Summary: The DIY craze that hit back in the 1990s is still alive and well. Unfortunately, some home projects are not a good fit for DIY. Stone countertop installation is one of them. It is best left to professionals.
With a little self-confidence and a selection of YouTube videos, most homeowners can manage a complete inventory of DIY projects. As a fabricator of natural stone countertops with decades of experience, we want you to know that installing stone is not one of them. In fact, when it comes to installing granite, quartzite, marble, and even quartz countertops, DIY takes on a whole new meaning: ‘Disaster It Yourself’.
The Bedrock Quartz team loves a good home project as much as anyone. But stone fabrication and installation are specialized trades for a reason. Professional installation is not just a luxury. It is a necessity to protect your investment.
There are five things to consider when homeowners choose stone:
- Slab size and weight.
- Digital templating.
- Addressing seams.
- Tooling and dust control.
- Product warranty.
Each of these items presents challenges for DIYers. Even if you are the most handy person in your neighborhood, we urge you to let professionals install your new quartz, marble, granite, or quartzite counters. Purchase from us and you will enjoy the peace of mind that comes with knowing that we install everything we sell.
1. Slab Size and Weight
The biggest challenge of stone countertop installation is the material itself. Stone slabs are large and heavy. Unlike laminate and wood countertops, the sheer physics of moving and installing stone take years to master. Stone is incredibly heavy and deceptively fragile until it’s properly supported.
- Weight – A standard 3cm slab of granite or quartz can weigh as much as 19 lbs. per square foot. A fully constructed island with a stone countertop can easily weigh more than 400 lbs.
- Risk – Moving a slab weighing hundreds of pounds presents significant risks to both installation crews and the slab itself. Get it wrong and a worker can be injured or the slab damaged. And if you have never done it before, the risk is too great.
- Strength – Even though natural stone is strong, the strength of a fabricated slab is limited until it is properly supported. Therefore, it must be moved with the utmost care. Pushing its strength to the limit could end up breaking a slab in half before it is ever installed.
It is not enough to recruit a neighbor and ask him to help you carry a stone slab from your truck into the house. You could both injure yourselves. You could also significantly damage the slab, turning your investment into money down the drain.
2. Digital Templating
A typical DIYer does not have laser templating equipment and software lying around. Measurements are done with a tape measure and pencil. While manual measurements work just fine for wood and laminate, they are a no-go with stone countertops.
You only get one shot with stone. If you do not get it right the first time, there is no opportunity to fix the mistake without ruining the entire project. Such risks are exacerbated by the fact that Utah homes, especially those on the Wasatch Front, are prone to significant settling. Your house has probably settled enough that none of your walls are perfectly square. So to ensure a proper fit, measurements for stone countertops need to be precise.
Even an eighth-of-an-inch deviation can throw off an installation all the way down. That means unsightly gaps and other highly visible imperfections. We prevent such problems by utilizing tools that make a digital map of your space. The result is a glove-like fit that appears seamless.
3. Addressing the Seams
A countertop appearing seamless probably still has seams in it. In fact, one of the hallmarks of DIY installation is a seam visible enough to stick out like a sore thumb. Here’s what most DIYers don’t know:
- Manual Seam Setting – Achieving a tight seam with manual tools is nearly impossible. Because most DIYers do not have the proper tools, they wind up with countertops featuring lipped edges or easily visible lines of epoxy.
- Automated Seam Setting – Professional installers use automated seam setters and vacuum equipment to pull slabs together with thousands of pounds of force. That eliminates lips. We then utilize custom tints to ensure that any epoxy filler matches the natural look of the slabs.
Most stone countertop installations will have at least one seam. But the advantage of professional installation is having that seam virtually disappear from view. On the other hand, seams are clearly visible when installation is performed by DIYers without the knowledge or tools to set seams properly.
4. Tooling and Dust Control
Although stone slabs are fabricated in our workshop, they require a bit of work on-site. Technicians often need to drill holes for faucets, trim for cooktops, and polish the edges. This work requires specialized tools that do two things:
- Modify the material without damaging it.
- Control silica dust, which is not good to breathe.
Tools make the difference when it comes to both finishing and controlling dust. You could rent the tools from your local DIY outlet, but is doing so worth the cost? More importantly, do you know how to use them?
5. Product Warranty
Your purchase of granite, marble, quartzite, and quartz is an investment in your home. You are paying for both the materials and expert installation. Does your investment come with a warranty? Given that you will be spending thousands of dollars, it should.
Unfortunately, damage incurred during DIY installation is not covered by most warranties. Furthermore, most long-term warranties offered by major brands are only valid if countertops are installed by professionals. DIY installation could actually void your warranty.
When you purchase through Bedrock Quartz, we take all the risk. We ensure the slab from the moment it leaves our shop until installation is complete. The warranty that comes with your slab remains intact for its entire life.
While it is technically possible to install a stone countertop yourself, we do not advise it. It’s too risky. Moreover, we install what we sell. Why not let us do the work for you?
FAQs
How heavy are stone countertops, really?
At just 1.25 inches thick, a slab of quartz or granite can easily weigh between 15 and 20 lbs. per square foot. You could be looking at up to 800 lbs. of material for a standard 40-square-foot kitchen.
Being so heavy, will my cabinets support stone?
In most cases, standard cabinetry will support stone slabs. But additional support and leveling materials can be added if necessary.
Can stone slabs be carried like plywood?
Improper carrying is among the most common ways DIYers break stone slabs. Stone countertops are not sheets of plywood. They cannot be carried the same way.
What tools are necessary for professional-grade installation?
To do a job like the pros, you would need laser templating equipment, an automated seam setter, a diamond-core wet saw, and industrial dust extractors – at bare minimum.
Does DIY installation impact warranty?
In most cases, yes. DIY installation voids most standard warranties covering workmanship and materials.
