Which brand of quartzite did you use?

It is 1and1/4 classic white quartzite. I did so much research before we purchased it and no where and no one told me about the water rings stains. If we put anything wet on the surface it turns darker and then eventually lightens up and disapears. Please advise asap as my fabricator is coming in the morning. Thanks so much

Not sure if they've been back yet, but here's my 2c: In general, unsealed natural stone will absorb, and this will be particularly noticeable on lighter colors. Your fabricator should definitely have discussed this with you.

white quartzite is a natural stone - if you wanted something more hearty you should have gone with quartz. Brands are caesarstone, hanstone, etc. Discuss with your supplier to put a sealant on your countertops, and have them leave you with a bottle as the sealant will need to reapplied as per there instructions.

I am looking to get a white quartzite for my kitchen counters. I wondering if you ever got your problem resolved with the sealer. If so, which one did you use? Thank you

should look at Silestone Lyra. Ceaserstone has one too.
Cambria has a lovely one as well. Closest to marble u will find without the headaches.

I really wanted a natural stone. When I moved into my new house it had corian and the owner had put in an allowance for granite because people were complaining it wasn't granite..I was going to change out the kitchen anyway so it didn't matter..but isn't the man made quartz like Silestone and Caesarstone almost the same as corian..I'm really uninformed and would appreciate any opinions..Also, I hope the original poster got her absorbtion problem solved..Let us know..Thanks..

First of all let me explain how I feel about this whole subject. Let me be really honest. We, we all want beautiful marble that is seen in all the amazing homes.
Honestly...if you dont live in your home, have at it.But buyer beware... It stains just by looking at it funny. Its beautiful for a few weeks and then something happens like life. imagine this.
Your friend comes over, spills her red wine, your toddler or child spills something acidic and its trashed. Most homeowners who are kinda hip, have learned their lessons and have switched from marble or granite to quartz. Its so much easier. Not cheap either, Look at Silestone, Cambria and Ceaserstone. All have their versions of white marble. i chose Lyra by Silestone. It looks great.

look at Silestone's Lyra. It's new, its a pleasure and doesnt stain. Its a beautiful quartz. Ceaserstone has one as well as Cambria. Dont get granite. i am so tired of looking at it, i did not consider it a all for my new kitchen. Corian is good too. I just thought Lyra was more for me.

Thanks..I don't why I said I moved in..I meant to say the house I recently bought has corian..We won't move in until April because we are doing renovating and had to rent a house when we first moved here anyway and can't get out of the lease until then..We sold our last home in two days and didn't want to buy a house in a rush because this is our "foreverhouse".
Maxmax6263 I appreciate any info you can throw at me..I know in another post you said you are still in the process..I just started..I'm picking my kitchen designer from three probably this week..very stressful..I know exactly what I want though except for the counter tops..I will have a look at them in person..Thanks again..

Contact me at wendypaley@comcast.net. I can save you a lot of trouble and money. We have knocked down walls, trenched plumbing, moved electricty, repainted exterior home, renovated pool and layed marble, We have a few weeks to go with kitchen and bathroom. We also installed wood floors that are similar to the kitchen that we love...I mean love!!

Here are a few pics to show you where we are at. The quartz will be delivered and installed in a few weeks.
The floors are brown/black however the picture is showing them more red. They are not. The last few pictures are more accurate of the floor color.

I'm on my way out to see a kitchen designed by one of the kitchen designers but I will definitely email you later..I LOVE your kitchen! It's almost exactly the one we are designing..I want white cabinets, black island and wood floor to match my other floors..Thanks!

Please do.

mstein..I'm wondering if you ever found out about how to resolve your water rings..I'm very happy with my quartzite countertop and would still do it again..but..I would like to know if you got any information on it..You can't even see my water rings (still three) unless you look sideways and you have to look pretty hard to see them..I just love this stone and I think it's worth the extra care..I do, however, cringe at the thought of my grown children coming and leaving me with a hundred water rings..I won't follow them around either..I don't want to be the kind of mom that follows them around with a cloth.. :) My island is big and this is probably where they would occur..I like to problem solve so I went to Bed, Bath and Beyond and found a beautiful tablecloth that is spillproof...liquids just bead up..and I like to arrange serving pieces..so I will put that on the island and they will probably think I'm just doing my corny decorating thing again.. This will be the acid test to see what I have when they go home!

Hi Forever house, I am in PA as well, can you email me laviza@verizon.net, I have a few questions about the quartzite....so confused between quartz, quartzite, and granite. ugh.

I just got back from looking at a beautiful slab of white Namibian Fantasy quartzite and was totally excited about using it for my island...until I read these exchanges about water rings!! I have 2 little boys and a messy husband. I wonder if foreverhouse or mstein have any updates after living with the material for several more months?? I am thinking of going with soapstone perimeter and quartzite island but wondering if I'm setting myself up to hate life with etching and water stains.

