Why We Carry Quality Granite

Myth: All granite is granite, and one slab is just as sturdy as another.

Fact: Not all slabs are equal in quality, even if they are the same type or color!

• Some granite is mined from a section of the mountain that has too many fissures, or compacts the granite together poorly, resulting in a finished slab that does not hold up well under fabrication. 
• Not all factories will mine, cut, and handle the granite the same. If a company is rough with the material, it may arrive to showrooms in cracked or warped condition.
• In order to make a certain shade of granite, some companies will cheat by dying the individual stone slabs. Unfortunately, this stone may bleach in areas that are exposed to sunlight years down the road. It also becomes hard for the fabricators to match the false color of the stone on the cut edges.
• Marble, travertine, and onyx are especially prone to cracking and breakage during mining, transportation, and fabrication, because they are formed of a more delicately bonded material. 

A yard of one of our favorite granite quarries in Brazil.

Some granite yards will carry any stone, especially if they can sell it cheaply, regardless of the quality that the slabs arrive in, and unaware of the complications that can arise during fabrication, installation, or under the wear and tear of daily use in a family kitchen. The slabs look to be of similar quality when a homeowner is shopping for that perfect color, but an experienced fabricator can often tell on sight if a slab is cracked, bowed, or crumbly.

Because our customers and fabricators are important to us, Natural Stone Source strives to only carry high-quality stone. If we notice that a bundle of granite is flawed, we return it to it's origin, and we will not stock that color lot again. This ensures that our frequent fabricators are able craft beautiful well made granite countertops. In the same vein (pun intended) we want every homeowner to be satisfied with sturdy kitchens and bathrooms that will last a lifetime.

For a look at our entire hand-selected variety of marble, granite, travertine, onyx, quartzite, and more, please visit our main website at www.nssgranite.com.

Fissures in Granite Countertops

Fissures in granite are incredibly common, especially in slabs with a large dramatic design. In the slab yard, with the slab sitting vertically, these fissures are present and yet not so easily recognized. In the excitement of choosing an exquisite slab it's easy to stand back and focus on the slab as a whole instead.

It's when your countertops are installed and the sunlight shines through the window onto your new horizontal surface that you are likely to notice a fine web of what seems to be... cracks!

Sunlight streams across your new countertops and your
 stomach drops. OH NO. Are these cracks? Is my countertop
going to fall apart? Have no fear, you are only looking
at normal harmless fissures.

These fine little lines are what are known as "fissures". Fissures are tiny edges in the composition of the minerals that your countertops are built of. Fissures are present in a good portion of the granite, marble, and travertine slabs that are available. They often help make up the artistic look of the slab you chose. They are not cracks.

This close-up of a vertically oriented slab shows how hard
it is to notice fissures when you are in a showroom,
bedazzled by hundreds of natural works of art. The white
line stretching between two spots of black feldspar
is a fissure in this perfectly sound slab if Delicatus.

The fissure here, composed of quartz, simply looks
like a line that is slightly darker than the rest of the slab.

Actual cracks will be different in composition than fissures. Cracks are not solid, so they will have an opening that debris can fall into. If you find cracks like the one shown below in your countertop, your granite company should be able to help you fill and hide them from view. This can still be done without any compromise to the strength of your counters.

A real crack. It does not follow the pattern of the
granite and consists of a gap that debris can fit into.

To see our gorgeous selection of quality granite, please go to www.nssgranite.com

The Difference Between Cracks and Fissures in Granite

When choosing a granite slab or perhaps admiring your newly installed countertops, you may notice intermittent lines in the stone. Do not panic! Some people assume that these are cracks and that the integrity of their countertops will be compromised, but in most cases there is nothing to worry about. The difference between a crack and a natural granite fissure is an important aspect of enjoying the natural beauty of granite.

A fissure in a slab of granite is a natural cleft in the rock caused by God or “Nature”. When the stones form underground, a gap may develop in the material for any number of reasons, and this gap presents as a fissure when the slabs are mined from the ground.

Rock mining companies pull stone out of the ground in large rectangular cubes, then slice those rectangular cubes like bread. The slices become the individual slabs, and if those slabs have gaps or fissures, the mining company will fill them in with quartz crystals and a penetrating resin. The resin used to seal these fissures lends to the overall strength of the slab itself.  

A crack in granite occurs when there is an accident after the slab is resonated and polished. The crack will go all the way through the stone and be detectable by touch. This is the result of unintended breakage, and is not already filled in with quartz, resin, or epoxy. 

To see what slabs Natural Stone Source is currently carrying, please visit us at www.nssgranite.com or come see us in person at 425 N. Frontage Rd. in Nipomo California, 93444.