In defense of the underdog

by Mike Ferrara, The Lazy Homeowner

Hello there. I just read the Consumer Reports story on kitchen countertops. As always, they do a good job of covering all the options. However, as a person who's done his share of kitchen remodeling, I have a few 'bones' to pick over some of the statements made about the perennial stepchild of this subject, laminate.

Consumer Reports starts out well when it states in their Granite section that: "It's still what you'll see in magazines and real-estate ads, but fancy faux materials are giving granite serious competition." That's for sure. Any remodeler on a budget can see why...using the new high-definition laminates will give you the same look for less than half the cost. And without the yearly chore of resealing.

The report states that laminate shows seams on the front edge and elsewhere. This is old information. When you combine laminate with a custom edge, there is literally no 'brown edge' to be seen. And a good fabricator can make sure you don't get any obvious corner seams as well.

Now the editors get into trouble when they claim that laminates are "no longer trendy..."After looking at just some of the newest stone, marble and granite patterns at my local home center, this statement couldn't be farther off the mark. Kitchen trends come and go, but the current trend toward natural materials is being met quite well by the newest laminate designs. And when the current trend is replaced by something else, the good news is that with laminate, you're not looking at taking out a second mortgage if you want a new countertop!

Lastly, Consumer Reports says that laminate is easily "scratched and nicked..." Just about any countertop material, including natural stone and recycled glass can get scratched or nicked if you don't employ common sense and use a cutting board or a hotplate.  The newest laminates from Wilsonart are infused with a high-tech aluminum oxide finish that is very resistant to wear, and keeps the countertop looking new for a long time.

So maybe I just have a soft spot for underdogs, but in this case I needed to speak out...let's not keep repeating old information and state the clear fact that the new generation of laminate is a viable alternative to granite.

Mike Ferrara, also known as The Lazy Homeowner and TechnoDad, has spent the last 20 years covering the home and garden industries, serving as a magazine and newspaper editor, TV personality, and most recently as a blog editor and public relations consultant to Wilsonart International and other home improvement companies.  His views are his own.