g147m

Hi,

I was wondering if anyone could give me some advice on what to do for my countertops. I just moved into a one bedroom condo foreclosure that needed a good updating. We have replaced all the flooring and done some aesthetic work to it, and now the only thing left are the hideous blue laminate countertops. I would love to do granite, but there is no way I can afford $40 dollars a square foot.

Does anyone have any experience with granite tiles? How much would it cost to do about 50 square feet of counterspace if we tile ourselves.

Any other suggestions that would look nice and still inexpensive? I would rather not use laminate, but pretty much everthing else is fair game.

Thanks!

glennjanie

Welcome to the Forum g147m:
The counter-tops you have are not conducive to tile over because of the roll on the front and the rolled backsplash.
I would remove them, replace them with 3/4" AC plywood, screw down 1/4" cementious board and tle that surface; use a decorative ceramic tile backsplash from the tops to the bottom of the wall cabinets.
I think you can find the granite tile for $3 to $5 sf. and the ceramic back should be considerably less. I know, it sounds like a lot of work but it will be worth it when compared with the full granite top.
Glenn

MattCoops

Well first, if you can get granite slab for $40 a square foot, then buy it.
It starts at $50 here.

You can save some money by installing granite tile.
Remove existing formica. Install 3/4" plywood. Install 1/4" DensShield water-resistant backerboard over a bed of troweled thinset and screw to manufacturers specifications. Then tile.

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Matt
Cupan Custom Tile and Paint
Charlotte, NC
[URL="http://www.cupantileandpaint.com"]tile contractor[/URL]

pebblez

slate and quartz are sometimes a less expensive alternative granite

also you can always use tile instead of slab to save a few bucks

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Daryl in Nanoose

I'm with Glenn on this one even though I don't know what " AC PLYWOOD" is.

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glennjanie

OOPS! Sorry I didn't explain myself. AC plywood is a mill grade that means the surface of the plywood has no imperfections or filled knotholes in it, while the back and the inner plies can have solid knots in them and loose knots will be cut out and filled. It may have 6 to 9 plies, depending on which mill it is from.
Glenn

travelover

Yea, it is a designation for the surface finish quality

A=good, C = not so good. You use CD on roofs.

Daryl in Nanoose

Got it, thanks (thats what I get for living in a small town) Then again it might be what we call select up here.

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Daryl

Alot of folks can (or learn) install the granite tile countertops but end up with a very funky looking front edge when trying to finish it off with the granite tile cut down to size. Save yourself some grief and install a nice wood band board trim on front edge. Oak . Maple, etc looks great and will have a nice finished look to it!