Mar 22, 04: High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

Many thanks to Buglady_DE for saving and forwarding this thread!


High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

Posted by cpjohnson (My Page) on Mon, Mar 22, 04 at 21:38

I have gotten it in my mind that the only thing that will work for my bathroom vanities (two 48 inch bow front vanities with a sink cut out in each and and an 8 inch spread faucet) will be soapstone, since I need something in flat black/gray and don't want honed granite. I got a quote today from a local supplier in Northern Virginia that just about knocked me over, which was for $2680. I'm about to head out to Charlottesville in the next week or so and look at New World, (which I don't know if they will fabricate), and Old Mill Soapstone. Old Mill has told me that they will fabricate and install here, but I've no idea what to expect on price. They've given me a basic square foot cost, but I haven't yet asked about cut outs. Hopefully it will be better than the quote I just got.
First, I was wondering if anyone had used Old Mill soapstone, and if so, did you find them to be reasonable. Second, another option that I am considering is DIY from Teixera (sp?) and was wondering if those that did it found it to be difficult. We've done this entire bath remodel DIY so we aren't afraid to take major stuff on, and DH is a perfectionist who good with power tools, but I'm just wondering if we would be in over our head. The main thing that scares me is that the slabs will be too heavy to handle.
I know that technically this should be on the bath forum, since these are bath vanity tops, but the soapstone expertise seems to be on this board. Thanks.
Cindy

RE: High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

Cindy--
New World will fabricate, crate and deliver, and will even send one man to supervise the installation at your site. They will also "top-hone" only and you can finish the job yourselves with normal woodworking tools, since soapstone is soft and works well with them. I'd like to know what you choose.
Pamela

RE: High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

Yes, DIY!

My DH just finished our kitchen counter soapstone install this weekend. Was really one of the least problematic DIY things he has done with this house. The final sanding was dusty, but was mostly contained with plastic tenting. They look good so far, but have not oiled them yet.
Christina

RE: High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

Have you contacted Bucks County?

RE: High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

Christina--

Can you describe how you guys did your install? What's involved, tools, etc.?

Thanks!
Pamela

RE: High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

Pamela: I got in touch with New World today, and they faxed me a quote right away, which was significantly less (it was around $1100 vs. the $2680 that I got yesterday). Needless to say, I am taking a ride down there next week. I assume at that price I will be picking them up and installing, but it seems well worth checking out. It also has some appeal to me that the stuff is mined in Virginia. My first quote was a non-starter, but was from a fairly large local place that seems to really specialize in granite and bigger jobs. I knew when the guy told me that soapstone was more than honed granite, and that he didn't give square foot prices, but rather "priced the job" that I was in trouble, particularly since my job is pretty small. I understand him wanting to make it worth his while, but approximate $160 a square foot worth? Ouch.
Corgilvr: Where is Bucks County?

RE: High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

Pamela,

The slabs were cut with a circular saw with a diamond blade. I think a carbide blade will work for some types of soapstone, but will dull quicker. DH was surprised at how easily the soapstone cut. DH pre-planned how the layout would be, then cut the pieces to size. We only had 48" slabs to work with, we didn't get any larger ones (the small slabs were 'on sale' at the time, and easier to haul around). We had 2 drop-in sinks that needed cut-outs; he did the straight sections with the circular saw & used a jigsaw for the corners.

M. Texiera sent epoxy to use for the seams. The pieces needed to be shimmed to approximately the same heights, then the surface was sanded to a uniform flat surface. The sanding was very dusty, but we contained most of it by tenting plastic over the kitchen area (the kitchen & great room are all one area, so could not close it off all the way). DH sanded with a random-orbit sander down to 220 grit; will probably do a finer grit by hand.

We were originally going to round-off the edge with a router, but decided to just soften the edge with the sander.

It basically just took a weekend to do most of the work.

Christina

RE: High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

cpjohnson-
I'm going to get my soapstone from New World (Alberene). You may have seen my pix of samples I got when I visited them.

It is definitely worth the trip to the mine. (It took me ~2 1/2 hrs from the DC area) You'll meet with Lynn, right? Be sure to tell her you heard about them from this site.

Good luck and keep us posted, esp. on the "top-honed" soapstone!
Deb

Here is a link that might be useful: Soapstone sample pix

RE: High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

Deb: It was actually your research that got me thinking about them. I talked to Lynn today - I had gotten frustrated earlier because I had emailed them a couple of times and didn't hear back. I finally decided to pick up the phone (Duh, why didn't I think of that earlier, but I've been really busy at work and the bathroom wasn't anywhere near done), and she was just great. She faxed me a quote within 2 hours. I too am in the DC area (Fairfax) and I figured it was worth the trip. Maybe I'm looking in the wrong places, but the DC area doesn't seem to have a lot of people who deal in soapstone. I went to the last home show and asked all of the granite dealers there, and none had it. Most discouraged it and tried to steer me to honed black granite, which I affirmatively don't want. Did you look at Old Mill Soapstone at all? That is another place that I was thinking about checking out.

