Streaking on arabesque countertop

10 years ago

I just had a new house built and we installed arabesque counters. Two slabs were used. One of the slabs has streaks running through it. I think it looks like the counters were wiped with a dirty washcloth and left to dry. The streaks are most visible at night with direct overhead lighting. I hope you can see them in the picture. I have had the fabricator out. He has tried to remove them with a magic eraser, sealer and acetone. None have had any effect. He is now concluding that the streaks are inherent to the stone or a result of the products used to finish the slab. I am now trying to get the stone yard out to take a look at the counters. I am not sure if it is relevant, but the problematic counters measure 3.15 cm while those without the issue are 3 cm. They tapered the thicker slab where they meet. Does anyone have any insight into my issue? Thanks.

Comments (6)

_sophiewheeler
10 years ago
Looks like it follows the veining in the stone. The stone isn't uniformly hard. There are softer and harder sections. Sometimes when being polished, the soft portions will be sanded down slightly more than the hard sections and you get the slightest bit of relief instead of being 100% flat and smooth. I think that's what you have.
and-e
Original Author
10 years ago
Should I be able to feel the relief?
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Stoneshine
10 years ago
The streaks are either sealer residue or light etching.
Most likely sealer residue-Acetone works sometimes but using more sealer to activate old sealer only works when the old hasn't yet cured.
They are not part of the stone. What you see is correct something wiped on.
Do not let anyone tell you they belong there -they don't.
The top may need to be refinished by lightly honing and re-polishing. In some cases just a light repolish will remove the streaks.
If you get no joy from your fabricator -call a stone refinisher and he or she will fix this for you.
My guess it is improper sealing by someone in a big hurry.
romy718
10 years ago
Your stone is beautiful. I had the same issue on one of my countertops. It looked exactly as you described, "like someone wiped with a dirty washcloth and left it to dry." As srosen described, it was the sealer. Mine was corrected with acetone or denatured alcohol. Even if you have to have it repolished, at least you know it is fixable and not inherent to the stone.
and-e
Original Author
10 years ago
Would they seal the stone after installation or before? The adjoining piece does not have the issue.

The fabricator came out and quickly wiped it with sealer and acetone and it did nothing. I do not remember exactly what the acetone product was or what he did with it.
romy718
10 years ago
Not sure if they applied sealer before they installed but they definitely applied a couple of coats at my home. My streaks were just on my island. I didn't notice them until they left, when the lighting had changed. I have a laminated edge & the top layer of stone was taken down from 3 cm to about 2cm. I know you said they made one of your slabs thinner. That did not cause the streaking, in my case. It was definitely the sealer. As srosen said, aceone may not remove it and they may have to do something more aggresive to remove the sealer and streaking. Hopefully the stoneyard will refer you to someone who can repair it.