WHY RESIDENTIAL DESIGN NEEDS ADA



[pic]

Countertops

.2 CEU

2422#C Nantucket Drive. Houston, Texas 77057

Cell 713 269-6909 Email: BeverlyVosko@

Website: InteriorDesign-

Beverly Vosko

Countertops .2 CEU Handouts

Welcome to our seminar!

I. A countertop is a horizontal work surface in kitchens, other food preparation areas, and bathrooms

A. The term “countertop” first appeared in the late 19th C referencing store counters. Kitchen & bathroom countertops are an early 20th Century invention

B. The top trends in countertops have changed drastically in the last 50 years from bright yellow Formica to Carrara gold white quartz with black veining to white porcelain with black veining-each countertop style changing as the newer, trendier “more modern” designs took over

II. Kitchen and bathroom countertops have changed a great deal since their inception in the early 20th century

A. In the 19th century the only areas that had countertops were pantries and serving areas in upscale kitchens that were often made of marble or wood. These countertops weren’t integrated into the kitchen since electricity hadn’t been invented yet and since the kitchen was so basic and had so few things in it, that it didn’t require any countertops

B. Kitchens from the 1900’s-1920’s represented a major advancement over kitchens in the late 19th Century. An early 1900’s kitchen had the following:

1. Most houses became connected to a municipal water system so kitchens now had sinks and running water but those sinks were individual pieces.

They were metal, were mounted to the wall, sometimes with attached

drainboards, and had 2 or 4 legs like a furniture piece but no countertop

2. Gas ranges were invented so people began replacing their wood or coal burning cast iron stoves with the “more modern” gas stoves

3. The Fridge which was called the “icebox” was an insulated cabinet, lined with tin or zinc, with a slot for a giant block of ice, delivered weekly by the ice man

4. A single piece of furniture incorporating storage and work surfaces called a Hoosier cabinet

C. In the late 1920’s-early 1930’s a booming trade developed in freestanding kitchen cabinets, which provided both storage and workspace

D. And eventually those cabinets were built in but even then the countertops were built at different heights for each built in cabinet as opposed to having one unified countertop

E. It wasn’t until the 1930s that kitchen countertops took on their modern shapes Somewhere between 1930-1940 all the cabinets in the kitchen including the countertops became unified and were all built at the same approximate height. They were built at about the same height as our present kitchen cabinets/countertops which about 36” high but were shallower than our present day cabinets /countertops– only about 15”-22” deep

F. 1930’s kitchen countertops

1. The earliest kitchen cabinets and kitchen countertops were made of metal -specifically a copper and nickel alloy called Monel

1. The 1930’s kitchen is replete with color and pattern with checkerboard linoleum floors and bright yellows, lime green and bright blue walls

2. Most 1930’s kitchen countertops were made of the iconic 4” by 4” ceramic tiles that were either lime green, bright yellow or in a black and white checkerboard pattern. But tile needs to be grouted and grout is a harbinger for mold and bacteria so tile is not an ideal countertop

3. And 1930’s bathrooms had 4” by 4” ceramic tile countertops as well

G. 1940s Kitchen countertops

1. Stainless steel cabinets burst onto the scene after World War II and initially were topped with 4” by 4” tile countertops in either lime green or bright yellow which remained popular throughout the 1940s BUT

2. A new plastic laminate called “Formica” appeared after World War II ended in 1945 that became the “new” substitute for tile countertops Formica countertops, which came in every color of the rainbow, became very trendy in the mid-late 1940’s-and were the most popular countertops throughout the 1950’s and 1960’s

a. In the 1950’s turquoise was a very popular color for Formica kitchen countertops

b. In the 1960s bright yellow, lime green and hot pink were popular colors

c. Butcher block countertops were also popular in the 1950’s and 1960’s A butcher block countertop is one that has strips of wood joined mechanically or with adhesive to make a solid surface. But wood is porous and not waterproof and is therefore susceptible to water damage. Wood can be particularly problematic around the sink and stove, where it is exposed to water, grease, and heat so its not an ideal kitchen countertop

