Quartz Countertop Care

If you're trying to decide between a granite and a quartz countertop, there are many advantages to both. However, a quartz countertop offers owners a tough, solid-surface counter that is hard and non-porous. The non-porous quality gives your quartz countertop a stain-free quality that is rare among countertops of any variety. It also means that the countertop can’t hold onto bacteria.

Without stains and a threat of bacteria, these countertops don’t need the kind of special cleaning routines that some solid-surface counters do. And, your quartz will not need to be polished in order to keep its shiny finish. It's a low-maintenance choice that looks great. With these, there's no more slaving away with smelly cleaners to keep your countertops in good condition.

You won’t need any specialty products to clean your quartz. Using glass cleaner, wet wipes or just a damp towel regularly will keep your quartz clean. Some quartz finishes do show water spots and fingerprints easily, however, and these countertops may need to be cleaned more often than other finishes. No matter what the finish of your quartz countertops, detergents that contain bleach and abrasive cleansers should never be used in your quartz countertop maintenance.

Quartz is scratch resistance because of its hardness, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t scratch it. If you use the wrong tools on your countertops, you can damage the surface. Using a rough scouring pad can cause small scratches in the surface. To avoid this, use a soft cloth or a paper towel.

Because quartz is so durable, it generally comes with a long warranty period, but your warranty won’t cover damages to the countertop that are caused by you. To prevent chips, scratches and burns, take care in your daily use of your countertops. Avoid using it as a cutting board, and never use a metal knife on your quartz. If you have a tough spill on our countertop, use a rounded, plastic utensil to remove the mess instead of using anything metal.

Heat damage is a concern with quartz countertops. To avoid unsightly burns, never place a hot pan directly onto your quartz. Keep a heat-resistant pad or a trivet on the counter to put hot pans on while cooking. If your coffee pot transfers a lot of heat to your countertop, that too should be put onto a pad or a raised surface.

Quartz countertop maintenance isn’t as difficult as taking care of some counters, but common-sense rules do apply. If you spoil something caustic or heavily pigmented onto the counter, wipe it away quickly to avoid potential discolorations. Even with its non-porous surface, it is possible for some light staining to appear over time.