Quartz Countertop Stain

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Quartz Countertop Stain

by Joseph
(Dublin, Ireland)

Quartz Countertop Stain

QUESTION:

I have a HanStone quartz counter top. Tea stains it. The manufacturer has told me to leave a soap/water solution to seep in and then clean it.

But I thought quartz is non porous and should not stain. Is there a sealer I should use for quartz? Some of the stains are not coming out. I bought quartz to avoid this very problem. Please advise?

ANSWER:

Well, makers of quartz countertops like to tout their product as "non-porous," but they all hedge and claim stain-resistant and not stain-proof.

Straight from HanStone website:

HanStone™ is a non-porous material that is highly resistant to stain, scratches and heat. However, it is not stain, scratch, or heat proof.

How they can legally get away with these contradictory statements is beyond me. It's unfortunate that they feel the need to be misleading, but they have to try to gain an edge somehow since granite has a long-established and better reputation.

You probably wish you knew this sooner, but there are some varieties of granite that are truly stain-proof. They are so dense that nothing gets absorbed, unless maybe a liquid was able to sit a few days without evaporating, which of course is near impossible.

If you are setting tea cup on the countertop and spills are staining, then the surface is obviously porous.

HanStone warns not to use any solvent on their quartz countertop. This may damage the resin and color pigments. Solvents are used all the time to clean granite and marble.

Because of this, I'm a bit hesitant on making a recommendation about what you should do to clean it.

Cleaning The Stain

Typically in this situation with marble or granite I'd suggest using a poultice.

In your case, I don't have too much confidence that it would have any effect.

Sealing

I would call HanStone and ask them if a sealer will damage the surface. I doubt it will, but I'm not certain.

If not, then yes I'd apply one of these recommended marble & granite sealers. Follow the directions carefully and wipe the excess sealer off the surface before it dries.

Good Luck,
Ryan

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Quartz Countertop Stain

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Mr. Clean on Quartz
by: Anonymous

It is recommended not to use this product or Vim as over time it WILL dull the surface, ok once in a while if absolutely need to remove stuborn surface grim.

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Hanstone quartz countertops
by: Anonymous

I built a new home and have Hanstone Tiffany Grey countertops. They are awful!!

Salesman are salesman and they won't tell you the cons until you call and complain. You have to do that research on your own.

I use the cleaner they gave me or Norwex rags to clean and buff the countertops to get the water drops/rings off. It's back breaking work.

I bought these countertops because they are supposed to be easy to take care of scratch/chip/heat resistant, but if any kind of direct sunlight hits the top you can see every water drop, smudge, fingerprint, and they are dull.

The only time they looked nice was the first week they were installed. Now, I just chipped the countertop with a hard PLASTIC water bottle. It was full of water, I went to pour water into a glass and just hit the bottom of the plastic bottle against the edge of the counter and it chipped. Of course, this isn't covered under the pointless warranty and they don't even know if they can fix it because it's one color as opposed to a variety of color like granite.

BUYER BEWARE! DO NOT BUY HANSTONE QUARTZ COUNTERTOPS. I know nothing about granite, but you're better off with laminate or anything else than quartz, particularly Hanstone Tiffany Grey.

====Admin Comment: Very sorry to hear you've had such a crummy experience with Hanstone quartz countertops. Quartz countertops certainly have maintenance issues that buyers need to be aware of (but are not often disclosed accurately in marketing), however, in general quartz countertops are excellent countertop materials.

The unfortunate fact is that granite can almost always be repaired, but damage to quartz countertops is almost always permanent.

For your chip you can use Marble & Granite Repair Kit for Chips/Pits. The "gel" is for level surfaces and the "paste" for edges and vertical surfaces.

Good Luck!

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My white quartz has turned light brown
by: Anonymous

I have a white quartz countertop and I cleaned it up with Lysol mold and mildew ( bleach) and in few seconds it changed it's colour I don't know what to do I just got it fixed few months ago please can someone help me

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This thread is about quartz stains not Quartz vs. Granite
by: Tomco

Anonymously spouting off about the truth about quartz but failing to tell the "truth"

Frustrating to see such really bad / false information!

Both Quartz and Granite are great countertop material.

Each year over the last 6 years consumer reports has ran a battery of performance test on a variety of countertop materials and each year has concluded that quartz is #1 & granite is #2 in the best performing countertops category.

