Raw full size granite slabs vs. prefab slabs
Prefabs are produced in bulk, mainly in countries like China, and shipped to the United States at very low prices. These counters are also considered to be of reasonable cost, since the labor cost of custom fabrication is not really needed. The convenience of prefabs are great for the common and simple bathroom vanity, but are they equally economical in a kitchen?
The layout of a kitchen is the determining factor of whether prefabs are economical or not. A small galley kitchen might be easily re-modeled with prefabs, if one 8 foot stretch of granite can be installed along each side. This works because the two separately manufactured prefab granite countertops are most likely not from matching slabs of granite. In a galley kitchen, the walkway separating the two tops could be enough space to fool the eye into thinking that the prefabs are the exact same color.
Any custom kitchen will be hard to cover with prefabs as well. If there are wall outcrops, varied countertop widths, bar tops, or a peninsula, you will find that prefabricated countertops carry a high waste factor. Furthermore, while prefab peninsulas are generally available, you may find the cost per square foot of material to exceed what you would pay for raw slab material, even when you end up with a prefab that is bigger or smaller than what you needed.
www.Southwest-Granite.com
Ultimately, a kitchen will look better with custom cut and fabricated granite slabs over the prefabricated counter. In order to get what you pay for, and be happy with your project, starting from scratch is really the best plan for stone kitchen countertops.
A message from the owner of Southwest Granite:
At Southwest Granite, we value our customers and we offer our customers the best products at the best price. We recommend raw full size granite slabs that we will fabricate to your exact specifications and install at your home or office. You will pick your own unique slab, choose from many different edges and a finish that a prefab can never match. We will install prefab if that is what our customer requests, but please be aware that a prefab counter will have more seams because of the size restrictions of the available prefab slab. The colors are limited for prefab, no unique colors just generic colors. Unlike full size granite, typical prefab slabs come with finished edges on two or three sides, a square or bullnose edging only. You will have a unique, custom countertop, island, bbq, fireplace surround and more when you choose a raw full size Granite Slab.