Nasty.

Did you find the fabricator at IKEA too?

Kitchen looks great, seam looks terrible. Hope you get this re-done. I have Quartz in two kitchens, seams are barely visible. Good luck.

To me, it looks like the beveled edge continues all the way down the seam and they just filled the gap with caulk. Was this a professional install? If so, I would have them on the phone ASAP. You should not accept it.

Yes was a well known long run company in my area called him and he said that' how it' done, asked me to get pictures of different

That is not how its done.

No, that seam is not how it's done. Appears as if one or both of the pieces were cut too short. There'll be no snugging this one up without replacing one of the two runs. If everything else about the sink run looks good, then replacing the run from the stove will be the most cost effective for the fabricator. Bonus: the surfaces can be leveled up and it will also get rid of what looks to be a chipped edge along the left side in your second picture.

"...asked me to get pictures of different..."

??? Can't tell what he's asking for here.

Really Sophie this has nothing to do with your opinion about Ikea but that seam is not acceptable but the uneven counter is the cabinet installers fault if the cabinets are not level the counter does not bend to fit.

Can you answer the following questions:

- Was caulk used in the seam?

- Is the edge of the counter beveled where the seam is?

None of this is how it's done. The stone should be cut in a specific way to avoid failure and cracking in the future (see Sofie's pic) and special adhesive is used at the seams—not caulk.

Watch the video below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uFyXMP72Ozs

smitrovich:

Thanks for the video, but it's shows a major error, and for Integra, that's shocking.

You leave the seam setters on while the glue is setting up. What will hold the sides flush if you pull the clamps before the adhesive has set?

They use the adjustable cams to flatten the sides when they're dry fitting, then pull the clamps after they've applied the adhesive and pulled the sides together. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong.

It's silicone and if I peel back at edge it' as if both sides have a small edge on which is why joint is so big as if they have just butted them together rather than cutting

You can tell your fabricator that he just set a new high bar for laziness. I have seen worse looking installs (because anything is possible) but never a lazier one.

This "well known company" wants you, the homeowner, to get photos of properly seamed countertops? ok. that's off-putting to say the least. sheesh. How about, "no caulk and barely visible seams"? maybe tell him that.

Here is one before/after that resembled your mess.

http://www.thefabricatornetwork.com/Forum/tabid/164/aft/260240/Default.aspx

here's another quartz seam that isn't perfect, but at least the match-up is flush . show him this one. In fact, have him read through this website to pick up some pointers

http://www.thefabricatornetwork.com/Forum/tabid/164/aft/260643/Default.aspx

this is actually another homeowner who wrote into them asking if this seam was acceptable. 10X better than yours, but the experts still said this was poor seaming. So just imagine what they would say about yours!?

"Why do installers leave when a job looks like this, rather than fixing the problem? Either they can't see the problem, or they don't care. Either way it's bad, and would make me question their fitness for the task."

They have been back

They cut joins and then sand edge to loose any chips in worktop so it leaves a slight angle

That is why the joint is big

He has been back and reduced gap somehow and filled with resin

But on the end it is now short of end panel

What are people' opinions

Nope! This should have been an easy job and now they are trying to fix their mistake without fixing their mistake. Unacceptable. The tops were improperly fabricated and one or both of the runs need to be replaced.

His saying this is how they do the joints so where do I stand?

They obviously do not have correct kit to cut so put angle on after to loose any chips the cut leaves

Are the installers also the fabricators?

Yes they are

Not a pro, but I know a terrible job when I see one. This is a re-do, not a candidate for a patch job. Shortening the end of the run only compounds the error.

Our dark quartz countertop seam is curved, as in Sophie's diagram, and almost imperceptible.

Tell them to start over or return your money. Pro shops have machines that can cut quartz perfectly to the template. Looks like the side is mitered by the range; I don't get that either.

I am under the impression they can not cut or do not have equipment for a clean cut so have to sand/angle all corners

Seriously, if they don’t have the proper tools that the average fabricator has, they should not be installing countertops.

matti01 - I'm sorry you are having to deal with this, but the work your fabricator has done is not industry standard. There shouldn't be bevel at the seam, absolutely no caulk should be used, and should be assembled with special adhesive. What they have given you is unacceptable and if your fabricator doesn't realize that, he is woefully incompetent. That entire counter needs to be removed and replaced.

