Although granite is a very strong material, there are a few things you shouldn’t do to your granite bench tops. If you want to learn more, keep reading.
There Are Weak Spots
If you aren’t aware, granite is one of the strongest materials out there. After diamonds, granite is the strongest natural material in the world. That being said, your granite bench top has weak spots in certain areas. Here, the stone is not as strong as it should be, so if you dent it too much, you can cause scratches.
In terms of where these weak spots are, they’re usually near the stove or sink.
Light Coloured Granite Stains
When you get a stone bench top installed, whether it be granite or not, you’ll have to get a sealant added on top of it. This sealant does its job, but if you got a granite top that’s lighter in colour, you could easily stain it.
This is as through wear and tear, the sealant becomes weaker, exposing the surface of the stone bench top to its external environment. As it’s so light in colour, spillage would cause it to discolour.
Of course, prevention is better than cure so you should think about having the surface sealed annually- if you speak to stone benchtop installers, they’ll tell you this.
Excessive Force Shouldn’t Be Used
As mentioned, graphite is only the second strongest natural material out there. This means with excessive force; you can still cause damage. Of course, this would require a lot of pressure to be applied, but you could still cause a few scratches here and there.
This is why you shouldn’t be too rough with the bench top. If you take advantage of how strong it is, you’ll regret it, especially if you cut and chop, and be rough with your preparation of food in one specific spot as this spot would greatly weaken over time.
The Sealant Could Be Stripped Away
You should monitor what chemicals you add to the surface of the top. The sealant is a chemical compound so if you put something that’s too acidic, you could eat at it. This would cause the surface of the granite top to be fully exposed.
This is why the people you got it installed from would give you a list of chemicals to keep away from the installation. If you keep the things on this list to mind, you’ll face no issue.
Stay Away from Heat
As you can see, there are ways the sealant could be compromised. Unfortunately, you wouldn’t notice this until it’s too late. So, you should keep heat away from the granite surface.
Although strong, very high temperatures could wreak havoc. So, keep this in mind. The heat could not only cause hairline cracks, it could cause discoloration.
Granite bench tops are one of the best things you could install in your kitchen. Not only are they easy to place, they’re an amazing investment and are durable for quite a while. However, a few things have to be kept in mind if you want to maintain them well. So, make use of the above points.