RE: High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

DEB- Would you share what was the deciding factor in your final New World soapstone choice? Was it the color, hardness, pricing or the sum of all three? I was considering the Cobra most seriously but, you say it scratched. How did you test and decide? The photos demo how much research you did. Well done! Inquiring minds want to know. Thanks, Pearly

RE: High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

I just got a price from Bucks County soapstone, $85 a square foot including the template and installation. I'm really happy, seems like a very good price to me. Does that seem too good to be true?

RE: High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

No, Carol, that seems like a very good, but not give-away deal. If it also includes crating and delivery, I'd jump on it.
Pamela

RE: High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

Bucks County (PA) did our soapstone. We were very pleased with the work. We have not noticed any scratching and I am oiling much less than I did to begin with. It's nice to be able to change the look of your counters with something as simple as oil. We had a piece put on the floor in front of the hearth and it shows no wear. The guys at Bucks County were great to work with.

RE: High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

cpjohnson-no, I did not look at Old Mill Soapstone, but I will now. Are you going there? Is a fieldtrip in order here?! Let me know. I went to the home show, too, and heard the same thing you did. No, I'm not finding many people in the area who have worked with it. I'm even talking to my friends who have decorators and their decorators don't have contacts! PS, I'm glad you called Lynn. She says she get tons of emails a day (I don't doubt it) and it's just her in the office right now.

Pearly-first and foremost for me was color and the "neutrality" of the Alberene. It doesn't have specks, spots, flecks, etc. It's plain, matte, black (when oiled). They do have other varieties that have varying degrees of "texture," but for this application, I did not want texture. Second, VERY close second, was how scratch resistant the Alberene is...more so than Cobra (M. Teixiera). I've abused it (it lives in my kitchen) and you cannot tell it. I've TRIED to chip it. Whenever I do something in the kitchen (drop a knife, glass, etc), I try to take the time and do the same thing to the soapstone. No problems. Staining-forget it...it doesn't stain. I could probably come up with something to harm it, but with our usual wear and tear, it has held up well. With 4 young children and DH, who does not want to have to be careful, it's the soapstone for me.

Pipersville Carol-Your quote is about in line with places I have contacted around the country. However, my quote from New World is just over $10/sq ft less. That doesn't include shipping and installation. I've heard they do really nice work. Even if your price IS $10/sq ft more, I'd jump on it, too, given they've actually done it! It's proving hard to find experience!

Deb

RE: High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

Having lived with soapstone countertops since december I'd like to make a few comments which might make it eaiser for a few of you to make your decision. Any soapstone will scratch to some degree if you try hard enough. The fact is most scratches will dissapear with oiling. If need be a light sanding then oil will solve the problem. We have done nothing more than oil since having our soapstone installed. We have two school age children and my daughter has started to cook and bake so we do not baby these counter tops. For us the deciding factor was the color and veining of the stone. We started looking last May and didn't decide till November. I ended up picking cobra and we also have a cobra farmhouse sink. No scratches or chips. I did drop a plate in the sink the other day, the sink is fine the plate is history. Aside from the look and silky feel of the soapstone the best thing is they don't stain and hot pots off the stove and out of the oven won't hurt it. I hope this helps some of you I know I agonized over it for quite a while.

RE: High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

  • Posted by: kecs (My Page) on Thu, Mar 25, 04 at 10:30

There's a Charlottesville supplier of slabs, sinks and ovens--the Tulikivi connection (meaning Finnish soapstone).

Try virginiaradiant.com; price sheet linked below:

<>Finnish soapstone price sheet

RE: High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

My understanding was that the $85 per square foot price included everything, allthough there's probably an additional charge for sink cut outs or fancy edges. It included the stone, the template, delivery of the stone and installation.

Corgilvr, I'm glad to hear of your good experience with Bucks County. Turns out they're in Perkasie, less than 10 miles from my house.

RE: High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

Hi all,

As someone who spent a long time researching soapstone and asking questions on the boards, I can share my experience:

Short version: we live in Arlington and are using Old Mill Soapstone. The price was around $62/sq ft installed. OMS fabricates soapstone supplied by Green Mountain and we are getting what GMS calls "original".

