Sixeye wrote:
Silestone is of course, a brand name for quartz.

It is not a brand name for quartz. You make it sound like it is a solid (as
you get when you have granite tops) stone surface. In fact, like several
other companies that offer 'quartz' countertops, it is a blend of quartz
chips and what amounts to some very tough plastic.

Below is one comment I found after searching:

"Silestone by Cosentino is an engineered quartz surface that looks and feels
like natural granite or marble. The manufacturer claims the surface,
composed of 93 percent quartz aggregates mixed with binders, is stronger and
more durable than natural stone.

Silestone is manufactured by a computerized process which mixes binders and
pigments with natural quartz particles, vibrates them, compacts them and
then heat processes them to produce a dense, hard non porous material with
the luster and depth of natural stone."