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Can A Specialist Fix Scratches?

Hi Tom,

I read your blog regularly and gladly paid the $18 for my question. I recently had granite countertops installed-some kind of cross between Peacock green, butterfly and Uba Tuba, and have 2 areas of concern.

I was unhappy with the edge of the seam so the installers tried to "fix" it, making it worse and leaving a 3" circular "milky" area around the surface and the edge. It is noticeable.

Also, there are light bristle-looking brush "sweeps" on the top surface that follow around the sink cut-out. It is only seen by DH and me when the light hits it a certain way.

One "expert" told us that the brush marks were probably done when the machine rolled over the top to cut the sink. The surface probably wasn't protected properly and some granite dust got underneath and created the scratches. He went on to advise us against trying to fix it because it could damage the shine making it worse.

The fabricator then brought in two stone restoration specialists who tested a small area and said they could grind the area down to the scratches using diamond pads with running water and then seal it bringing back the polished shine.

Does this sound right to you? We want it perfect, but are afraid of making it worse. Also, can the sealer hurt such a dark stone? Please advise...

Thanks, Susan

Hi Susan,

There is no doubt that the right expert can fix this. This is not a pretty situation but unfortunately it does happen too often by fabricators/installers when they are inexperienced. I actually commend them for bringing in a specialist instead of making more excuses to you.

The success lies directly in the hands of the restoration specialist's skill set. It is not a quick process either. It could take several hours going through each diamond pad level to get the right final finish. I would expect that no restoration specialist with any kind of experience would attempt this unless he knew what he was doing.

I don't think you heard them right about 'seal it back up to bring back the shine'. What they probably mean is use higher grit diamond pads to bring the surface back to the original polish level of the countertop.

So, I won't bother going through all the steps that he needs to do, but let the specialist have at it. You will probably be happily surprised about the result.

Best wishes!