I too have been deliberating about quartzite (because its resembles marble ), re quartz (two people I know have quartz, both have chips either on the front or the sink area and within six months of installation - I also saw a sample of Cambria (cararra knock off forgot the name) recently with a blue little blob on it - that turned me off quartz. I tested (bianco quartzite) with a steak knife, left lemon juice, ketchup - no markings. It was polished but I doubt sealed as it was just a 4x8 sample piece. It will be either quartzite on the island and absolute black on the countertops close to the prep areas. Or ......still shopping. Hope this helps.

I actually just tested a small sample of polished white quartzite. It wasn't sealed. I was disappointed because it etched and got a water mark from a simple glass of water. I really love the look but not sure it will hold up to everyday use. I don't know if sealing it will make a big difference.

I had our new quartzite vanity top sealed by the fabricator. Then the dry wall guy came in and got dust all over it so I wiped it off with a wet cloth. Now there are water marks every where showing exactly where I wiped with the cloth! I'm sick. I have tried cleaning and polishing it with Weiman Granite Cleaner and Polish... does nothing. Would sealing it again - seal in the water marks? I have a call in to the fabricator.

I feel so sorry for you. I researched on natural stone for months and decided to choose Brazilian quartzite for my worktops as I was told it wouldnt stain. The tops have only been in for 5 weeks and there are water stains all around the sink cutout, I am so unhappy as there seems nothing that can be done to remove them. The fabricator came in and resealed the tops and said the marks "should" dry out but they are still there - the resealing has probably sealed them in more. If I had know this would happen, I would have chosen quartz much against my dislike of fake stone - see pic top edge and bottom left (round stain)

tops - but it would look better than water stains. Help?

I've had my white quartzite three years now. I still think they are gorgeous but after living with them this long I would have gone with a light granite and just sealed for stains. I am extremely careful and have my family trained to not put a glass dish or mug directly on the counter. I don't say a thing when friends or distant family come over..and I do notice I will gain an extra ring sometimes. I keep an ikea see thought blotter on the island for when I fix things that aren't hot. I purchased a thicker white plastic cutting board right next to it for when I have to put something down on the counter like a hot mug of coffee. I don't have anything that's noticeable that glares out at you but I definitely have more rings and water spots. I won't let anyone wash my dishes because if they accidentally bang a dish it will chip. I have small chips around the sink that happened when the cleaning lady put grates from my stove in to wash. Now I tell her not to clean them and I just clean them while on the stove.

I thought this would be my Foreverhouse but found out it won't be. I have one more move so I'm trying to keep the counters as good as I can for whoever lives here next. My kitchen cabinets rest on the counters so it would be next to impossible to change them out. I will definitely get a white granite next time...but I so love the way these look. It's a shame..

The fitter is coming in to replace my quartzite which was stained because it wasn't sealed properly underneath & the silicone bled through leaving stains like watermarks. It is such an upheaval having to remove the tops & refit but it will be worth it. Sadly the fitter will be out if pocket.

Water does not seem to stain the stone although I keep the tops wiped dry as much as possible. Having the stone well sealed prior to fitting is the key to keeping it stain free and also home sealing once a year will keep it nice.

I deliberated for over a year before my kitchen reno project was started: quartz or granite (I really wanted something white so I was leaning toward quartz). After visiting two friends homes with quartz (cesarstone) both had chips in the side of the sink within a short time - I finally settled on granite as I did not want to risk it. Am I sorry - still prefer the more solid marble look but my kitchen looks just fine with the granite. Easy maintenance, if restaurants and bars can use granite for years and years it will certainly stand up in my little kitchen,.

Gorgeous kitchen, I wish I'd chosen granite now.

Luckily they are changing it - probably cheaper for your fabricator to install granite or quartz - as quartzite is very very expensive worth a shot.

I had Quartzite installed in October. It is white and brown tone marble looking. yesterday after hosting super bowl, I noticed what looked like water stains or circles of some nature on the stone. I had hosted Xmas here and had no props but this? I have no idea what caused them as there was nothing on the counter to create that. I was told that Quartzite was the best bet for longer lasting and strong material for countertops. My friends all have granite and I see none of this water staining or water looking circles on theirs. What gives?

I have Laboradotite quartzite. Had for 4 years. No issues whatsoever. I love it

I just had quartzite counters installed in August, and was worried after
reading about all the problems with staining. Fortunately, due to poor
measurements from the installation company, I was able to get new ones,
but before getting them, my counter got stains by the sink. I
mentioned it to the fabricator
,
and he made sure the next ones were sealed with high quality seal
(about $88 a quart!) I have had no problems with the new tops, and I'm
thrilled with the results!

I have white quartzite and after 6 months I am seeing tiny specs of black. Has anyone seen or heard of this?

