Plastic wrapping your counters isn’t new. You might as well get Formica 180FX laminate and save 10K as do that. It actually looks a bit better than the flat, lifeless, reduced depth, ”stone” that results from plastic wrapping it.

@Katie Glaser, thank you. I hope you'll post back for the benefit of the many others who would like to know if it works.

I’ve had a couple of clients who just couldn’t stand the natural patina of marble. (Big told you so.) and who insisted on wasting money on plastic wrapping them. And they do look plastic then. Not natural. Without the visible depth of the crystalline structure and no real sparkle that real marble has. Not even kidding that Formica looks better than plastic wrapped marble.

Hardheaded people do not listen to people telling them that if you do not love patina do not get marble. I do not expect hardheaded people to listen to not plastic wrap it either. But what a waste of tens of thousands, and a waste of the marble too. It’s too beautiful to end up in the landfill, which is where you are headed, simply because you had incompatible expectations for the material, and then tried to stick your fingers in your ears and charge ahead anyway.

Here are tops that I covered in a gloss and a satin Stoneguard at their certification training. Nothing fake or plasticky about it and it's thicker than Tuffskin. Not for everyone, but some people love it.

Gloss.

@Joseph Corlett, LLC - unfortunately, those pics are not selling me on this treatment. Just the contrary. The first pic seems to remove the translucency and depth for which marble is famed and prized. The second pic indeed looks like what @Verbo described of plastic wrapped. Just saying my truth here.

I think marble is beautiful and people should buy it with the acceptance of patina and etching. Or else buy something else - there are so many counter types to choose from if you don't want etching staining scratches. If you don't want etching, but then you buy something that etches? I don't get it.

I have stayed in hotels in rural Italy with marble in the bathrooms 100 years old (I am guessing). They're patina'd like crazy, and beautiful. Rather that than what you pictured with the Stoneguard. To people buying marble and then coating them, I'm kinda like, "gee you could just got Quartz or one of the granites that are tough" (I actually have one of those granites in my kitchen).

I heard about it and was super excited until I saw it in a kitchen appliance store. It dulled the finish and felt like quartz (which is kind of plasticky in my eyes). But so many people love quartz so it may be fine for you. I'd just see and touch it in person to see if you're OK with it.

@Joseph Corlett, LLC I think the high gloss looks great and I think it will accentuate the beauty of the marble that I have. I have a stone called Rainbow Jade and I swear it could be worn as jewelry.

@drsaj so I got TuffSkin installed today . It is a 2 day process which I just found out. It looks great but you can see the edge where the TuffSkin stops as it doesn't go around the edge of the marble. I freaked out a little bit but the reason they come back is to let it sit for a day and then they bevel the edge so you can't see it anymore. So this is what it looks like now, I'll update you with more pictures once they finish the job. I will say that ALL of the natural etching that came with the stone is gone. This was very important to me as I have a skylight over my breakfast bar which highlighted every imperfection.

@Katie Glaser, could you post a "before" picture when you post your update? Thanks!

@spammie Sure. I'll put better pictures together once I am certain that I would recommend it. Here's the breakfast bar before (taken on a sunny day). As of now, unless I can still see the edge after they complete the process, I don't see why I wouldn't recommend it.

@Katie Glaser - beautiful marble!

Interesting that in their faq of how long it will last they say residential replacement in 4 to 8 years. I wonder what happens to it that it needs to be replaced in 4 to 8 years?

@vinmarks it protects against etching and stains but not scratching. That would be my guess.

Update. I can see why some folks don't like this application. If you are looking for it, you will see where the TuffSkin ends. I can still see the edges and wish it wrapped all the way around the outer edge of the stone. If not for that I'd give it 5 out of 5 stars but for now, will reduce to 4. But most won't notice a difference unless you are looking for it.

Otherwise I've got glossier countertops that don't need special cleaning solutions, and I can use them like all the countertops I've lived with all my life. If your family is prone to messes like mine is, this might be a good choice. If you had to pick from remnants and have a ton of etching like I did, this will take that away. If you are a purist and love the look of marble as is and are used to its limitations, you probably won't like this product.

Here's the after:

Here's the before:

@Katy Glaser, thank you for the detailed update. I think your stone is still beautiful with the Tuffskin. I'm wondering about the material's ability to withstand scratches and scuffs. Perhaps you will come back after some time and update us on that.

I'd like an update as well after it's been used for some time. Can you slide things across it without it scratching?

I would be a bit leery with the fact they put in their faq that most residential applications are replaced every 4 to 8 years.

In my previous house I had granite and lived there for 15 years. If I had marble and used tuff skin I would have had to have the tuff skin replaced twice in the time I lived there if it needs replacing every 4 to 8 years. The day we moved out my granite looked as good as the day it was put in. It makes me wonder if the tuff skin gets scratched up.

