Has it been sealed and it is still absorbing liquids quickly? Concrete is porous and has to be sealed properly to make it a safe surface for a food prep area.

He also did the top wrong so it had to be sanded down and I did not like the way the top turned out at all.. the cement absorbs every thing and is not practical at all.

Did you use the island at all before he sanded it, to know whether it would stain then? Because I looked into a concrete counter and read it stained easily, so I scratched that. My point is, it might have stained easily even if he hadn't sanded it.

Perhaps design something in painted wood cabinets with a local KD?

You can get a quartz material in 1/4" width and cover it with that......which will make it only 1/4" higher than it is now.......

I'm going to look into this! I really would like to cover the island as the top is not the finished look I wanted. Thank you!

@Joy no we did not seal it. I did not like the way the top turned out from day 1 so I wanted to cover it just wasn't sure how.

@ Lambert Diaz architects I was thinking cover the whole island.. that is possible with the quartz?

Another thing should my counter tops match the island?

The thin quartz is amazing. We got ours from 'Granite transformations.' We put down thick moisture resistant MDF in our new kitchen and then a 'skin' of granite was fitted over the top - not unlike an engineered floor. Saved a lot of money and you would never know.

Another thing should my counter tops match the island?

That's more of a personal choice. Many people do two different surfaces. ;) If you do a search in Houzz photos for "different island top", you'll get lots of ideas.

Sledge hammer.

You think get rid of it? I want the same shape in my next island so what do you think would look best in my kitchen? Any ideas?

Yes, you can cover the entire island with the new 1/4" quartz.........It will look wonderful!

Sledgehammer. Jackhammer. Bulldozer. Dynamite. That thing is a big no. And an even bigger no covered with expensive stone. Like a mausoleum. Good money after bad.

until you figure out what you want to do with it, get a concrete sealer. it will stop the stains and absorption. concrete is extremely porous.

this is non toxic and made for concrete countertops.

The Concrete Exchange

or this one,,,,Home Depot

And I hope you didn't pay the guy that screwed up that island.

you could also change the looks of it by acid etching it. many different colors to choose from.

We def did not pay him!! Thank you for your ideas!

So you obviously screwed up on many levels such as no reasearch into cement counters and their drawbacks, no double checking plans etc. , IMO to cover this with an expensive stone and still have it not right is just plain silly get rid of it and start again since you did not pay for this one the only thing you are out is time.Are there cabinets on the other side? If not you need more storage in that space anyway so just start over , I like the idea of putting it in the garage

Just moving that tonnage is going to take an extreme amount of leverage combined with automotive dollies. And a half dozen beefy guys to ensure safety of it becoming imbalanced and not crashing over. It’s top heavy.

So much safer and easier to smash that tombstone to bits after covering it with a canvas drop cloth.

you're also asking about the backsplash choices aren't you? are you planning to keep this island or replace it w/something else?

Yes I am.. I am replacing the island with something else.. not sure exactly what as of yet..