Granite Kitchen Counters vs. Poured Concrete Kitchen Counters?

Email [Edit] |  Written by Tony on document.write(localTime('Jan 12, 2009 18:34 GMT'))Jan-12-09 10:34am/12/2009 18:34 GMT Granite countertops are great - but they are also very expensive and hard to work with. Many cost-sensitive remodelers are taking a closer look at poured concrete countertops as an alternatiev approach in their kitchen.

Here is a quick synopsis of the trade-offs between classic granite counters and a poured concrete approach.

Pros of granite counters:
1. It's a well known material for kitchen counters, which means that there are lots of established vendors who can procure and install granite countertops. The "granite" brand can also help increase your home's value, at least on paper.
2. Granite comes in several colors and can be quite beautiful, depedning on your personal taste.
3. Granite is durable and easy to maintain once installed.

Pros of poured concrete counters:
1. Poured concrete is substantially cheaper than granite. Big time!
2. With proper treatments, poured concrete can take on a very polished, professional, and beautiful look. It doesn't look anything like "regular" concrete!
3. You can be much more creative with poured concrete. A poured concrete countertop can take on any shape, have embedded objects such as shells or fossils, and be stained to many different colors and shades.

Some rules of thumb:

• If you are a DIY'er (do-it-yourselfer), poured concrete is probably the way to go. It'll be much more fun to install.
• If you're looking for "classic" then granite is a much more traditional and well-known approach
• If budget isn't an issue, then it just comes down to design taste.

We've all seen pics of granite counters, so here are a few pictures of poured concrete countertops:






Photos: Flickr and Smugmug