem...

I thought maybe this could be from the cleaners we use to clean the stove every single day. Maybe the wood underneath has moisture from water spilling and the granite has absorbed it. I have the same problem in my sink where the faucet fixtures are ... that get plenty of water

My guess would be absorption from the unpolished end cuts and drilled faucet holes.

Kashmir White is a hardened sponge, geologically speaking. Prepare for a life of poulticing please.

😱😨😰

Same here! We’re building now. Didn’t really want to pay for Quartz since the pretty ones are so pricey. But I’m very disappointed.. have only had these 3 years. (First pic is before, and that pic was taken at night.

One thing I’m noticing in the pictures of when it looks whiter and when it looks darker is that the lighting is different. In photography it’s called whiter balance. When light from outside or the color of the bulbs shines in you kitchen, it will affect how you see the color. You can see in these two pictures of the white cabinets that one has a slightly warmer, more yellow cast. That affects the whites in the cabinets but also how the counter, how the stainless steal appliances, and how the floor looks. Maybe try using bulbs that are whiter or designed to look more like daylight and see if you are happier with how the counter looks. Of course, that doesn’t account for the counters actually darkening, but it could eliminate one variable at least.

Marci, that’s why I pointed out that the first photo was taken at night.. when no natural light was shining on them. (They appeared even whiter during the day). Now during the day they are yellow/beige. At night they are basically a medium tan.

*the second photo is taken during the day.

You must already have white light then. I had them mixed up.

I have same problem but noticed under toaster it is much lighter. Making me believe it’s the sunlight

Good guess. The factory resin is degrading from the UV rays.

I totally think it’s UV related. As stated upthread, my kitchen had lots of natural sunlight and darkened significantly but my laundry had zero sunlight and looked perfect the day we moved.

We went with quartz on our island and leathered black granite in our newly completed house and so far, I’m really loving the quartz we chose. I like the granite but I have to be a little more careful around my cooktop. I love the feel of the leathered granite, though!

My MIL went with a light granite similar to Kashmir White and hers, too, has darkened over the years.

UV makes since in my case as well. The corner that gets no sun is much lighter. The edges that face the window are very dark. This supports the idea that it’s not from using the wrong cleaning products. (The edges don’t get wiped down nearly as much as the tops.

In my case, the sunroom granite...full light...is still white. The kitchen granite which is an inside room with no direct sunlight darkened.

Megz I have the same granite, same issue after 3 years. Frustrating

Cassandra Ugh hate to hear that! We are building now and I’m 99% sure I’ll be getting quartz.

@Megz, we moved from the house in the OP a couple of years ago and just completed a new build. I used leathered granite on my perimeter and quartz on my island and I LOVE my quartz. It's amazing :)

Shead, What kind of quartz did you go with? I have yet to research it!
Did you find any answers as to why your old granite darkened? And do you have any concerned with your current granite darkening? Or did you just get a darker granite?

@Megz, I never knew for sure why it darkened. I suspect UV issues. Our most recent fabricator (different state) said they refuse to fabricate Kashmir White at all because it's just a hardened sponge. She'd seen WAY too many issues with darkening like mine to feel good about selling it to anyone anymore.

Our quartz is a Wilsonart quart (Coastal is the style name). It's a light gray/white with dark grayish blue veining. It looks awesome with my gray/blue island. I did leathered Silver Pearl granite which is a dark grayish black. My SIL had used it in her kitchen and it had held up great for years now without issue.

Wilsonart Coastal Quartz

Leathered Silver Pearl Granite

Lovely choices! Thank you for sharing! I’m also considering a darker perimeter and lighter island. I’ve mentioned my darkening issue in my FB home building groups and it does seem to be a recurring issue with that type of granite. I’ll definitely look into Wilsonart as well. Thanks again!

I thought I would be safe with darker granite but when I moved a tray to clean, I found my granite has significantly darkened! I'm thinking since this was a covered area for the last year, it definitely has something to do with the light. I don't get sunlight here but I have undercabinet lights. So disappointed! This granite is only a year and a half old! We have sealed and cleaned. Will try to lighten it with above suggestions.

I thought I would be safe with darker granite but when I moved a tray to clean, I found my granite has significantly darkened! I'm thinking since this was a covered area for the last year, it definitely has something to do with the light. I don't get sunlight here but I have undercabinet lights. So disappointed! This granite is only a year and a half old! We have sealed and cleaned. Will try to lighten it with above suggestions.