H. In the 1970’s Corian replaced Formica as a stronger better-quality option for countertops. Corian remained the most popular countertop throughout 1980s

1. Corian was the 1st solid surface brand developed by Dupont. Solid surface is a man-made material composed of approximately 33% epoxy or polyester resins - ie glue and 66% minerals. Corian was typically manufactured in sheet form and fabricated into surfaces such as kitchens and bathrooms countertops which frequently had seamless installations

2. Corian soon became manufactured and delivered in more than 100 colors most of which were speckled

3. Corian was manmade and all man-made products have no pores so are not porous – they are impermeable meaning that nothing can penetrate them and therefore don’t absorb food and bacteria and don’t stain so are much lower maintenance than natural products such as stone

4. Corian was not only used on kitchen countertops, it also became very popular for bathroom countertops and bath surrounds in the 1970’s and 1980’s replacing marble

I. In the 1980’s Granite began to replace Corian as the most popular material for kitchen countertops

1. Advantages of Granite over Corian and other Solid Surface materials

a. Corian/Solid Surface was a manmade product that was impermeable so wouldn’t stain but was not heat resistant and could scratch

b. Granite was a natural stone. Some granites were slightly porous and could absorb liquid and stain, etch and needed to be sealed but most granites were not very porous and didn’t absorb liquid and stain, etch or needed to be sealed. Granite was heat resistant and didn’t scratch so most Granites were much lower maintenance than Corian in that fact that they were heat, stain, scratch and chemical resistant so everyone wanted granite countertops

c. The 3 Granite colors that were popular initially were Uba Tuba, Baltic Brown and St. Ceclia

d. But Granite was initially quite a bit more expensive than Corian

J. By 1990 granite was “the” most popular kitchen countertop and continued to be a popular countertop option until 2010 in some parts of the U.S

1. In the late 1990’s granite with lots of movement replaced the homogenous granite of the 1980’s. One of the most popular granite’s in the 1990s’- 2000’s was Yellow River

2. Black granite countertops sitting on white wood cabinets were also very popular from the 1990s through the early 2000s and remained popular through 2010

K. In 1990 the company Cosentino brought out another manmade type of countertop called Silestone which is actually the 1st Quartz, which was initially used as a less expensive substitute for granite during the 1990’s-2000’s

1. Silestone came in a host of colors and patterns and its coloring was consistent and homogenous and resembled Corian or the early granites vs the quartz that appeared later in the 2000’s

2. Comparison of Silestone countertops and Corian (or other solid surface material) quartz, granite and marble

a. Corian is a low-priced, medium quality manmade material that was developed in response to laminate, a much weaker and even lower-quality option. Corian doesn’t offer the resilience and durability of quartz which is also a manmade material but has superior functionality. Silestone which is a Quartz, resists scratches, mold, and mildew, and Corian does not. And Silestone (and all Quartz) is much stronger and more durable. Corian is nonporous and, when properly cleaned, does not support the growth of mold, mildew, and bacteria but isn’t antimicrobial like quartz is

b. Granite is a natural stone so each slab is unique and individual and many people like that. Granite is heat resistant- you can put a pan right out of the oven or a pot right off the burners on it and it will not crack. You can’t do that with either Corian or Silestone or any Quartz –they have plastic resin in them and will burn/melt and discolor - and being heat resistant is a big plus in kitchens

c. Marble is also a natural stone but it is not as hard as Granite or Silestone or any Quartz and it is more porous than Granite (and of course more porous than Corian, Silestone or any Quartz which are all manmade).

d. On the positive side, Silestone (and all quartz) is antimicrobial which mean that it kills microorganisms and stops their growth before they get a chance to multiply – bacteria simply wont grow on any Quartz- which is a huge plus in kitchens, bathrooms, restaurant kitchens and hospitals

e. It is important to realize that Silestone IS the first quartz. Silestone just didn’t have the visual appeal that the later Quartz’s had as Quartz manufacturing continued to evolve