If they fail to accept responsibility is it something i can complain about to trading standards.etc

Take him to court to reclaim costs

As from what my partner said his attitude today when he tried to resolve was that this is the last try

His very words were your been to picky and nothing is ever perfect no more

He is wrong. you're not picky, his work is substandard. I don't know where you're located, but perhaps you could find a reputable company, or call the countertop manufacturer and ask for an authorized dealer/fabricator. have them come out and give you a professional opinion.

you could also send these pics to the manufacturer and ask them if this fabrication is satisfactory. (we know it's not, you just need justification) it's sounds like you;re going to need a lot of 'back-up' for for small claims court! have the manufacturer send you photos of how an actual install of there product is supposed to look. Then show this to the yahoos who don't know what the heck they're doing. (Caulk NEVER belongs in a seam. that alone is enough to prove a poor install)

you're going to need a new countertop section (if they can match it) or the whole thing will need to be replaced. Please, find another fabricator. one recommended by the company

Never seen a quartz seam that awful....ever. Is this a small outfit? Do they have CNC machines or are they working in the dark ages. Do they have examples of their seams (joints) at their showroom/facility? Always ask to see an example of a seam/joint. I think Sophie may be asking because...have you ever seen some of the IKEA quartz displays? The one I have been to, there were several really poor quartz installs.

Small claims court. Not sure how a well known long running company in your area feels about on-line reviews, but if they refuse to rectify this, you can find out. They should want you to be happy with the work. You're not being too picky. You've already paid them?

They were paid in full as my partner was there' as I was away and that' how she thought it would be

The tops are now level and he has sealed with a resin on the joint but closing joint has exposed end panel so it' 1 thing after another

This is his final attempt

Still terrible. He was just lazy and mitered the whole edge instead of stopping where it met the other piece.

did you show them any pics of good installs? like this pic flopsycat posted, above?

or this one? this is what your seam should look like

and you never answered,,,is that caulk in that joint? that is a big NO.

call the manufacturer. we are all telling you a large seam like that is incorrect. we can keep going round and round, but you need take stronger action w/this guy. Call the manufacturer and show him these photos and ask for advice. get a real installer out to your house to see if this can be rectified.

Tell this guy you're going to take legal action if he doesn't fix it like it's supposed be, (which he can't because he doesn't know how) or he doesn't refund your money.

what happened is he cut the piece too short and he doesn't want to buy you a new piece. he cut it too short which is why he can't close the gap properly.

The picture shows resin in that joint other times they had used silicone but changed to this when I complained

That line is resin the joint is about 4mm wide

Totally unacceptable. Keep at them, definitely contact the manufacturer - they don't normally appreciate their product looking this bad either - or take them to court. They need to make this right, even if that means they have to purchase another slab of material to cut it from. Unbelievable! And the worst part is that if there is any foundation settling down the road, this will be the first place to pull away.

You must have called around for the cheapest price.

Lol he was most expensive not by much out of 3 companies

well that's something different then

I wonder what the two cheaper ones are like?

If he refuses to replace that piece and redo it correctly, get his license number, call the board and report his work and file a complaint, report his company to the BBB, any Yelp reviews, report on that, and then start legal paperwork. Make sure you get those other reports from the manufacturer and other installers. Document everything.

oh, advise him you'll see him in court. Also ask the court to have him pay for your court fees.

OMG what a nightmare! I'm sorry matti01 that you have to go through this. Better tell them to give you your money back, because it seems they don't have a clue what they are doing and they will never do it right, no matter how many times they will try.

My 9 year old could do better. He owes you counters.

even IF they could get the seam perfect...now you have a short fall next to the range. I would make them re-do this, starting over. There is no way they will be able to fix that shortfall.

I'd also start researching where and how to file a small claims suit. Before a small claims case though I would try filing a complaint with the BBB. May or may not work. It's no cost to you though. You could also provide links to this post to the BBB with the experts chiming in.

They have now decided to cut a new length to cover gap by cooker and not put an angle on the 1 side to where it meets other to reduce the joint

I am so sorry for you! You are just getting the run around. Our son-in-law is a tile layer and he says some granite shops have lots of errors and they have to eat it themselves and do it right! Obviously, it takes a knowledgeable person to fabricate the job. We had some issues with our granite install, but our GC took good care of us and we are very happy with the results.

When they do the new run have them notch the other slab and shape the new one like flopsy and beth showed. If they don't have the machine to do it, have them take it to someone who does. This is ridiculous!

It almost looks like they purchased 'stock' slabs that had a beveled edge and tried to join them for your L-shape and just fill the space at the joint.

The Kitchen Place - That's what I was thinking, too. There's no excuse for that bevel at the seam.

Apparently the bevel at the seam is to reduce the chance of chipping the worktop?

His now taken the short cut away and replace with piece with no bevel to reduce join

Spoke to manufacturer today and they said join looks how they would expect it to look, brand is unistone

Yes agree, it is poor workmanship