I know I am very disappointed with mine also I really rather have it lighter than darker and now I don’t know of a way to get that to go back I have tried the acetone still does not revert back to original down the line I think I will opt for courts instead

Courts or quartz, @Mimi? Not sure how successful courts would be :(

Apologize Siri is not always working. Quartz

I have the same problem but my granite is mottled brown shades. I have staining on either side of the range and thought it was maybe due to the heat? It’s the only place where dark staining is occurring.

i noticed that my granite was much lighter under my fish tank and my husband thought i was seeing things until I moved the tank! Then i showed him the picture from when we bought the house....I found a hint that I will try - Oven Cleaner (Sodium hydroxide-based) such as easy off. use that, then rinse with soap and water then seal. My google search turned this method up from https://www.howtocleanstuff.net/how-to-restore-granite-countertop-color/

worth a try since I really can't ruin it any further. Hopefully it will work as I really do NOT like the darker granite and really don't want to find the funds to replace it!!! @LouiseGolden - you have the same granite as I have and your stove looks identical and about the same age as my counters - any change you are in a Ryan townhome in Maryland????

I am having the same issues with my white ornamental granite i had it professionally sealed with the bullet sealer ($400) the sealer has a 15 year warranty has anyone used this sealer and tried to have the company honor the warranty

Attached are pictures the first one is the orignal granite that was cut for the stovetop that has been in the garage the second one is my kitchen island

That looks like the same granite i have (Brazilian Gold). same problem. i remembered I had a few squares cut and made coasters. I dug then out because im going to repaint the kitchen and wanted to bring a sample with to the paint store. I was shocked how dark the counters have gotten! wonder if the oven cleaner method would work. but then what to seal them with to keep them from darkening again. so frustrating.

That looks like Kashmir White which is unsuitable as a countertop because of its porosity.

No luck with the sealer warranty the warranty doesnt cover ”darkening” due to use they recommend i pay to have them restored however i dont think this will permanently fix the issue and would be a waste of money my only option ar this point is to replace them

I thought about lightening mine too but then it’ll just get darker again. I wish two things: 1) it was disclosed when i was picking out the granite that it would darken, and 2) they made a proper sealer that blocked UV light we could reapply like i do regularly when i clean it.

Tracy i wish that as well but i dont know any other option but to replace which is not only going to be a huge expense but also will probably damage my backsplash the fabricator that installed my countertops will not even come out and look at them and offer a solution

Joseph is silestone a good choice for a kitchen countertop I am looking at a cambria and silestone option

I have been reviewing comments about quartz and i am concerned about chipping i want to make sure i pick the right material since ive had bad luck with the granite any suggestions maybe there is a granite that wont have the same issues with darkening?

Maria B. I had my kitcen renovated a few years ago and chose Silestone quartz soapstone. I did lots of research on Silestone quartz and read lots of Houzz posts too. I still love it. Looks as good today as the day of installation❣️No chipping, no staining, no issues. Cleans up easy with dish soap and water.

@Mara B, I am the OP of this post.....we built a new house on our farm this past year and I ended up using Wilsonart Coastal Quartz on our island and I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it! We used a leathered black/gray granite for the perimeter which I love as well. My MIL's light granite has also darkened over the years and she wishes she had quartz like mine. I definitely learned my lesson about white granites and them being more porous than darker ones.

I am so disappointed with my granite countertops!! they r turning blotchy and dark spots.. i have them professionly cleaned snd sealed twice a year, but it doesnt matter. as soon as im able to, they will be replaced with quartz.. i now cover them with a plastic table cloth to try and protect them and also so i dont have to look at them .

Thank you, everyone, for this post. I read all of it. My kitchen is still in the state of being renovated but mostly finished. I did my homework on granite before I okay'ed it (Joseph..I about fell out of my seat when I read your message about the "man of the house". That has been my issue with my guy giving the ok 😂). Anywho...I'm having both problems here. Parts of my counter are darker where items have been sitting and vice-versa. I didn't take the granite guys word on anything except to seal it monthly (they were the subcontractors for the local kitchen remodel company). The company my guy hired SUCKS!! I've had to fix many F-ups of theirs and F-ups on the granite, too. I went ahead and bought a kit (StonePro) to resurface my granite. This is the second time I'm doing it when I ran across the dark spot. I am thinking it was the original sealant as it is kinda far back and I'm kinda short so I may have not gotten it properly the first time. My random orbital kinda gets "stuck" where the dark place is. I'm going to go over it again and if that doesn't work...I have 20 and 30 vol. developers I'll give a whirl. 🤞

I landed in this thread because our granite is darkening. In our case it is a dark charcoal (Elegant Gray). Everywhere we have an item that sar in ine place on the counter for the last 2 years has left a lighter spot, abiut 2 shades lighter.. You can clearly see the shape of the Keurig, the toaster, a basket, etc. So based on what I am seeing above, this has to be from light. so perhaps UV light. I am not much of a light wavelength expert, but we have several celing lights which are LED, in case that matters.