I'm happy to update this discussion as I start using my new kitchen. The installer told me that it does not stand up to scratches. So if you are cutting on it or you pull a heavy object that could scratch the surface (a client of theirs did this with a stainless steel fruit bowl but I could see this happening with a countertop appliance) it could scratch. I asked about cats jumping up on the counter and they said I should be OK but I don't know about that. It is heat resistant to 400 degrees and stain/etch proof. Much cheaper than More which is a liquid sealer and costs $80/sqft. This cost me $1900.

Awful expensive for some visqueen glued onto a rock.

I have Tuffskin applied to my bathroom vanity, laundry room sink, and wet bar and I'm so happy with it! Will it scratch? Yes, but so would marble if you're cutting on it or sliding metal objects like a pan.

So far, I have one small scratch that you can only see if the light hits it and it was from the plumber when he installed the fixtures.

If you're the type of person who is rougher on things then you would need to get it replaced sooner than someone who isn't. If you're the type of person who doesn't like any "special" maintenance then marble probably isn't for you either.

While no application is perfect, this keeps the surface from etching and staining... which is inevitable with marble no matter how often you seal it. I live in Denver and it was $20-30 sq ft for it installed. IMO, that's a low price to protect the marble slabs I purchased for $$$.

The other thing I liked about this product is that it can be removed without damaging the stone. The liquid sealer (not the regular sealant) will etch the surface. So down the road if you decide you want to go au natural, you can just remove it.

Also I read that Tuffskin protects the marble from scratching. So if you scratch the Tuffskin, your marble will be fine.

More anti etch didnt cost us $80/sq ft! We paid $400 per slab.

You got a deal then. It's pretty easy to verify pricing for More anti etch online. It is $80 for gloss and $70 for honed. I was quoted the same price 2 weeks ago by a local marble company.

Hi. I am getting super white dolomite and wanted to use tuffskin to seal. How are you liking it so far? Thank you.

@katie Glaser, thank you so much for the detailed information on tuffskin. Can you please share how it’s holding up now? My husband is stuck on installing Mack’s and I do not want to feel like I’m walking on eggshells in my kitchen. I prefer anything over it as beautiful as it is I don’t want to be that person that ruins it and feel awful after. I hope you see this and reply. Thank you ☹️

Marble typo

We spent over $5,000 having TuffSkin installed to protect two marble islands, trusting their promises of premium quality and a strong warranty. What a mistake.

One of the protective coverings failed completely — large bubbles appeared underneath the surface, ruining the look of our marble. Since then, we’ve tried repeatedly to contact the company. Calls, emails, and messages go unanswered. It’s been months of silence.

TuffSkin — owned by Lelia and Frank Friedlander — simply refuses to honor their warranty or take responsibility. After doing some research, we discovered that our experience is not unique. There’s a long trail of similar complaints from other customers who were ignored after installation or denied warranty service. Further, the Office Manager we are dealing with, Ariana Berta has simply made up stories about our lack of proper maintenance while the person (Neil) she sent out VERIFIED it was a faulty installation.

It’s shocking that a company charging this much for “premium” protection can behave with such disregard for their customers. The product failed, the service is nonexistent, and the owners don’t seem to care.

Save yourself the frustration and money — stay far away from TuffSkin.

PT Barnum said it best.

Liztavera- ‘your husband prefers marble’ but you’re afraid of ‘ruining it’….why would you set yourself up for disappointment? You will etch it unless you never use your kitchen at all. I would never cover marble in plastic - I’d hire a professional stone restoration company to professionally patina it or just live with the natural lived in look it will get. But that’s me.

We spent over $5,000 having TuffSkin installed to protect two marble islands, trusting their promises of premium quality and a strong warranty. What a mistake.

One of the protective coverings failed completely — large bubbles appeared underneath the surface, ruining the look of our marble. Since then, we’ve tried repeatedly to contact the company. Calls, emails, and messages go unanswered. It’s been months of silence.

TuffSkin — owned by Lelia and Frank Friedlander — simply refuses to honor their warranty or take responsibility. After doing some research, we discovered that our experience is not unique. There’s a long trail of similar complaints from other customers who were ignored after installation or denied warranty service. Further, the Office Manager we are dealing with, Ariana Berta has simply made up stories about our lack of proper maintenance while the person (Neil) she sent out VERIFIED it was a faulty installation.

It’s shocking that a company charging this much for “premium” protection can behave with such disregard for their customers. The product failed, the service is nonexistent, and the owners don’t seem to care.

Save yourself the frustration and money — stay far away from TuffSkin.