We purchased Silestone countertops for our kitchen several years ago. A few months ago, overnite, a huge horizontal crack occurred on the part of the countertop that you lean into when doing dishes. It was only a few inches long then. We contacted Silestone/Home Depot and were told they will not warranty the crack, as it came from a hot pot being placed on it. Today, a countertop friend cut the piece out as the cracks were running horizontally to the good part of the countertop (spread like a cancer - even the cracks started separating into crevices). When the piece was cut out, it became apparent that a metal rod had been cut and channeled into the back side of the material (for strength?). The material was rusty along the whole horizontal crack of the countertop. It was evident that it was a ticking bomb waiting to go off when the metal of the stainless sinks (two) started being welded to the rod by the rust process. The friend, a professional, told us that the metal rod (all rusted corroded/expanded) was the culprit. He said there was no reason to build that rod in the countertop as Silestone was so strong. After taking pictures of the damage, etc. I am wondering what to do at this point. We have a nasty looking sink (the stainless sinks are all rusted/corroded too. Any assistance will be appreciated. Have not processed the photos - will do as soon as possible.

I've had my silestone kitchen countertops for about 7 years and no complaints. This morning I discovered a 16-inch crack that wasn't there last night when I went to bed. I called the silestone mfg to be told warranty didn't apply as crack was not due to mfg defect and cracks could be caused from external thermal forces, house settling, etc. External thermal forces?? I mean it is a kitchen and I cook in the kitchen which may cause some "external thermal" situations! She said I should call a "fabricator" for repairs but could not give a relatively close fabricator's phone number for my vicinity. Closest fabricator was about 40 miles away. Keep in mind I live in the Washington, DC metro area and not a small town. I checked out an internet site for silestone repairs and was matched with three local contractors in my area for which only ONE called me to advise they didn't do repairs on silestone. He did further research and called me back to suggest I should repair it myself with a cyanoacrylate based glue, as a professional repair may be as costly as getting a replacement! I took good care of these silestone countertops but now I hesitate to think, will there be more cracks? Prior to silestone, I had laminate countertops that the building contractor installed when the house was built in 1976. Never had a problem with them. At this point, looks like I'm going to Home Depot to get some super glue and try to repair it! Can't say I can recommend silestone to anyone who is seriously considering it. Way too costly to have cracks appearing after about 7 years. I think next time I'll go with butcherblock tops!

Hi PMacy,
When you asked, "Have you been that aggressive with them yet? Did you mean the spots or the people who are not honoring their warranty?" Yes I have been aggressive with a scrubbie and a can of Bar Keepers Friend. As I said before; "The spot is void of surface material, lacks the sheen of the surrounding polished surface, and appears porous to the touch". I do have a little expertise in the area of cleaning hard surfaces. I was a working partner in a residential and commercial cleaning company for 10 years. My responsibilities included the maintenance care and cleaning of hard surfaces of floors, counter tops, etc, for both commercial and residential accounts. You name it, I cleaned it! And when I ran into spots that I couldn't remove with conventional cleaning solution methods, it usually required a more aggressive procedure. That is why I agree that sanding will probably resolve this problem too. However, the spot on this counter top is a manufacturing defect. No one should have to pay $92.00 an hour to have someone come out and try to convince me that a defect is not covered under the 15 YEAR Warranty they hyped when they sold the product to me. If the the top isn't just a "finish" but goes all the way through as they claim, then my installer should not have a problem doing the same thing your installer did. Except this spot did not show up until one year after the counter top was installed. Vangura will try and slough off their responsibility to honor their warranty by claiming that we dropped something on it. Or we exposed it to thermal shock, or a myriad of other things they predetermine in their warranty exclusions. Businesses historically try to avoid covering warranty claims. I was hoping Vangura was different. They came highly recommended. They seemed like a good company to deal with. But hey, that was before I payed them six grand. Thank you PMacy for your input.

We purchased a Silestone quartz surface countertop in 2002 with a ten year warranty. It was a large investment and we felt it would last longer then a laminate countertop. However, we found a defect in the stone (chip) within six months and now we have two cracks and a seam that is easily noted.

The installer said not to worry about the initial chip in the countertop and said we had the ten year warranty to do anything about it. The choice I had was to drill a hole into the countertop and replace the area where the chip is in the countertop and I was afraid it would look worse then it does now.

We contacted Home Valu in the summer of 2007 and they sent out the installers who actually sent the pictures and description of the cracks to the Silestone warranty department. In September 2007, we received a letter from Oscar Jimenez, General Manager, stating the cause of the cracks was due to "settlement of your home" and would not be covered under the Silestone Limited Warranty. Our house was fifteen years old when the countertop was installed and this would not be an issue. I question if I would put this product in a new home since homes do settle in the first year. We have placed no heated objects on our countertop, however, one crack is close to the dishwasher.

I have been in contact with Home Valu, where we purchased the countertop, and they contacted Silestone also. Home Valu manager said a Silestone representative was to call and set up at time to look at the Silestone countertop in our home, however, we've never heard from them (September 2007). I have my third call to Home Valu to inquire why we have not heard from Silestone.

Silestone is an expensive product and in my opinion, Silestone is not living up to their warranty. Unless they change and honor their warranty, I would not purchase this product. I would also be concern placing this product into a new home due to the Limited Warranty which Mr. Jimenez stated would not cover "cracks due to structural movement, settlement of your home, building etc.

Interesting. Before I "signed off" on my counter, the installers came back to deal with "imperfections" I'd noted. They actually "sanded" them away and told me the top isn't just a "finish" but goes all the way through. So when I've had spots similar to what you describe, I've taken a counter cleaner and my scrubbie to them and they've gone away. Have you been that aggressive with them yet?