My spouse fell in love with the namibian fantasy. shop was advertising it as quartzite but another shop told us its marble just by looking at the picture. after coming back to the shop selling it and asking if its trully is a marble, they didnt admit first. then they said they are buying it as "quartzite" but it really is not as strong. It is more like marble, but stronger, it has some quartzite elements to it. So we decided to go for it anyway. when we wanted to get the edges nicely cut into some round shapes, store called several of their installers and all declined doing it, saying it will chip. they were only willing to bevel it with a simpler cut. so i am starting to believe it is trully a marble. period. googling showed thenamibian fantasy in several other stores marked as marble.
anyhow, we are still willing to risk it, but i wonder what people having it for a while say. did anyone end up using namibian fantasy for their kitchen? does it hold well the test of time (and mess) in your kitchen?

We’ve had white quartzite in our kitchen for 5 years now. It was sealed on install. Today I am resealing it for the first time. We have a toddler and make lots of juices for him. We cook everyday in it. It gets a ton of traffic and I’ll let the pictures explain how amazing this stone still looks. It is harder than granite (on the Mohs scale) but it still has that look of marble with all the nice sparkles. The only stain I can see in it is from our blender that gets a lot of beet and carrot juices on the counter. Pic #3. If left alone and unseen of course it will stain but otherwise most stains are an easy cleanup. I’d been advised to not leave acids or oil to sit overnight (cut lemons, bacon grease...). Hope this helps.

Help! I purchased Blue River Quartzite counters. When I looked at the slab at the seller yard it was a beautiful piece of stone. Now that it's installed you can see water stains and blotches under the finish. I was told by the installer to wipe it down with acetone and then seal it. This did not get rid of the water marks. The installer tells me that it's part of the stone, I have been trying to get him out to see it but he's very difficult to deal with (was very nice when I was purchasing the stone). Does anyone have any advice?

If it’s under the finish then it’s just part of it. It’s a natural stone and not manufactured so it will have imperfections and irregularities. Our white quartzite has small sections of rose colored patterns as a result of the iron oxide in the stone itself. If you mean etching, like dull spots on the surface than maybe he could repolish it for you. But if it’s a lot of etching and it’s happening after minimal use then it’s probably not true quartzite.

What is etching?

I also have quartzite. counters were installed in June and I’m still having issues with one water stain that just won’t go away. I was told the counters were sealed prior to installation. They were NOT. Luckily the company i used to do fabricating and install have Been trying to work with me. They’ve been out almost every week taking photos, putting poultice on the stain, even going so far as to have the stone company themselves come and look to see what the issue might be. I’m hoping that the stains disappear, but as soon as one is gone another shows up. It’s like we are chasing the stains. In the end i fear that they will be replacing the stone - as i was told that this should not have happened.

I'm late to the party here, but cmcamp03what kind of quartzite did you use?

@julia I don’t believe there’s any name or type associated with quartzite. Whatever your company calls it I suppose. They’re all uniquely different naturally occurring slabs of stone. They vary in shades of white and gray with all different kinds of irregular colorations that just come with it. Our stone literally fell into our lap. We had ordered a Namibian granite countertop and when install day came it wasn’t ready. They never ordered it... Upset, we saw this HUGE 5 ft deep block of stone in the yard and asked that they allow us to have that instead. It was tabbed for a bar project on South Beach. And now it rests in our kitchen.

@flooringguy- did you end up installing this in your home? If so, what’s the result? We are considering this product but don’t want to make a poor decision

Very happy you find this chain. I also talk to my Quartzsite stone dealer. After leaving a glass of water with a lot of ice in it on the counter for a few hours I came home to find a large dark ring. I did use a hair dryer on a very low setting and it started to fade. Happy to report a day later it is completely gone.

We just had quartzite Taj Mahal countertops installed which I love but now have noticed that there are fissures and rough spots that can be seen when the light reflects on the counter. We picked quartzite after researching it is a hard stone that does not etch and can take heat. I had no idea it would not have a smooth surface.

I am told that it is the nature of the stone but wondered if anything can be done. There are a ton of small rough spots and then a decent amount of fissures. The stone was very expensive and wondering if anything can be done that will not ruin the integrity of the stone. Everything I have read indicates this might be as good as it gets unless you epoxy for a smooth finish which I do not want to do. Anyone have Taj Mahal?

I have Taj Mahal with a leathered finish. We love the texture!

However, it definitely can etch and should be protected from hot pans/pots with hot pads.

Seal annually.

We had white quartzite countertops installed. Like most of the posters, the stone shop diminished and lied about what it is like living with this stone. Water stains are a constant, including large circular stains around the sink, and stains around every fixture. It's a beautiful stone but a horrible choice for a kitchen unless you don't intend to ever use your kitchen or live in your house. Might be good for some application where you can assured that no liquid will ever touch it.