ᐅ Kitchen consultation: granite countertop and Siemens appliances?

Quartz stone has already been mentioned. In my opinion, it offers the best compromise overall.
Ceramic is also very good but tends to be quite expensive and can be somewhat more prone to chipping because it is brittle.
The only downside with quartz stone is that placing a hot pot or pan directly on it can be problematic. The resin may react and cause discoloration.
However, this is less of an issue nowadays, and having a few pot holders handy is always a good idea—after all, you sometimes place items directly on the dining table as well.

Oh, and stainless steel is, of course, also very good, but not everyone likes the look. In my opinion, it works better if everything else is already in a stainless steel finish; otherwise, it can quickly resemble a takeaway food stall.

Pwnage619 schrieb:

Is granite the "best" choice for a countertop?

For us, the most important aspects are that the countertop is durable, sturdy, scratch-resistant, easy to maintain, and hygienic.

What would you say is better: granite or ceramic? Or maybe something else?

I would say yes... So if you really don’t consider the price and it doesn’t matter to you, I’d go with a granite countertop.

The only thing is you have to be careful with acidic foods—they can immediately damage the granite, so don’t leave them sitting openly on the surface!

Exact granite is really cool in itself, but it is sensitive to acids, which basically rules it out for me in the kitchen. At least for me, the kitchen is the place where most acid exposure happens.

Also, most granite has too lively a look for me (or rather my wife).

That’s why quartz composite is so great. It is basically artificial granite, color-mixed to your preference.

I will take another look at quartz stone; it’s probably cheaper than granite, right?

I read that ceramic can match granite in terms of scratch and impact resistance and is also very low maintenance since it doesn’t require sealing. Ceramic is completely water- and acid-resistant as well.

Does anyone know if ceramic is cheaper, more expensive, or about the same price as granite?

We currently have the kitchen planned with granite for 15,500€ and that fits our budget.

Quartz stone is sometimes also called engineered stone or quartz composite.
Based on my research (although it is a year old), granite starts off cheaper (but can look really unattractive) and gets more expensive (for top-quality material).
The median price (without having done a proper statistical analysis) seemed to me to be lower for quartz composite than for granite.
Ceramics are usually more expensive.
Regarding impact resistance: ceramics tend to crack immediately (forming a longer fracture), and in my opinion, it is also more visible. With granite, the damage stays localized at the impact area and depending on the surface, it can blend completely with the pattern.
Scratch resistance: ceramics are more scratch-resistant than granite.

Hmm, so would you say granite is better than ceramic? The kitchen showroom currently has a very nice granite countertop on offer, so the additional cost isn’t that high.