Thanks nightowl. And I do have it in writing.

I would not be happy with the countertops.

I completely agree that it is not acceptable. The seam to me is too white. I would be most concerned about the sink not being supported and get that looked at ASAP.

You have all legitimate complaints that the contractor should have fixed. Find a good fabricator who can fill in the chips and redo the seam color so it looks better. Not sure how he will fix the sink issue but it can be done. Sorry you are going through this.

Yes, it's a mess. The chips and scratches make me suspect this is Chinese quartz, which MSI does sell. I think the color goes all the way through on Breton-manufactured quartz so that white scratch may be another tell-tale sign of an inferior product. Have you tried cleaning those circles above your finger? It looks like they might be etches from a can of acetone.

Your island isn't square. It doesn't meet at a true 45°. That's your cabinet installer's issue.

Not an A+ install, but you didn't pay an A+ price. It's about why you can expect for middling skills and an inexpensive product. You simply can not have the same expectations of a Malibu and a SL500.

Sophie, I don't understand. The cabinets were in place for the past 20 years. The counters should have been templated to fit to the existing cabinets - shouldn't matter if it's at 45, 48, or 50 degrees. If I were putting plywood down for a laminate countertop I could do better myself with a plastic protractor (hell, I even printed a protractor off the internet once to handle some odd tile angles). I just can't fabricate the stone myself.

A C- install would have been ok I think. But that would be slightly out of alignment but looking down from the top you wouldn't see the doors sticking out. In fact, that's how the section by my cooktop is and I could live with that.

The thing that put me over the edge was when the installer said he was going to send someone out to fix the scratches and if that still wasn't to my satisfaction I could pay him another $500 and we'd be done. He wanted to charge me more (on top of balance due) to fix the sink situation. And made no attempt to fix the overhang of the countertop.

I'm sorry you're going through this. I know your heart must have sunk. I hope you get this worked out and closer to your vision. I'm no help, but I feel for you.

I am a fabricator.

The seam should be less visible and would be if it was darkened a little bit. A competent fabricator could do this easily.

Chips happen. There is a product called "Fillachip" which could've been used to repair your chip and be less visible.

The island overhang is a field measure issue. However, if the measure was done with the previous tops still in place it can be very difficult to get a "perfect" fit. In my shop the overhang variability tolerance is 1/8" but we tell customers that it could be more if we are measuring with the existing tops in place. Depending on the layout it's possible the island top could be reset to "split the difference" on your overhang variation.

The sink issue looks like a problem that originates with the cabinet install where the tops of the cabinets are not even. This is a common problem which can result in relatively large gaps between the countertop and the top of the cabinets. (If it's this bad on new construction we call the contractor and tell him the cabinets should be reset properly.) You'll have areas where the countertop is sitting directly on the cabinets and others were it doesn't and gap is filled with shims so the top is still properly supported. Supporting the countertop with the sink is incorrect.

I've used the Fillachip kit many times; I don't think it will work very well in this situation because of the fine particulates of this color. It may be better to grind this a bit deeper, square up the edges, and mix up some gray methacrylate with speckles in it. I'd want a test try on a scrap. This is going to be a toughie.

There is no excuse for the island overhang being off whether the tops were on at template or not. Math is math.

If you over-tighten a strapped sink, you can lift it and the top right off the cabinets as shown depending on layout. If the sink is chipped, it must be replaced. Some engineered stone manufacturers prohibit the mechanical fastening of sinks to their products; they all should as it is unnecessary and not a good idea.

I'm sure Integra Adhesives recommends a color for this color top. That is what should have been used.

No, you're not being too picky. This guy's a hack; he should be embarrassed by these photographs.

Thanks Joe

Olddryer - it's not the cabinets with the sink. I watched the guy doing it but didn't look close enough. He eyeballed the line where he installed the left side of the sink (made a mark with a tape and then hand drew the line) - and when he screwed in the support it shifted upwards a bit. I though he corrected it at the time - but I guess not.

for the record I saw many of these issues (not the sink) before the installers even left. I had an email into the owner that he needed to come out and see this mess even before they were done. From his initial response I thought he was going to make it right - but I guess as he realized how much that was actually going to cost him he changed his mind.

At this point My wife and I are considering this an expensive $1,700 lesson (that's about what we paid for the initial deposit) - plus the $400 sink - and are going to contract with someone else and do a complete replacement with both a higher quality stone and fabricator/installer.

we knew at the time that we were going down a "budget" route and weren't expecting perfect (we repainted the cabinets instead of replacing them after all). But there is "budget" and there is "wrong". This is just wrong.

To Sophie's point about a Malibu vs an SL500 (we actually have an SLC and a Buick, so I understand the difference) - I still expect the Malibu to pass state safety inspection and have a standard automotive paint job without dings and scratches when I drive it off the lot and be able to hit 100mph - even if it can't do 160MPH or have nice leather seats.

You may be able to get someone to fix all this less expensively than a complete do-over especially if you weren't too fussy with the cosmetic repairs.

Omg. I think I just figured out why the counter is crooked. They installed the sink crooked by 1/4". Install the prefab sink opening "square" over the crooked sink and that 1/4" becomes the mess you see in the picture 7' later.

Joe, so what I need someone to do (if we decide to keep the current stone) is (a) get a new sink (b) have someone remove the countertop and reinstall the sink correctly (c) reinstall the stone straight (while they are at it do better seams) and (d) patch some of the scratches. Right?

Is this something most fabricators will do or do I need to look for someone who specializes in fixing others crap?

"If you over-tighten a strapped sink, you can lift it and the top right off the cabinets as shown depending on layout."

This is one of the reasons we don't use the straps. There are other options for mounting a sink that do not create the potential for this problem.

I agree a competent fabricator could make this better. However, from the pics your island is not a simple rectangle so resetting it is not likely to be a viable solution. Trimming it and then resetting it might work if it is enough oversize in the right place(s) but you'll need a better than average fabricator/installer to do a good job including re-polishing the trimmed edge.

Given the size of your chip a decent repair should be unnoticable unless looked for.

Good luck. It's unfortunate that there are hacks like this out there.

Olddryer - I actually think the counter is fabricated right, it was just installed crooked because the sink is crooked. I didn't notice it was the whole counter because the error is much much smaller to the left of the sink (only 2' to the end of the counter and it's over the dishwasher) vs the other end (over 7' from the right edge of the sink). If it's off, it'll still be within my tolerance I think.

If only the sink hadn't been cracked because of all this it would have been much simpler.

"This is one of the reasons we don't use the straps. There are other options for mounting a sink that do not create the potential for this problem."

The only time I've ever lifted a top from straps, the top was Corian. I screwed the underlayment, tightened the strap, and problem solved. The only stone sinks getting lifted are at the end of a peninsula or cabinet run. Any trapped in the middle of a "U" or a long run aren't going to budge.

Virtually every failed rod or dropped sink I repair has rusted insert style fasteners, which are prohibited by Ceasarstone. Customers like the thinner front sink rails and fabricators foolishly eliminate the insert fasteners in the place they're most needed to make customers happy.

You want a 33" sink in a 33" cabinet? No problem with straps. No way with inserts.

"Is this something most fabricators will do or do I need to look for someone who specializes in fixing others crap?"

It is not something most fabricators will do. I specialize in fixing the crap of others and unfortunately for consumers, business is good.