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Engineered Stones - Please click Brand icon to view full range within set.

Sintered Stone

 

 

What is sintered stone?

 

New on the scene, sintered stone is quickly becoming a hit with designers and homeowners alike. Brands such as Lapitec manufacture sintered stone products that are used for everything from kitchen worktops to pool tiling. Sintered stone is beautiful, practical and affordable. But what, exactly, is it?

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How is sintered stone made?

 

Sintered stone is manufactured using recent technological advancements which mimic the processes which form natural stone. While natural stones like marble and granite are formed over thousands of years, Lapitec stone slabs take just a few hours. Minerals and stone particles like the ones found in porcelain or granite are carefully selected for quality, colour and texture. These particles are then subject to extreme heat and pressure – just like they would be deep in the earth’s crust where granite is formed. When the process is finished, the particles are bonded together permanently, without the need for resins or bonding agents.

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What is sintered stone like?

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To the untrained eye, sintered stone is almost impossible to distinguish from natural stone – unless it’s been made in some unlikely colour or pattern! Sintered stone is tough as rock and is also:

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  • Weatherproof

  • Unaffected by heat or cold

  • Waterproof

  • Stainproof

  • Very hard to chip, scratch or damage

  • Easy to clean

  • Food safe and hygienic

  • Non-porous – doesn’t need sealing

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What is sintered stone used for?

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Different manufacturers target their products at different markets, but sintered stone can be used for almost anything natural stone can be. Lapitec, for example, is used for:

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  • Kitchen worktops

  • Bathroom vanities

  • Wall cladding

  • Flooring

  • Stairs

  • Patios and outdoor flooring

  • Exterior wall cladding

  • Fireplace surrounds

  • Swimming pool tiling

  • Spas and wet rooms

 

The main limiting factor is the size of the slabs produced as if you want a particularly huge item, you may need to join multiple slabs together. Fortunately, the consistency between slabs of sintered stones, such as Lapitec, is much higher than between slabs of natural stone so matching is easy. The slabs as manufactured are large enough for very nearly all domestic uses and most commercial uses. As an example, Lapitec slabs are around 3×1.5m (10x5ft), which is the size of a typical single bedroom. Slabs are manufactured in different thicknesses for different uses.

 

 

What’s so great about quartz?

 

We’re called Al Maraya Marble & Granite, so some of our customers assume that we only work with natural stones. Not a bit of it! Processed and engineered stones are a fantastic addition to the market. Here are just a few of the reasons we love to work with quartz.

 

It brings a great natural material indoors

 

Quartz doesn’t come in large slabs that can be cut into shape. This tough material tends to form in crystal pockets, often in combination with other elements. The stone is beautiful, and has been used for jewellery for thousands of years. Today, thanks to modern engineering processes, products like Compac Quartz bring all that natural wonder into your Dubai home.

 

It lets more families have stone worktops

 

Quartz worktops are incredibly easy to care for and very resilient, making them a highly practical choice for busy homes with pets, growing kids and enthusiastic cooks. By bringing out new stones at a range of prices, brands like Compac Quartz let us work on more amazing projects installing dream kitchens into family homes.

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It’s one of the toughest materials around

 

Quartz is one of the hardest natural materials, and quartz worktops can withstand almost anything daily life throws at them. Engineered stones are sealed, which makes them waterproof and non-porous so stains and spills can simply be wiped away. They’re also heat and cold resistant, so a hot cup or pan won’t leave a mark. They’re food safe and hygienic, as well as being cool enough for pastry work. In short, they’re a dream to use in the kitchen or bathroom, which explains their popularity in bars, restaurants and luxury hotels as well as family homes.

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All the amazing colours

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From classic marble-white to sunshine yellow, delicate grey quartz worktops to azure blue, engineered stone comes in an astonishing array of colours. By simply adding a tiny bit of dye to the adhesive resin that bonds the quartz particles together, engineers have created a product that is 95-99% natural stone and yet can be ordered in entirely unnatural colours.

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Stunning textures

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From stones that look a lot like marble and granite to midnight-black worktops that seem studded with stars, the choice seems to be endless. Brands like Compac Quartz offer a wide range of textures for their customers to choose from, letting you select the stone that perfectly matches your home and your design ethos.

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Quartz delivers the quality we demand

 

At Al Maraya Marble and Granite, we pride ourselves on providing top quality results. Our team of experienced stone workers have developed their skills working on projects from simple kitchens to full retail fit-out so we have a deep understanding of what stone can do, and what traits are required. The quartz brands we work with have all been selected as they provide high quality materials at a great price, giving us the tools we need to create a stunning worktop you’ll use and love for years.

Quartz

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