I had tried contacting New World Stone, but could never get them to return my phone, fax, OR emails so I gave up (granted, this was around the holidays.. but still). I contacted Green Mountain Soapstone and got the name of a fabricator in MD, but her bid came in higher. A fabricator called "R. Bratti" in Alexandria apparently also does soapstone, but I never got in touch with them.

The OMS installer came up to my house this week to template and should be coming back next week to install. Sally (the owner) asked me to measure a couple of stand alone pieces so that he could bring them up when he came to measure the rest of the kitchen. Apparently I have a lot of countertop and she wasn't sure it would all fit in one trip. I was hesitant to measure, for fear i'd mess it up, but she assured me she wouldn't hold me responsible.

When Dick arrived with the pieces, sure enough, my measurements were slightly off. In my defense, the problem was not my measurements, but the fact that the cabinets were sitting against an exposed brick wall that was not square with the new drywall. At first we thought the pieces wouldn't work, but with a little creative on site cutting, he was able to get them to fit and they look great.

My general contractor was on hand and had never heard of soapstone, but he was very impressed with it's appearance and how easy it was to work with. (He was less impresed with it's hefty weight when he helped bring a piece in :)

~Kendra

Here is a link that might be useful: pictures I took tonight

RE: High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

Deb: I'm templating this weekend and am taking a ride down sometime next week to both New World and Old Mill, work schedule permitting (I think my boss is getting kind of tired of my serial remodeling - I took quite a bit of time off last spring when we put in a pool that had some "issues" - so I'm trying to be low key, but . . .(she doesn't know that I'm doing the kitchen this summer, should be interesting, LOL)
Rardnek: I know about R. Bratti - they had a couple of slabs in stock when I went which were nice, but they are the high quote that I got - in their defense, I think it was the small size of the job, since they are a pretty big outfit, and bathroom vanities don't seem like their strong point. I've had better luck on the vanity front for other bathrooms with other granite suppliers who unfortunately, don't deal with soapstone.
Kecs: The Tulikivi people were at the local home show (which was my primary reason for going), but the woman was no help at all and told me that the maximum size was 24 inches in width. I thought that was incorrect, but she was so unhelpful and somewhat rude that I just wrote them off.
Kendra: Wow, they look great!

question for deb and other va stone owners

Is NY too far for New World to deal with? I love how happy all the Alberdene owners are with them AND their soapstone. I was sold on DIY cobra...but it never hurts to check out another option. Maybe the shipping costs would outweigh the stone savings? Thanks. Pearly

RE: High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

Pearly-I think they generally just install regionally. They'll fabricate and ship anywhere, I believe. As to color, both with and without oiling, Alberene and Cobra are very similar. I found that Alberene was more difficult to scratch and gouge than Cobra. That said, Cobra was a VERY close second. It would be my second choice if I need a back up plan.

I don't know where you are or how flexible you are or what needs New World can meet. I know they're looking to one day grow their operations enough to do installations for a wider radius. It's worth calling and asking.

But CALL vs email. They only have a fistful of employees and get tons and tons of emails. If you leave a message, call back if Lynn hasn't called you in a reasonable time. They're not being inattentive; they're trying to get to everyone, but they're small right now. Not knowing that upfront turns people off, I'm sure, when New World doesn't get back to them. But going into knowing you pretty much have to keep calling until you get a live person...it's easier and will get you action sooner.

Good luck!
Deb

RE: High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

Check out these guys.

Here is a link that might be useful: Soapstone Counters

RE: High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

  • Posted by: kecs (My Page) on Wed, Mar 31, 04 at 17:26

I agree with Gordonn--this looks like a super source. See on their FAQ too that they link the two Vermont suppliers, Bucks County and Dauter Stone--the latter a Calgary, Alberta, stone business that ships slabs anywhere in North America.

The exchange rate favors the US buyer--so I think either of the Canadian suppliers might get you the best soapstone prices.

One good question would be about Canadian soapstone (quarried in Quebec) itself. How hard is it compared with the harder soapstones advocated by others here?

Good luck!

Kris

RE: High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

Hi all.

I live in Northern VA and my new soapstone counters were recently fabricated & installed by Marblex. Their price was competitive, and they did a really great job. The installation was completed in just over a week from the time they measured.

Good luck

RE: High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

cpjohnson - any update? Have you made the field trip down south yet? I live in Maryland and need alot of soapstone for our kitchen and bathroom vanities; I was planning to do DIY from Texeira, but a Va. site would be much better! Let me know what you find; I would like to check out both Old Mill and New World. Thanks!

RE: High Soapstone Quote: Looking for Options

I'm going on Thursday, work schedule permitting. My husband is templating as I type this. I'll post my findings.

posted by starpooh @ 4/25/2005 12:44:00 AM   0 comments

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