KS_Chicago:

I'd have to see a picture to verify, but I'm afraid I may have some very bad news. It sounds like you have a rodding failure. Every single one I've ever encountered involved a crack running parallel with the sink rails.

What's happened is that the reinforcing rods your fabricator installed are starting to oxidize (rust) and when they do they blow up the stone. There is no stone on earth strong enough to stop the expansive power of rust.

The only permanent solution is to remove the rod and perform a repair. The crack can be repaired without removing the rod but will only last weeks, if that. Expect to pay between $900.00 - $1,500.00 for a proper repair.

Here is a link that might be useful: Rod repair

This post was edited by Trebruchet on Tue, Jun 10, 14 at 19:26

What should they use instead of steel reinforcing rods to get it right the first time? Stainless or something else?

"What should they use instead of steel reinforcing rods to get it right the first time? Stainless or something else?"

Rodding is old school and has been made obsolete with modern stone transportation and installation methods. The stone weakened by a cut-out only needs to make it from the shop to the kitchen without damage and there is vacuum equipment to do that job. Once it's on the cabinets, the cabinets provide the stone strength in tension.

Stainless or fiberglas rods embedded in epoxy aren't subject to water degradation and subsequent oxidation, unlike cold steel embedded in polyester.

I didn't know rust was so powerful!

What if OP does nothing? Does the crack elongate?

This post was edited by peony4 on Tue, Jun 10, 14 at 22:49

Ohhh... I thought rodding was somehow done to install a sink since it seems to mostly be a problem around that area. I'm talking to people about quartz this week and will be sure to make that one of the questions I ask. Price is meaningless if there will be problems down the road.

"What if OP does nothing? Does the crack elongate?"

peoney4:

The crack expands exponentially. The bigger it gets, the more water gets in, the more water gets in, the bigger it gets.

schicksal:

I'm unaware of any quartz manufacturer that recommends rodding. Because the modulus of elasticity of quartz is so much higher than that of stone, it is unnecessary.

Place a 3cm x 4" x 10' strip of engineered stone and granite next to each other on the floor and try to pick up each in the middle. The granite will crack before the estone, if the estone cracks at all.