L. Countertops from the 2000’s

1. Marble

a. Marble’s like Blue Bahia were popular kitchen countertops in the 1990s

b. Then in the 2000’s white marble such as Carrara marble countertops became very popular especially on painted white wood kitchen cabinets and this combination of white on white kitchen cabinet and countertop stayed popular from the early 2000’s through 2010. These marbles, like all marble are natural materials have a lot of individuality - each slab was slightly different

c. Another white marble that became popular in the mid 2000’s was Calcutta marble countertops which had lots of large veins

f. But marble is porous and absorbs liquids and stains when exposed to red wine, tomato juice, strawberries, oils etc and etches when exposed to acidic liquids such as vinegar, lemon or lime juice. … And white marbles like Carrara and Calcutta marble show those stains very clearly. It can also have mold grow underneath it when used in wet areas – so it isn’t an ideal kitchen countertop even if it is very pretty

g. So the world looked for a “marble look alike” that was more practical

2. Quartz

a. The innovation of technology and 3D printing, enabled manufacturers to create quartz countertops that looked very much like marble

b. Quartz became trendy in the 2000s as a great marble substitute.

Somewhere between 2000-2010 quartz countertops began to appear and by 2015, quartz countertops replaced both granite and marble in popularity – with white and gray Quartz countertops initially being the most popular

c. Quartz replicated both Carrara and Calcutta gold marbles, was available in various finishes from leather texture to shiny polished and smooth to matt honed

d. Companies such as Caesarstone, Color Quartz and Cambria are producing beautiful high-grade quartz which, as a new trend, is being used not only on the kitchen countertop but all over the kitchen island- top and sides as well

3. Quartzite

a. Quartzite is another countertop material that became popular in the 2000’s – but not as popular as Quartz. Quartzite is often confused with Quartz but the 2 materials are very different. Quartzite is a hard natural stone that was originally sandstone and through the natural process of heating and pressure under the earth’s surface became fused with quartz crystals and metamorphosized into quartzite

b. The biggest difference between quartz and quartzite is that quartz is a man-made material, while quartzite is a natural stone so quartzite has all the properties of natural stone while quartz has all the properties of a manmade material

c. Comparison of Quartz, Marble, Granite and Quartzite: Hardness

1. Quartzite is much harder than marble, is harder than quartz and is even harder than granite

2. The best way to ascertain the hardness of a material is to see its rating on the Mohs Hardness Scale, which is a rough measure of the resistance of a smooth surface to scratching or abrasion, expressed in terms of a scale devised in 1812 by the German mineralogist Friedrich Mohs. The higher the rating on the Mohs hardness scale, the harder the material

3. Marble only has a 5 rating so it is not that hard. Granite has a 6 -7 rating, depending upon the granite- so it is very hard.  But both Quartz and Quartzite have a 7 rating on the Mohs Hardness Scale so they are harder. Granite gets its hardness from its Quartz content and both Quartz and Quartzite contain more Quartz per volume than Granite so both Quartz and Quartzite are harder than Granite and ironically, Quartzite’s composition has even more Quartz than Quartz itself since Quartz is composed of up to 25% plastic resin, so Quartzite is even harder that Quartz

d. Comparison of Quartz, Marble, Granite and Quartzite: Heat Resistance

1. Both Quartzite and Granite are much more heat resistant than Quartz because the resin used to manufacture Quartz countertops is a plastic, and like all plastics is prone to melting in heat above 300 degrees Fahrenheit –so you need to use trivets when placing hot items out of the oven or directly off the cooktop onto Quartz

2. Carrara Marble can withstand temperatures up to 480 degrees Fahrenheit and other types of Marble can resist even higher temperatures but if too hot a pot or pan is placed on Marble, some discoloration or burn damage can occur and extreme heat can cause it to crack so you need to use trivets when placing hot items out of the oven or directly off the cooktop onto Marble as well

3. Quartzite is heat resistant and will be able to withstand hot pots and pans on its surface, although it might be best to use trivets on Quartzite countertops just to be safe 

