Have they been sealed, and if so, how often?

I am just having granite installed. Honed as well. I asked very same question. At 6 months you need to re-seal and then good to go for a long, long time. Provided you do not use harsh chemicals on it. That being said, my granite guy said, if you have a stain, apply Clorox to rag, and set on stain. It should remove stain. Now I caution against that. Quite frankly it scares the piss out of me. :)

I was involved in this comment trail because I am installing honed granite in my own kitchen. I haven't done any research yet on sealing and stain removal so am keeping track of these postings. With that said my job entails selling Sodium Hypochlorite which is what Clorox is for a west coast manufacture. Sodium Hypochlorite (Chlorox) is an oxidizer so if your stain is organic it may help, I don't know about other stains. I would definately do some research before using Clorox straight out of the bottle. I bet Martha Stewart has some info on her website

No, we have had them for over 2 years now and they have not been re-sealed. My husband says that he watched them be sealed by the installer while they were being installed and he recalls them telling him that we would not need to re-seal them for another 10 years. The honed granite have been extremely low maintenance. We have not had any stains or water spots. We simply wipe them down with a damp sponge or towel. Thanks for your question!

Great! Thank you.

Hi Vintage Bean! I have just read your above comment with interest and envy. We had hone 'Black Pearl' installed about 6 weeks ago. Our installers gave it three coats of 'bullet proof' sealer before it was installed. We were told it would not need re-sealing for 15 years. Unlike your experience, since day one we have been getting rings from cups, marks from water etc. If we miss an area and do not wipe immediately the rings stay and cannot be wiped away with soap and water or the recommended cleaner, and are clearly visible. Do you remember what sealer was used on your honed 'Black Pearl' as we are considering having the sealer stripped off and starting again? Do you have any suggestions for us? We initially loved the look but now are so unhappy with it. I have also read that the problem could be too much sealer sitting as a film on top of the granite. Help!

Hi anne1bremner! I am so sorry to hear that you are having such horrible issues after such a short amount of time. :( Here we are, a couple of years later, and we still are not having any problems at all. I wish I knew why yours are giving you such trouble. I have to think it may very well be the 3 coats of sealer, but I'm not sure. Ours were only sealed once. Our countertops were fabricated and installed by Rock-it Surfaces in San Marcos, Ca. They were so helpful and great. I am sure that if you call them and tell them your problem, they will be more than happy to tell you how they typically seal honed granite like mine, and give you some advice.

Their number is: (760) 597-1800

http://www.rockyourhome.com/

Ask for the owner, Steve. If they want to reference our countertops tell them my name is Leesa and Ryan Johnson and we live on Honeysuckle Drive. I wish you the best of luck in finding some resolution!

Hi Vintage Bean....I'm considering the black pearl honed granite for our countertops. Do you still like them? Our second choice is Charcoal Soapstone quartz. Thanks

Hi Melanie! Thanks so much for your question. We still LOVE our countertops! We couldn't be happier. After living with them for over 6 years now, we are shocked at how low maintenance they have been and how great they still look. We have never once resealed them (I know it's recommended though!), and after much love and baking/cooking with a family of 5, there are no stains to be seen! They look the same as they did on the day of install. Pretty shocking! There's only one imperfection on the edge of the sink which I did early on when I made a small chip with a pot.

We LOVE the look of soapstone, that is why we went with the honed granite in the first place. We wanted the same look, but without the maintenance. So far, we have no regrets about our decision! Best of luck to you and whichever you decide!

Thank you! I will save a lot of money going this route! The quartz is $2K more and I can't stomach that:) So, you had a sealant at installation and then nothing afterwards? I really appreciate it!

$2,000 more IS a lot! Yes, they were only sealed once during fabrication. Unlike a previous commenter, we've been lucky, we've never encountered water marks or rings, etc. Perhaps that may be due to not over sealing, I'm not sure. To clean, we literally just wipe with a damp sponge or paper towel, and we've had no issues or complaints in over 6 years. We are VERY happy with it. If you go that route, we hope you have the same positive experience!