Just curious if any of you have one. I'd like to hear opinions. Good, bad, likes, dislikes. I've been in the concrete foundation business for years. New housing in the midwest has slowed to a crawl. I'm contemplating a career change. All opinions welcome. Thanks. Mike. :beers::beers:

I've seen it on home renovation shows and it looked cool the way they polished it up. Seems like it was always used in an industrial conversion to living space that goes on in downtown renovation projects though. Check this out, looks more mainstream than what I have seen... http://www.concretenetwork.com/concrete/countertops/

I have not had one but I sure like them. I was in an Airport in Huston and a bar there has one. It's really nice. I have seen them in homes and they have a very classy yet rustic look to them. I think it would also be very easy maintenance

If you would like to practice putting one in call me as I would love to have one but have no idea how to do it.

Joe

welcome to the club bigmike. the transmission business in nj sucks also.and it isnt just me i know 30 other shops and it is slow all over. my friend who does construction also called me last week and asked if i needed anybody.he does some mechanical stuff on cars.houses here more for sale than i ever seen in my life.

Mike,
I just purchased my current home a few months back. It has concrete floors and countertops (and hardwood flooring too). I was leary of it at first, but seems pretty cool now. Cleaning is easy for the Mrs. and they say that the finish lasts a looong time. Friends and family come by and they all like it. The only downside I can think of is the concrete floors are REAL slick. Our Golden retriever doesn't get around on it too well.lol We ended up laying carpet runners all over so he can walk around in the living room and kitchen. Other than that, it's great! Good luck if you get into it professionally!
Dano:beers:

... I think it would also be very easy maintenance ...

Joe

For the most part they are, but they require sealers and periodic retreatment about the same as granite and marble. Most local installers recommend you retreat every 6~9 months.
They are not impervious to staining, nor are granite and marble, if this sealant is compromised at any time and not properly refinished. This can result from a hot pan being in contact with the counter top and the area not being retreated afterwards.
A moister barrier must be installed between the bottom of the counter and the dishwasher opening, or the steam from the units operation can penetrate through the bottom and cause staining of the counter top.
There are some installers that use epoxy based sealants (some with additional colors for effects) that give a good seal, but they require numerous coats, that take long periods to dry between them, and will still need to be treated with a wax sealant at least once a year after that.

They are very popular in my area and I almost went with them during our recent kitchen remodel.

I have a concrete countertop and agree that it is more maintenance than I prefer. Even taking care we have some stains (patina!).

DanB you should be doing the cleaning around there, not Lily. She has enuf on her hands just being married to you :D :beers:

Nieghbor did a concrete countertop. After a year he has problems with cracking. He also hasn't kept up on the sealing and there are coffee cup stains everywhere.

Here's a link to a search on concrete countertops that should give you alot of feedback. From the That Home Site forums. Lots of traffice there.
http://ths.gardenweb.com/search/nph-ind.cgi?term=concrete+countertop&forum=kitchbath&forum_name=Kitchens

I've asked the last 3 professional counter top installers that I have seen on jobsites what would they put in thier own house . Granite ,Quartz , concrete or solid surface , all 3 said they would put in Corian solid surface . Two of them said they weren't familiar with concrete , but it seemed strange that all 3 said the same thing and they all said not to use a Corian knockoff . I do plumbing in a lot of high end houses in the Chicago area and a concrete top is rare .

The market is different in different areas and within that area it is different in different price ranges. We do cabinets in high end homes. We don't sell the tops but most jobs we do get granite. Shirestone is used also. It is some type of concrete type material poured on site with a plywood substrate. Then the color goes on and is sealed later. I havn't seen corian or any other solid surface on our jobs in a couple of years. I do see it in some baths. We just did a Nascar drivers house and they did the Shirestone on both kitchens. Was about 2.5 inches thick.
If you get into doing it do your homework. It will be different from what you are used to but your experiance will surely help.

I am a journeyman cabinet maker and for the last 15yrs I have been contract installing and fabricating countertops out of laminate.Where I come from Kelowna BC Canada we are in a bubble and I could work 247 even with a couple of clones:)We have a lot of boomers with big wallets and 90% of then go for granite the other 10 is laminate.In the lower range housing laminate is still strong even though alot of low to mid price purchasers try to find some extra in the budget for granite. Pretty much nill for concrete i heard it was going to take off like silestone but it has not.Granite has come way down if I wre you that would be my choice and I build laminate tops for a living