IMO they both are equally great "safe" choices. Choose for the look and color you are going for not the marketing hype.

They both have their little plus's and minus's but are hands down the best performing countertop surfaces available today.

A word of caution regarding the pure white quartz countertops. Not to steer you away from them if it's what you want but be aware, they require a lot more effort to keep looking clean and spot free.

==== ADMIN COMMENT: Agreed.... lots of erroneous information out there regarding both granite and quartz countertops. Mainly it comes from the quartz countertop manufacturers and then gets passed around.

But as tomco stated you won't go wrong with either.

The testing Consumer Reports does is basically accurate regarding quartz and granite countertops except for the glaring omission of comparable repair options, which is where granite pulls ahead of quartz.

Granite can almost always be repaired, stains removed, surface restored, etc. Whereas damage to quartz usually cannot be repaired or restored and is permanent.

In our opinion that is THE major, relevant difference between granite and quartz countertops.

And the fact that granite has 2000+ color/pattern options and quartz around 100... but most people will be able to find something they like with either so this difference is of minor relevance comparatively speaking.

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Bar keepers friend should be renamed Quartz countertops friend
by: Tomco

Available at Home Depot, Lowes, Target and many other retail stores, Barkeepers friend, a soft cloth, clean water and a little elbow grease and 99% of the stain and mark issues mentioned in these post are gone. Same goes for not as easily found Bon Ami.

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Unexpected Stain
by: Anonymous

A battery operated intercom we use for our granddaughter when she sleeps over, permanently stained our quartz counter. Had a technician from the company that makes the quartz come to see the stain, and he said they could not fix it or honor the 10 year warranty. He said the battery in the intercom was corroded and that was not covered under the warranty. There is nothing on the company's website or their literature that mentions avoiding battery operated devices placed on the quartz. Plus, there were no visible signs of corrosion on the outside of the device.
The good news is that we took the company to small claims court and won!!!!

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white bloches on black quartz
by: Anonymous

i did not find an answer to my problem. i have these white bloches on my black quartz counter top how can i repair it. the people that i bought it from can't and won't help me. but they were quick to convience me to buy quartz instead of granite.

====ANSWER: White blotches on quartz countertops are usually from chemical damage. Quartz is an excellent surface, but unfortunately the marketing message gives consumers the impression that quartz cannot be damaged (stained, scratched, burnt) etc..... but it can be damaged by many types of fairly common chemicals.

Usually the damage is permanent. But I'd call the manufacturer of the quartz and see if they can advise.

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white corian
by: Anonymous

i have stains around the sink. i tried tide stain releaser (for clothes) - it appeared to do the trick. magic eraser sounds pretty good. will give that a try near the stove.

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MAGIC ERASER
by: Anonymous

I read your comments and tried the Magic Eraser, in 2 seconds, my wine stain was gone. I am relieved!

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white rings on quartz
by: Anonymous

I don't think your white rings are water rings. Apparently, quartz countertops will scorch if high temp pans are placed on them. I was told that quartz countertops were impervious to heat, but alas it is not. I have some faint white rings and two distinct white rings on my dark countertop and have been told it's from scorching. Dealer is coming to try dying the stains (though it's supposed to be nonporous as well).

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Quartz Countertops
by: Anonymous

I had a dark brown quartz countertop installed on my kitchen island that was absolutely beautiful and now after two years it has light colored water rings clear across it that show really bad. It looks terrible and I can't figure out how to get them off. I've tried several stone cleaners. Not sure I would do quartz again!

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Hanstone countertop
by: Sorana

It's been 2 years since I have a HanStone kitchen quartz countertop and I haven't noticed yet anything bad to it, as the others mentioned above, not a spot, not even a scrach... looks like it was installed yesterday, but I do not use harshy chemicals, not even put hot things on top, and I only clean it with dish soap, but I have to mention that mine is redish-brown in colour, I quess the right colour to conceal any possible spots.

Now I was looking to change the vanity top with a quartz one, but reading your posts here made me think twice before, in bathroom you have to use chemicals to clean the bowl, sink and the surfaces near to it, if the quartz gets stained or the resines are destroyed don't know if will look over the years.

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stain removal
by: Anonymous

Just tried the 409 and pad suggestion. Worked perfectly. Had a ring from tea pitcher. Used all different things with no luck. This suggestion was great. Thanks!

