Two factors homeowners should consider when shopping for kitchen benchtops

Here are two factors homeowners should consider when shopping for kitchen benchtops.

How much maintenance each benchtop material requires

It's essential for any homeowner who's buying benchtops to consider how much maintenance each benchtop material they like would require. For example, granite is quite porous and in a household where a set of granite benchtops are in regular use, the benchtops might need to be resealed once a year. Likewise, wooden benchtops require periodic refinishing as well, to prevent them from becoming too porous and prone to staining and absorbing food odours.

As such, although these materials can be used to produce beautiful-looking benchtops, they are higher maintenance than benchtop materials that have a low level of porosity and don't require resealing or refinishing, such as soapstone or quartz. This does not mean that homeowners should avoid getting granite or wood benchtops; rather, they should simply keep in mind that if they do, they'll need to put more time into taking care of this feature of their kitchen than they would if they choose other benchtops. If a homeowner takes great pride in their kitchen and is happy to spend some additional time and money taking care of its beautiful benchtops, then these higher-maintenance benchtop materials should be fine. However, if a homeowner doesn't want to do more than basic sanitisation of their benchtops, then they would be better off getting low-maintenance ones made of soapstone or quartz.

The edge profile they want the benchtops to have

Homeowners should also consider the type of edge profile they want their benchtops to have. If for example, a homeowner has young children, they might want to avoid benchtops with bevelled or coved edge profiles, as these edges have some sharp areas that might be hazardous for young children, who might be likely to bump their heads on them whilst running around the kitchen. For these homeowners, benchtops with rounded edge profiles would be safer.

If a homeowner wants their benchtops to be very easy to clean, they might want to avoid benchtops with ogee edge profiles, as these require quite a lot of scrubbing, to remove the extra grime that tends to accumulate on their convex and concave curves. However, bevelled and ogee edge profiles are perfect for homeowners whose priority is making their kitchen visually interesting and beautiful, as these edge profiles can add a touch of ornateness to even the plainest-looking kitchen benchtops.

For more information on kitchen benchtops, contact a professional near you.

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