Within Hays County, a two-story plan in Buda with the kitchen on the ground floor keeps the carry path short.
Choosing between the stones
The first choice is natural or engineered. Granite, quartzite and marble are cut from the earth, so every slab is different and you pick the actual slab we cut. Quartz and porcelain are made to a pattern, so a sample shows you what the whole slab looks like. After that, the choice comes down to heat, care and look.
Granite is the working stone. It takes normal pan heat and resists scratches, and it needs a penetrating sealer. Quartzite looks closer to marble and is harder than granite, with the same need for sealer. Quartz asks for no sealer at all and stays clean with soap and water, but it wants a trivet under a hot pot, and it never goes outside, because sunlight yellows its resin.
Marble etches from acids and scratches more easily than the others, and it needs resealing over the years. People who choose it for a kitchen choose the patina too. Porcelain is thin, often 12 mm, and it resists heat, sun and stains. Its printed face can stop at the edge, so a mitered edge is the common fix, and it needs a solid, level base underneath.
Sinks and cutouts
Undermount, drop-in, farmhouse and vessel sinks all work with stone, and each one shapes the cutout. An undermount sink hangs below the counter, so the cut edge is polished and stays in view. A drop-in sink rests on top, and its rim covers the cut. A farmhouse sink needs its own base cabinet and a cutout sized to its front. A vessel sink sits on the counter and needs a drain hole and a faucet hole. An integrated sink is shaped from the same material as the top, and we talk that option through at the estimate. The sink and cooktop openings are cut in our shop from the template.
Picking the slab
Natural stone is picked in person, at any stone yard in Houston or the Austin area, and you send us a photo of the slab tag so the slab can be confirmed at template. Stand back first to see how the pattern moves across the whole slab, then look close at the area where the sink will go. Bring a cabinet door or a photo of the floor, since yard lighting flattens color. Yards sell granite by level, and the level reflects rarity and yield, not strength. Quartz and porcelain are chosen from samples, and every slab of a pattern matches its sample. Whatever you choose, we lay the template out on that slab so the strongest part of the pattern lands where you look most.
From estimate to install
You will see us three times. The first visit is the free estimate. We measure enough to price the job, check the cabinets for level, look at the sink and the cooktop and bring samples, so you can see each stone in your own light. The written price lists the stone, the edges, the cutouts, tear-out and the sink install line by line.
The second visit is the template. It happens once the cabinets are set and level. Our templater records the room digitally, which catches walls that are out of square, and settles the seam placement and the overhangs with you. Nothing is cut before that. In our shop, the slab is then cut to the template, with the sink and cooktop openings cut and the edges polished.
The third visit is the install. The crew removes the old tops and takes them away, sets the stone on the cabinets, fills the seams with epoxy tinted to the stone and sets the sink. Faucet holes are drilled on site at install, where the faucet will sit. Natural stone gets sealer, and the crew cleans up before it leaves.
The scheduled trip
Every Austin-area visit rides the same scheduled trip from our Houston shop. Samples come to the estimate, and between trips the slab is cut to the template in that shop, so the install trip brings the finished tops, the epoxy and the sealer in one run.
Where we work and how to start
Close to Buda, we also work in Kyle, Austin and San Marcos.
For a free in-home estimate in Buda, fill in the form below or call. A few photos of the counters help us come prepared.