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quartz stains
by: Anonymous

it stains that is the bottom line. I have tried the solutions given here (hydrogen peroxide, etc. they don't work . Get granite

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Tomco & Don't do Quartz
by: Ryan

Yes, the lighter colored and especially white colors of quartz are the most problematic and I can understand people with these colors thinking quartz is crappy.

However, the vast majority of people who install quartz are very satisfied with it. All in all it is one of the best surfaces you can install in a kitchen.

Tomco states that it is nearly impossible to stain. True, quartz does not stain easy. The problem is that when it does stain, you really can't get it out. Surface stains can be removed as Tomco suggests, but those aren't really stains, just substances tough to clean.

You don't have to seal quartz, but many granites you don't have to seal either despite what you read that all granite must be sealed.

And as Tomco states:

"The most common household items that stain natural stone e.g. vegetable oil, water, food coloring, balsamic vinegar, red wine will not permanently stain quartz."

Well pure clean water won't stain anything and the others won't permanently stain natural stone either. But when they do stain natural stone you can remove the stain, which is not possible with most stains in quartz and that is the benefit of granite especially over quartz when there is a maintenance problem.

Otherwise quartz provides an excellent surface on par with granite.

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Dont go quartz
by: Anonymous

Quartz stains. With everything. I've hd a quartz countertop for the last year and everything stains it. A small drop from cups and bangs from pots has left my Quartz countertop with chips everywhere. If you pay for white be prepared for the, as the manufacturers say "natural back marks that cant be sanded out"

Biggest and most expensive mistake I've made was installing a quartz countertop. I also, used the most expensive and reputable company, and am very delicate with things myself.

As for cleaning, be careful. As you clean even with what the manufactures say you can use, the luster of the quartz goes and sometimes stains.

If you need to fix a chip. Don't bother, it'll never look the same.

My advice, purchase Granite. Even if it comes with marks on the stone, or get stained, chipped and repaired, the surface of the granite it's look etc. is at least more forgiving.

As for calling about warranties for quartz countertop. Don't bother. They just send out contracted losers who do a chop job and make things look worse. Then the guy with his big buddy will stand there telling you how it doesn't look bad at all and bully you into being convinced.

Quartz sucks no matter what company you buy it from.

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Quartz and stain resistance
by: Tomco

Quartz countertop surfacing is 99.9% solid and nearly impossible to stain, residue on the surface
appearing as a stains is most often going to be topical. Topical stains are removed easily with a white 3m scotch brite nonabrasive scrub pad and typical household cleaners like 409 or non abrasive cleansers like bar keepers friend (available at Home Depot) We do say "stain resistant" not stain proof because there are few things (like black magic markers, bleach)that will permanently stain certain lighter quartz colors (pure white being the most vulnerable)
Quartz countertops never need to be sealed. Most granite countertops do.The most common household items that stain natural stone e.g. vegetable oil, water, food coloring, balsamic vinegar, red wine will not permanently stain quartz.

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VIM, who knew
by: Anonymous

Had an oil stain from a cast iron pot left on my white quartz countertop for at least 24 hours (thought it was clean). After reading a few of these posts I decided to use vim and it got rid of every bit of stain.

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Quartz Countertops - from pro experience
by: Anonymous

Hello
I have been in the granite trade for the last 8 years and all i really have to say about a quartz countertop is that its a losing battle. If it does stain vim will take out most of the stains.

With that said im gonna tell you the truth about quartz countertops and you can decide if you still like quartz.

Quartz countertops can stain the lighter the colour the easier for staining. You can burn quartz so taking a hot pan or pot and putting it on top of it will cause it to discolour and blister.

Also which lots of people dont know is that quartz is mostly epoxy holding it together and epoxy breaks down in UV light so over time quartz will change colour. On average it take less then a year of daily sunlight for the quartz countertop to change colour but once again the lighter the colour the quicker the change.

Also quartz scratches very easily its about the same as marble or limestone nice to look at but dont touch.

I hope this helps you. And in case you were wondering granite is way better. Seal it when needed and you wont have to worry about stains or germs. And if someone feels like posting that granite gives off radiation keep this in mind one year of exposure to it is equivalent to 2 hours in the sun.

Food for thought.

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Mr. Clean Magic Eraser Bar
by: Anonymous

Cleaned my quartz countertop in seconds.

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