Cracks in the kitchen stone countertop

Stone, or artificial and natural stone is a very robust material, which is why cracks that occur through use are rather a rarity. However, whether you have a granite or marble countertop, or slabs of artificial stone / composites — all artificial and natural stonecounters can also be damaged in daily use. Especially in such demanding locations as a kitchen.

Here they are exposed to daily stresses, such as heat during cooking, impacts from kitchen appliances or chemicals such as cleaners or acids in food. Of course, there are differences in the sturdiness of the stones. For example, kitchen tops made of granite are once again significantly harder than those made of marble, but even the sturdiest stone can suffer damage if subjected to the appropriate stress.

Fractures and cracks in the kitchen worktop made of granite, marble and co.

A very classic example of damage is the crack in the stone slab, or in the kitchen worktop. It is usually the result of too high, mechanical or thermal load. That is, impact from blows, weight, vibrations and the like, as well as extreme heat. The three main causes of cracks in the stone are:

1 ) Cracks due to tension (or other, mechanical loads).
2 ) Cracks due to material fatigue
3 ) Cracks due to thermal stress (heat)

Stress cracks in the stone slab

Tension can be caused, for example, by the, under the stone slab, construction, or a sagging of the kitchen cabinet or cooking island, as a result of which the countertop could not properly rest at the necessary points. But do not worry too much about stress cracks in the stone slab in the stone slab: stone is a dead material, that is, it does not work by itself (as, for example, wood), and therefore it can not cause stress cracks without external action.

Cracks due to material fatigue

Vibrations, such as the permanent lifting and lowering of an old wooden floor under the kitchen counter, can cause material fatigue in the stone in the long run. This means that the smallest parts of the stone permanently rub against each other due to the up and down movement and thus become brittle. However, it is a long way until a stone fatigues, which is why there must be very unusual problems in the subsoil. A professional, such as a specialist from our installation team, will of course always take the conditions on site into account during an installation.

Cracks in the countertop due to heat

High, thermal stress, can also cause cracks in the stone, even if that, like the stress crack, occurs very rarely. A crack in the stone countertop due to heat can be caused, for example, when extremely hot kitchen utensils, such as pans or roasters from the oven, lead to extremely rapid heat differences at perhaps already sensitive points on the stone countertop, i.e. abrupt heating to extremely high temperatures, as well as very rapid cooling. We are talking here about temperatures from 200 degrees Celsius upwards. Accordingly, cooking pots are harmless, while particularly hot pans or roasters from the oven are more likely to cause such effects. We therefore recommend that you always use the appropriate supports or trays.

Cracks or hairline cracks in the kitchen countertop — that’s what you can do.

In most cases, the resulting cracks are very small. This does not mean their length, but the width of the visible crack line. We are talking about the so-called hairline crack in the stone slab. It is not uncommon for these to become noticeable only after a while, since the crack line is very thin and thus sometimes hardly visible. depending on the texture, color, pattern or thickness of the crack, the visibility varies. If the crack is not very visible, a simple surface treatment of the stone may be sufficient to repair it.

For more noticeable cracks, a surface treatment is usually no longer sufficient. And if you would have trusted yourself to treat the surface of the stone with the appropriate care products, you will have to call in a professional for larger cracks at the latest. Now there is no general description of how to repair a crack. The chosen method depends on the nature of the stone slab and the crack. However, our repair service team can quickly provide you with the right answer.