Natural Quartz counter tops, the beauty of natural stone with many fewer headaches. Let's cover what makes quartz counter tops unique. In my covering of this topic I am using data from the following manufactures that I am involved with.

SileStone offers approximately 41 different finish options in their line up while DuPont Zodiaq offers 46 plus 8 with 25% post consumer recycled content in their Zodiaq Terra collection.

Samsung now offers 14 colors in their Staron collection and CaesarStone offers 40 quartz counter top surfaces including some very bold colors, unique to any I've seen.

HanStone fine quartz surfaces offers a collection of 31 colors plus 5 new ones in their new premier Ruscello collection. I have saved our most popular product for last. The Quartz Collection from Cambria offers you 63 distinct colors and also has the distinction of being the only manufacture to offer a Limited Lifetime warranty on their product at the time of this writing. All the others products listed above carry a strong 10 year limited warranty.

I have chosen to cover features by topic and give a quick comparison to other top materials in each section.

Stain Resistance

All quartz products have a natural resistance to stains of all types. They share this property with solid surface tops as well as ceramic tile tops. Staining can be a problem with natural granite, soapstone and laminate top materials and should be considered during your top selection.

Burn Resistance

Quartz tops have a natural resistance to burns but it is recommended by all manufactures to use a trivet under your pans. Quartz shares a good burn resistance with granite, soapstone and ceramic tile but you will need to be more cautious if your choice is either solid surface or laminate as both these surfaces have a low resistance to burns.

Scratch Resistance

Because all quartz products are produced with over 90% stone material they are naturally resistant to scratches. This is a rather exclusive group since they share this property only with granite. Solid surface, soapstone, ceramic tile and laminate surfaces are very susceptible to scratching.

Mold/Mildew Resistance

Mold and mildew are not something normally associate with counter tops but they can be a real problem with some products. Quartz, solid surface and ceramic tile all have non porous surfaces that naturally resist these problems. Because of their porous surface you are more likely to encounter problems with granite, soapstone or laminate materials.

After comparing features you will also need to consider cost differences. Typically most quartz products will fall in around the price of a level 4 or 5 granite product(read more on granite price levels on the granite page) and similar in price to solid surface. Quartz will still be 2-4 times the price of laminate although the gap is closing with the introduction of more natural looking laminate surfaces.

One often overlooked option is a combination surface kitchen. In an effort to keep costs under control more often I am seeing people use a combination of products like matching laminate on the wall mounted counters and quartz on an island surface. The key is to think creatively and create a complimentary combination while taking into account the best working surface in each area.

Visit my http://www.squidoo.com/kitchen-remodeling-essentials web site to view custom kitchen designs and pick your favorite design or designer. You will find links there to each of the featured designers web sites also.

My research points to Quartz as the best top material available today. What's your option?