4. Granite is the most heat-resistant countertop materials you can buy

e. Comparison of Quartz, Marble, Granite and Quartzite: Porosity

1. Marble is the most porous of the 4 and can stain and etch

2. Most Granites are just slightly porous, but white Granites can stain

3. Quartzite is denser and even less porous than granite

4. Quartz is totally impermeable

M. Countertops from the 2020’s

1. The new trend in 2020 is porcelain countertops. Porcelain countertops have been popular in Europe for years but began gaining popularity in the U.S. for people seeking a new unique, stylish surface in 2020

2. Advantages of Porcelain Countertops

a. Porcelain countertops are made from ceramic clay that is baked in a kiln at very high temperatures which produce a very durable scratch-resistant, heat-resistant countertop material

b. Since Porcelain countertops are manmade, they are not porous so are stain-resistant and their finish is baked on which offers even more stain resistance. Unlike porous materials such as marble, granite or quartzite, liquids and even chemicals will not penetrate porcelain easily

c. Porcelain countertops are resistant to UV light, making them popular for outdoor kitchens

d. Porcelain countertops don’t have to be sealed

e. The colors and patterns on porcelain countertops are achieved by adding pigments (known as “glaze”) to the surface and can make the surface resemble everything from marble to wood and even steel – whatever anyone wants

3. Disadvantages of Porcelain Countertops

a. The colors and patterns on porcelain countertops are only surface-deep they are only topical– like a radish…In the event a chip or scratch does occur, you’ll see the white undersurface of that porcelain and that chip or scratch will show – so porcelain isn’t as maintenance free as quartz is, where the color and pattern is continuous throughout that entire slab like a carrot and chips and scratches won’t show

b. There are only two possible edge options for porcelain countertops: square or mitered. Since porcelain countertops are very thin, manufacturers must use mitered rather than square edges to make the countertops appear thicker and more substantial than they actually are– and mitered edges cost more to fabricate than square edges. All the other countertop materials can use all the edge choices: square, bull nose, ogee etc. edges which are less expensive to fabricate than mitered edges

c. Many of the porcelain countertops in the United States are imported from Europe, which means higher material costs just for importing them, that don’t necessarily translate into getting a superior material. This cost will come down with economies of scale when more Americans make and purchase porcelain countertops and when the learning curve for the fabricating of those porcelain countertops improves

d. A quartz countertop will provide more depth than a porcelain one aiming for the same look. Though porcelain slab manufacturers boast of their ability to produce a ‘marble look’ porcelain countertop, in reality, it won’t have the same depth as a ‘marble look’ quartz countertop that has a real three-dimensional look

e. You only have 2 finish options for porcelain countertops: high-gloss glaze and matte - but those are the 2 most popular finishes today

Bibliograhy

1. Countertops Throughout History, Old House Web, Advice and Ideas for Old House Enthusiasts

2. The History of Countertops, Redoux - online

3. How Countertops Have Changed in the Last 50 Years - online

4. Various other online Countertop sites

Biography

Beverly Vosko, Allied Member ASID, RID, UDCP (Universal Design Certified Professional), CAPS, L.E.E.D Green Associate, CGP (is a full service, Registered Interior Designer in Texas #6333. She is President and founder of both Beverly Vosko Interiors and InteriorDesign-ED; both DBA’s for C. V. Design Inc. For over 25 years, she has been designing homes across the United States and Europe, specializing in creating custom residential and commercial environments, be they traditional, transitional, contemporary or eclectic, that match her design clients’ every need, through her design firm, Beverly Vosko Interiors.  For nearly 20 years, she has taught Interior Design: first at Rice University, then at the University of Houston, and for the last 10 years nationally, with her Continuing Education company, InteriorDesign-ED. Specifically, she has taught Interior Design, Aging in Place, Green/Sustainable Design, Lighting and Antiques.  She graduated Phi Beta Kappa, Magna Cum Laude from the University of Pennsylvania, studied Art History at Harvard University, received her MBA in Marketing from NYU Stern Graduate Business School, and completed Design and Antiques training from Sotheby’s, the world-renowned Inchbald School of Design and Houston Community College. Please view her websites,  and InteriorDesign-

................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download