I don’t think that is normal, and it would bother me. I would call and have them fix it.

Looks like two slabs from different runs. Talk to fabricator/installer. But that seam is fantastic. This is my main beef with quartz. You have to see these slabs before installation. Since this is man made material, batches differ slightly one to the next. This is why i strongly advise against veining if you have configuration that requires seams.

That would bother me, too. You should call.

Slabs can have a color variance from one side to the other. It looks like one side of the slab is seamed with other. Very common practice. There is no way of knowing in the shop the color variation until they are next to each other. Did the fabricator offer a digital software so you could see the seam? Does the fabricator practice quality control on all their projects?

I thought one of the benefits of quartz was supposed to be that you didn’t have to worry so much about color variation and you didn’t have to actually pick individual slabs??? I would be very unhappy if I paid quartz prices and my slabs were two different colors.

Haha! Very funny. We see slight variations all the time! And slight can be ugly.

in theory yes that is exactly what quartz should mean. However, it is man made so there is human error and slight inperfections

If possible, open the cupboards to see if you can see the underside of the slabs, there should be a manufacturers date and lot# code stamp. See if the two pieces are from the same lot/code.

@The Kitchen Abode. I've looked underneath and two of the pieces have the following stamped on them: 27/01/18, 1673865841, 6041902 5131. The third piece has: 04/08/16 504299833, 5068803 5131. The first two match perfectly, the third does not. I didn't expect the pieces to be cut from the same slab (I don't think it would be large enough), but you mentioned 'lot'. Are there multiple slabs in one lot, and should a fabricator be installing from slabs in the same lot?? As you can tell, I'm new to this. And it's not the rupture in veining that's an issue, nor the seam quality (which is excellent); it's the fact that the background shade is slightly deeper and difference is visible. I expected there to be some difference, just not this much. I think it's more visible in person than it is in the photos.

Are the two pieces with the same code the ones used where the seam is? You have two slabs manufactured 27/01/18 and one slab manufactured 04/08/16 so you definitely have two different lots. What's most important is that the same lot be used where the slabs meet.

There are two seams, and the one that's problematic is where the two slabs from different lots meet.

@The Kitchen Abode: Are you saying that a countertop should always come from the same lot and that this is an industry norm? I'd like to know this before I reach out to the fabricator. Thx.

That tells you what went wrong. They used two different lots, the fabricator should have told you about this. Seems odd that the two dates are so far apart, one lot is from 2018 and the other from 2016.

"Are you saying that a countertop should always come from the same lot and that this is an industry norm?"

If you had the Caesarstone rep in the first thing the would check are the lot. If they do not match where the pieces are joined the rep will say it's the fabricators fault not Caesarstones.

Yes, it does... but my question stands: is it outside the industry norm to cut a countertop from two different lots?? Or is this done regularly? I'd like to have some idea before I connect with the fabricator on this. Thx.

Where two slabs are seamed together the lot numbers must be the same. If for some reason they have two different lots they can likely use them in one kitchen as long as the pieces are not beside each other, you probably would have never notice that difference if they were not joined together.

Any time two pieces of material are joined together, whether it is tile, fabric or countertop slabs, the two pieces should be from the same lot (also referred to as dye lot). It is indeed industry norm.

OK. Thank you everyone who weighed in on this - very much appreciated. I now have the information I need to address this with the fabricator. I'll let you know how it goes. And @The Kitchen Abode... I see you're in Oakville! Not far from me... I'm in TO.

yes it is absolutely industry norm to have slabs from the same lot be cut. Now if they fix it and replace it, you should make sure that the new piece is from the same lot as what you have installed. Otherwise you should get a new kitchen.

romai - Best of luck. If the fabricator gives you a hard time call in the Caesarstone rep and he/she will back you up on this. Great to hear from someone in the same area.

A different issue: Did you plan for the counter top to be flush with the cabinet backs, or was it cut too short? There is usually at least a 1" overhang. If the top was cut too short, that might give you some extra leverage when dealing with the fabricator.

Get the Caesarstone rep out first. Then take his findings to the fabricator. Or send the rep a picture of the different codes.

Thank you for the additional tip of calling the Caesarstone rep; I'll do that. And @mama goose: while it may look like it in the pictures, the countertop is not actually flush, there's a 1/2" overhang which was intentional.

Good advice here. Let us know how it goes.

following

"Seems odd that the two dates are so far apart, one lot is from 2018 and the other from 2016"

I am a fabricator. The odd slab is probably a left over ("orphan") from a previous order of material. A blunder by the fabricator if they seamed 2 different lots without confirming a color match. Fabricators often will use slabs from different lots in the same room for stand alone parts but for seamed pieces any color variation, even a small one that would otherwise not be noticeable, looks bad at a seam.

Fabricator error. Tried to save money using a drop from an old job and got caught.

Well, weeks later, the saga continues. I thought everything was good because after I sent my fabricator the initial pictures, he right away said they would fix the problem, starting with trying to source a slab from the same lot from Caesarstone and replace the older piece. They did. The installers came yesterday and now there is yellow staining along the seam from the epoxy glue that they couldn't get out. It also looks like the slab is a different colour - or it might be an optical illusion from the yellow. But in some photos it looks quite a different shade, and the installer thought it was different as well. I contacted the fabricator, quite upset, telling him the experience has been a disaster from start to finish. He seems to be blaming Caesarstone: both for supplying the wrong lot to begin with the first time (shouldn't the fabricator have checked??), and now for the stain not coming out, and said he will contact them about this. In retrospect, I should have insisted someone senior be present during the second install to make sure it was a match and that all went well. That said, I just assumed they would. So that's where things stand right now.

This is one of the most expensive purchases I've made tied to my renovation, and I cannot believe how it's gone so far.

Oh no, how could they leave that and think it’s a good job? Sorry you have to deal with this, but absolutely call and get them right back out. Totally unacceptable.

I can’t believe this. Unreal. Are the installers blind?! Obviously, they don’t know what they are doing. So sorry this is continuing in such a bad way. You just have to have everything replaced. Get as much money back as you can, if you can. Sorry to say, you need to pick different countertops and surely different fabricator/installer. What a mess.

The yellowing is installer error. He used too much catalyst when mixing the adhesive; that caused the yellowing. More catalyst, faster cure. He was in a hurry and blew it.

Just to clarify, the installers were aware of the problem but said there was nothing they could do to clean the stone further and I would need to deal with the fabricator on this. Also, the staining happened when they were heating up the glue and separating the two original pieces, not when they were gluing the new piece in. The fabricator, who I called while this was happening, said the staining should come out and he was going to look into this. Yesterday he messaged me that he's sending photos to Caesarstone for their input. But he also said "It looks better than it did before" and that it was "same batch slabs; you've seen for yourself." So regarding the possible difference in shading, I'm not sure where he stands on that and I'm also not sure one can determine the difference in shading until the yellow is removed. But if they're not the same background colour, what does it help me if they're from the same batch?? I also just want to say that this isn't some fly-by-night operation. They have excellent reviews - 91% - on Homestars from dozens of people who raved about them so I'm really surprised by all this. Not what I expected. And no, this isn't over yet.

Let me save you some time waiting on Caesarstone. He burned the resin in the estone when he heated it. If it's not too deep it may polish out, but now he has to stay flush, not dip, and blend to a factory finish which is extremely difficult. I'm not optimistic. He should have known better; you've got to cut these out. If the background is still different, it's a do-over anyway.