We are finally remodeling our kitchen. I am looking at granite countertops...I have heard a lot of good things about granite however heard a few bad too. Also I am wondering about a convection oven? Any one use a convection oven? Any advice would be appreciated!
Thank you!!!
I think that quartz is a better choice. It doesn't have to be resealed yearly and won't harbor bacteria. Lowe's or Home Depot has a comparison of all the different choices that you can read about. Good luck.
K.,
I have a Maytag combination Convection/Electric wall oven. It is nice but I have to say that I rarely use the convection part.
I have to say that when we remodel our kitchen I will be looking into Stained Concrete for my kitchen counters. I was at a Christmas party this past year and that was what they'd had done in their home and it was Georgeous and much less $$.
I'll throw in a link so you can check out some photos.
http://www.hrcctx.com/vGallery.aspx?ID=16
This is not an endorsement for this company, this is just photos that I've saved from this particular site.
C.
We just remodeled out master bath. The contractor is a man from Aledo named Pat Davis. I cannot say enough kind words-
this man transformed out bath. You might give him a call re: granite countertops.
I've heard good things about the engineered quartz products... more durable, easier upkeep, more colors, and more sanitary. Brand names include Cambria, Silestone, and Zodiaq.
I have silestone in my kitchen, but we are building a new home and using granite. It is gorgeous, a great surface to work on and wouldnt use anything else. As for the convection oven, I have a combination oven, GE Profile. You can use it as a conventional oven or the convection oven. You just need to adjust your cooking times when using convection. The GE Profile will automatically adjust your temperature. It is great when you want a meal that would normally take 3-4 hours to have ready in 1-2 hours.
I think granite is a great choice. We put it in our house and love it.
My sister ripped the granite out of her kitchen because she kept putting hot pots on it - between the cracks and the stains, she said she'd rather use plywood (she replaced the granite with laminate that looks like granite).
We have granite counter tops and love them. They can stain if you leave something like juice on them until it dries. As for convection ovens, they do cook faster. I used them in culinary school. I didn't like that they browned cookies unevenly. That can be solved by rotating the pan halfway through. Good luck weighing you options.
W.
Convection ovens are awesome! They cook the food faster and more evenly. When we moved we really missed ours. :(
The best is to get an electric convection oven with a gas stove top. I think ours was a Kenmore Elite or something. Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful! (in the words of Henry the Octopus)
I love granite. My brother owns a granite company so I might be partial, but I have many friends who have built homes in the last few years who got it and love it. Also, my mom just remodeled her house and put granite in her kitchen and bath and it looks great.
I have a convection oven and I find that I just don't use it much (you actually have to hit the "convection" button). I bake quite often, and when I use the convection feature, things cook more quickly, but not any better than without the convection part.
I love my granite counter tops and have never had any trouble with them. As far as convection ovens, I have one, but don't use it that much. I just use it the old fashioned way. Mine is a GE Profile. When I did use it, I didn't notice much difference. I'm sure it would help if I'd read the manual. Good Luck!!!
M.
Check into Quartz also ( not sure if I'm spelling that right). Looks like granite but could be more sturdy.
We have a convection oven and have used it maybe once. Most likely because the recipes I find don't make accomodations for that type of oven.
Hope this helps!
We have granite countertops, & we love them!! I've heard that you shouldn't use Lowes because they don't use the same piece for the entire counter. They put pieces together that may be in the same family color group, so it will turn out that your counters will not look exactly the same. A friend's kitchen is like that (previous owners did the counters), & it looks horrible. It looks like they used 3 different types of granite in her kitchen! Go to a specific granite store & ask if they do that. Good luck!
