I hope I posted this in the right place? Crickets. Eek!

Looks like you posted in the Garden section. "Featured Garden Discussions" I'm curious what you found out as I'm about to put soapstone counters in my house.

Well, shoot—it shows me that I posted this under “kitchens” so I’m really scratching my head right now.

Hit it with a black Sharpie and forget about it please.

I noticed a typo in my original post, where I wrote that it stays dark despite us never “liking” it but I meant “oiling” it. We have had this soapstone for over two years. It does scratch, but not easily. It doesn’t stain, get water marks, or etch. It will pick up grease marks but with a little Dawn dish soap and water the oil marks from daily use are easily removed. It has a nice matte finish and a smooth to the touch feel. We love them, love them, but the crack is worrying. So, for all purposes it behaves like soapstone should, except for this crack. We have another crack that formed outward from the sprayer on our sink faucet, for no reason we can really discern. That hairline crack also seemed to follow a vein, then simply ended when the vein did. It hasn’t caused any issues, but the formation of these various cracks, one from heat and the other for no reason we can decipher, have left us stumped.

Yeah I see that too, it is confusing

Joseph, very happy to hear this. It doesn’t bother us one bit, aesthetically. We just started wondering if maybe we didn’t have soapstone, or if we were doing something wrong, or if it would get worse. No sharpie necessary for us as we don’t care how it looks. Thank you for commenting!

could they be black granite?

I don’t think so. We looked at a lot of black granite as an alternative and didn’t like it. It looks like soapstone, and we worked with reputable stone suppliers and fabricators. Maybe the veining is a more heat sensitive stone mixed in there, that’s all we could think of. It is just a natural product from the earth, so couldn’t that just be the explanation?

Just as a note, Tera, we have had both marble and soapstone in our kitchens and we much prefer the soapstone. They’re both beautiful and we have loved both, but the soapstone is incredibly easy to care for. As in, almost zero care, as long as the crack is a non-issue which I trust Joseph’s opinion.

True soapstone will not crack from high heat or extreme cold. It is temperature neutral. My soapstone was purchased from M. Teixeira, the largest soapstone dealer/specialist in the USA. They’re over 9 yo, and a very hard variety, Belvedere. Many a time hot pots have been taken off the range top, and placed directly onto the counter without issue.

Your tops look way too shiny to be soapstone. And, there’s a strange line along the edge. They should have a smooth, matte appearance…and a sensual feel. I’m guessing you got your ”soapstone” from a generic stone yard, and not a soapstone dealer.

Joseph’s suggestion of using a black Sharpie to disguise the crack, is a good one…especially as you said the crack doesn’t bother you.

The white line is just a reflection. I will post better photos tomorrow.

We purchased from a showroom (lots of stones available, not just soapstone there, but mostly natural stone) at https://mspsurfaces.com

Here they are when they were first installed. The last one was a photo we took of some scratches that happened during installation that they later buffed out on site for us.

Here is a section of my Belvedere soapstone the day of install. Notice its matte appearance. No reflection.

This one was taken several years later.

Even around the range top where patina has formed, the counter has a matte appearance.

What you have is a lovely. I’m just not sure it’s soapstone.

I have lived with 3 different types of soapstone and do not set hot pots directly on the stone, my first installer said to just consider it best practice even with the lower risk. of cracking

As for how shiny @M M s stone is, that does not mean much. The soapstone in my current kitchen was sanded to a high shine finish when we bought it so I sanded it to a very matte finish. Over the past 2.5 years the matte has actually become a little more shiny due to the use, it is part of the patina of frequently used soapstone. It is easier to see the increase of shine on darkened soapstone, if I had kept it light then the constant deep cleaning that my variety needed to stay light would have reduced the patina.

High shine finish (only mineral oil had been used on it and none for at least 3 years):

After I sanded it and applied enhancing sealant (Nov 2022):

Now:

Maybe you had an existing fissure in the stone or there was already a repaired crack in the slab? The heat caused it to become noticeable.

Thank you, s m. Yes, that is exactly what ours looks like. It’s definitely a darker variety with more blue and green undertones and it’s harder as well, which as another poster pointed out, could mean a different composition that lends it to be less heat resistant. All of these comments are extremely helpful and reassuring. We are no longer worried, but will take better precautions with heat going forward. This has been a great convo and hopefully helps others as well.

As a side note, I said to my husband to at this crack has been a real testament to the benefit of using natural stone. If I had quartz or another man made countertop that cracked like this, I would consider the tops ruined. But alas, a crack in our natural stone countertops is just patina.

Another option not mentioned yet is that there could be some settling going on (floor or cabinets?) and the addition of heat on that already "stressed" area produced the crack?

Might want to check the underside of the counter, bottom of cabinet by removing toe-kick and basement or crawlspace. If on a slab, then look for any signs of settling elsewhere in the room/house.

Can you feel the crack? If you can then it will collect dirt/food/etc over time. Might want to look into getting it filled, if necessary.

Our house was built in the nineties so when they came to look at the smaller crack they checked the cabinets for any movement but also said it wouldn’t have been from any settling in the foundation. Our prior countertops were granite, so pretty similar in terms of weight. Total mystery.

I am sorry this happened and thank you for letting us know that while soapstone is heat resistant, it is not always heat proof and cracks can happen though rare. Your soapstone is beautiful. It's good to know you are still happy with it and will just take extra precautions going forward.

Before you use the sharpie, test it in an inconspicuous area. Unless your counter is jet black, the sharpie may highlight rather than conceal.

Your soapstone looks a lot like mine. It was labled ”Saratoga Black Soapstone” from Brazil. It’s also quite dark, even before oiling, has a lot of subtle veining & natural fissures, with beautiful green & blue understones. I guess mine is relatively hard when it comes to soapstone, it can scratch, but not easily & you cannot scratch it with your fingernail…

Anyways, I found your thread because I’ve also just noticed a fine fissure/crack along one of the vein/fissure lines, & I think it’s fresh. It’s not in an area that anyone in our household would’ve put down anything hot, so I think it must be due to house settling (our house was built in 1932), or perhaps someone dropped something on the counter.

I am only worried if it’s something serious that will worsen over time, but it it’s not, then I’m ok living with it. Have you found out if this is something real serious & in need or repair, or only a minor aesthetic flaw?

Thanks!