Monday, April 20, 2020

Sealing Granite

This is the sealer I chose - it great reviews and was supposed to be odorless.  I figured that was good enough since I really had no idea what to expect.  For a chemical sealant, I have to say there was very little odor, so that was nice.

This isn't a home improvement blog - heck, I don't know what kind of blog it is anymore - but I was able to place an order with Home Depot for curbside pickup and I got some sealer, plus some daily cleaner for afterward.  After reading the directions, I realized that this is going to take a while and will have to be done over the course of several days, as once it's sealed, you're supposed to wait to use the countertops for 24 hours.

I started small, with our coffee station.  I cleaned the granite, let it dry, and then went to town with the sealer according to the directions on the bottle.  This section turned out great:
I know you can't tell, but it looks wonderful.

According to the directions on the bottle, you are supposed to let it sit without placing anything on it for 24 hours, so I set up a temporary coffee station for this morning:
All of our coffee necessities.  Behind the coffee stuff is everything from the counters from each side of the stove.

After my great success (Borat voice, which I can never unhear regarding that phrase) with the coffee station, I moved on to the counters on each side of the stove.  I did exactly what I did the first go-round, and when it came time to do my final check, I was horrified to see streaks on the granite.  I panicked for a minute, but in rereading the directions, sometimes several coats may be needed.  I can only surmise that these counters get more use than the coffee station, which is pretty much a once a day thing.  So I applied another coat and it did look better, but still streaky in a few spots.  Several coats later, I think it's finally done.  That was a bit of a heart stopper - I was worried that I'd ruined my beautiful countertops!

This afternoon will be 24 hours so I'll put everything back on that side of the kitchen.  I'll have to strategically plan out the other side because we won't be able to use the sink for 24 hours...which will be trickier than normal considering we are here alllllll the time and pretty much fill up the dishwasher by end of day.  We can go out for dinner - oh wait, we can't.  We may be having sandwiches for lunch and dinner.

I'm glad I was able to get this project started - it has been a nice diversion from knitting and doing jigsaw puzzles.  Fingers crossed the other side goes smoothly!  Oh and in case you were wondering, I have to place an order for another bottle of sealer...I had no idea it would take as much as it does.  Live and learn, I guess.

16 comments:

  1. What were the instructions to apply it? Did you have to use a special tool or a cloth or something?

    Gosh, I would have freaked when I saw the streaks too. Phew, glad to hear it just needed another coat!

    LOL, sandwiches and takeout! Sigh. It's good to get this done though! That is cool you can do curbside pickup at Home Depot. I should share this with Steven and see if he wants to seal ours. We never have!

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    1. You had to clean the counters, let them dry, and then liberally apply the sealer, wait five minutes, and wipe it off. I used paper towels for the coffee station and then the recommended terrycloth towel for the next set and I think that's where my issue came from - I didn't get as much off as I did with the coffee station. Or else I put too much on. All I know is we finally got it fixed with paper towels, so that's what I'll use for the other side.

      Curbside is great - I placed my order with Home Depot after their closing hours last night and my extra sealer is ready to be picked up now!

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  2. Now that I"m cleaning my house vs having my cleaning lady, I"m seeing all kinds of things that need to be done. My grout in the foyer is disgustingly dirty. The base of back of my island is all stripped of stain from when she washes the floor. There are other things that need to be done, but I'm going to start small and tackle some of these projects! Funny the things you miss when you're not paying attention....

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    1. Ack, that's too bad about your island - will you have to restain it? I agree that starting small is the way to go - otherwise it'll become too overwhelming and hard to finish. At least that's been my experience.

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  3. One could tell that I've never had a nice granite countertop by the fact that I said, out loud, "You have to seal those?" I always thought they were no muss, no fuss!

    And here's the funny thing about these home projects people are tackling or ignoring: it would be so much easier to seal those countertops if you could just not be home as much and go out to eat, right? But of course, if that was the case, you probably wouldn't even be noticing the countertops...

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    1. I knew you were supposed to seal granite but *ahem* I haven't resealed the granite in our bathroom and that's going on seven years. It's a shiny patterned granite so maybe I am not noticing anything, but I don't have plans to seal that one anytime soon. I guess because the kitchen granite is a matte surface, you notice it more?

      And yes - it would be perfect if we could go to work or eat out! Right now my kitchen is a mess and it will be a mess for another couple of days while I seal the other side. Have I mentioned that I hate a messy countertop?

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  4. How often do you have to do that? For some reason when we got a granite put it, I thought they said it lasted 10 years! I could be wrong though.

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    1. Apparently every year. The test is if water doesn't bead up anymore on the granite. We still had a lot of areas where it did bead up, but around the faucet, it didn't, so we decided to go for it.

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  5. Did you find your paint and pot?

    If you are doing curbside again, you could get your light so it is ready for electrician. (If he wore a mask and didn’t touch anything, probably can come in a few weeks, you could get on their schedule).

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    1. No pot but we decided to try the black paint that was used for our front door, so we'll see how that goes. We can't order the light because the other ones are so old that we need to see them in person to make sure we get a good match. Jeff should be able to install it. Hardest part will be getting high enough on the ladder!

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    2. Maybe you already replaced cans when you remodeled.

      If not - If your other cans are old, consider replacing all of them at the same time with the new LED ones where the whole thing is complete package.

      They are not expensive and then everything is cohesive.

      First I put LED bulbs in all the old cans.

      Then I wait for a can fixture to die, and then replace all the cans in that area. One above my island went first, replaced both cans. Etc.

      If you have cans in other places in the house, you might save the working ones to replace fixtures in other areas that go.

      My kitchen, I wanted new. Guest room upstairs I am okay with old and will replace old fixtures from my stash as they die.

      (I do the same thing with ceiling fans, save parts from old ones to repair others, especially blades).

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  6. Well, like I said, I have not re-sealed my countertops for four years. But they're still shiny. I'm working on painting my fence. Got a bunch more Thompson's water seal paint at Walmart this morning.

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    1. I think the shiny granite must last longer with regard to sealing than the matte finish. And can I say that I picture you as Huck Finn - well, I guess Tom Sawyer - painting your fence? LOL

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  7. I have to seal our marble bathroom vanity and I'm scared to do it LOL! Marble stains so easily that I figure I will screw it up somehow.

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    1. I'd be nervous too! But as long as you find a sealer specifically for marble, I don't think you can go wrong.

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