Tips to Kitchen Design

Now that you've considered your space and style, it's time to put ideas to paper and start formulating how your space will be constructed.

Do you host a lot of family gatherings?
Is the kitchen the room where everyone likes to congregate during holiday parties?
What type of storage are you looking for? Is there anything special that is needed?
What type of appliances are you looking at? Where will they be located?
What is your taste in colors?
What is the size of your kitchen window and where will it be located?
Determine your spacing needs. Be sure your kitchen has a nice smooth flow with no over crowding.

Maintenance/Care of Countertops

Granite Care & Maintenance:
In most cases, stone counter tops are not very easy to repair. To avoid having problem stone materials, be sure to follow the guidelines here to prevent any permanent damage.

Avoid exposing your stone counters to strong chemicals, such as paint removers, oven cleaners, acids, oil, juices, etc. for a long period of time. If contact occurs, quickly flush the surface with water
Do not cut directly on your stone counter top. This can cause deep and permanent scratches to appear
To prevent staining, we recommend that you re-seal your counter tops every 1 ½ to 2 years
Avoid directly dropping heavy or sharp objects on your counters
Avoid flame or applying heat directly to your stone counter tops

Cleaning and Sealing Recommendations:

Your stone counter tops are very easy to clean. Common household products will keep your stone looking beautiful for a long time

Recommended Cleaners:

Soapy Water
Windex
Diluted job master
Any NON-abrasive cleaner
Use fine steel wool #000 to remove any water or hard food residue

Silestone Care & Maintenance:
General Cleaning: Daily cleaner for polished, honed and textured Silestone. Any ph balanced general purpose household cleaner may be used. Polished and honed Silestone surfaces should be wiped or scrubbed with a general cleaner (e.g. dish soap, Windex) and rinsed with clean water. Textured surfaces should be cleaned with a vacuum to remove dry particles from the "valleys" in the surfaces a stiff brush may then be used to remove remaining residue followed by a thorough rinsing may also be used for this process.

Spot Removal: Silestone's advanced technology makes its surface extremely resistant to damaging chemicals when necessary, you may use the following chemicals and products to remove stains and spills.

Rubbing Alcohol
Ammonia
Vinegar
Formula 409

Difficult Spots: Adhered materials like gum, nail polish, paint, etc. When necessary, you may scrape adhered materials with a sharp edge. Difficult spots may be treated with one of the cleaners listed above. Leave the cleaner sit for up to 10 minutes. Scrub and rinse thoroughly.

Maintenance/Care of Cabinets

Your cabinets are carefully crafted with quality materials to be durable and beautiful. They require a very minimal maintenance program and will provide many years of value and service. We recommend the following:

Care of Interior Cabinets:

Wipe up all spills immediately. Do not allow them to stand or dry out.
Wipe the interior when necessary with mild soap and water, rinse and towel dry
Do not allow a build up of grease or dirt to occur
Do not use abrasive type cleaners or pads

Care of Exterior Cabinets:

Clean your cabinets with a soft damp cloth and mild soap, such as Ivory, immediately after installation. Treat your cabinets like fine furniture
Do not use abrasive type cleaners or pads and avoid hard rubbing and scrubbing
On wood products, for minor nicks and scratches that occur during normal use, lightly sand with a fine emery paper and apply a thin coat of low gloss spray enamel
A non-silicone wax may be used only after cabinetry is clean and dry which will restore the original beauty of your cabinetry