Have any of you kitchen remodel gurus ever worked with Soapstone for kitchen
countertops? It is supposed to be workable with woodworking tools, circular
saw with a diamond blade, diamond hole saws, diamond jig saw blades for sink
cut outs, and edge treatment with carbide router bits. The current This Old
House magazine issue has an article on DIY soapstone installation, it sounds
pretty workable. Could one expect to get a clean enough cross cut with a
circular saw with a diamond blade and edge guide to be able to join two
slabs together with a respectable looking joint line? I can buy soapstone
locally from a lumber supplier for $40 a sq. ft. so the price is attractive
compared to other stone products. Any suggestions or advice drawn from
experience would be appreciated. Thanks

d.williams wrote:

Have any of you kitchen remodel gurus ever worked with Soapstone for
kitchen countertops? It is supposed to be workable with woodworking tools,
circular saw with a diamond blade, diamond hole saws, diamond jig saw
blades for sink cut outs, and edge treatment with carbide router bits. The
current This Old House magazine issue has an article on DIY soapstone
installation, it sounds pretty workable. Could one expect to get a clean
enough cross cut with a circular saw with a diamond blade and edge guide
to be able to join two slabs together with a respectable looking joint
line? I can buy soapstone locally from a lumber supplier for $40 a sq. ft.
so the price is attractive compared to other stone products. Any
suggestions or advice drawn from experience would be appreciated. Thanks

I know you are asking for experienced opinion, but you might also want to
check the porosity of soapstone. I seem to recall reading that it is one
of the more porous countertop stones and requires a good deal of periodic
care re-sealing it to avoid staining.


--
If you're going to be dumb, you better be tough

Any suggestions or advice drawn from
experience would be appreciated. Thanks

No firsthand experience, but I've been on quite a few jobs with an
experienced soapstone installer as a sub, and have asked many of the same
questions you're asking. One answer I recall verbatim: "You can work
soapstone with woodworking machinery, as long as you aren't planning to use
the woodworking machinery on wood again." At the very least, you'll need
new blades.

He used a tinted epoxy on the seams, and then polished it out after the
epoxy cured. His polishing equipment was an angle grinder with a series of
ever finer diamond discs and honing pads. I don't think that a routed or
sawn edge would be a satisfactory finished surface without further
polishing.

Soapstone is more porous than some other countertop materials, but that is
part of its charm. It very quickly darkens and develops a rich patina that
many find more appealing than cold, polished granite.

Hope this helps -

Scott

I agree with her but for a different reason. There is extremely hard
soapstone out there and the harder it is the less maintence you will
need to do. After a certain point any oil you put on it will just sit
on the stone because it's too dense to absorb it. I know there is one
soapstone out of argentena(sp) that is of this ulta hard type.


On Sat, 02 Aug 2008 12:02:12 -0700, Mark & Juanita
wrote:


I know you are asking for experienced opinion, but you might also want to
check the porosity of soapstone. I seem to recall reading that it is one
of the more porous countertop stones and requires a good deal of periodic
care re-sealing it to avoid staining.

Mark & Juanita wrote:
d.williams wrote:

Have any of you kitchen remodel gurus ever worked with Soapstone for
kitchen countertops? It is supposed to be workable with woodworking
tools, circular saw with a diamond blade, diamond hole saws, diamond
jig saw blades for sink cut outs, and edge treatment with carbide
router bits. The current This Old House magazine issue has an
article on DIY soapstone installation, it sounds pretty workable.
Could one expect to get a clean enough cross cut with a circular saw
with a diamond blade and edge guide to be able to join two slabs
together with a respectable looking joint line? I can buy soapstone
locally from a lumber supplier for $40 a sq. ft. so the price is
attractive compared to other stone products. Any suggestions or
advice drawn from experience would be appreciated. Thanks

I know you are asking for experienced opinion, but you might also
want to check the porosity of soapstone. I seem to recall reading
that it is one of the more porous countertop stones and requires a
good deal of periodic care re-sealing it to avoid staining.

On the contrary, it is about as impervious a material as you will ever find.
And for the poster who posted to you, soapstone - all soapstone - is very
soft.

--

dadiOH
____________________________

dadiOH's dandies v3.06...
....a help file of info about MP3s, recording from
LP/cassette and tips & tricks on this and that.
Get it at http://mysite.verizon.net/xico

d.williams wrote:
Have any of you kitchen remodel gurus ever worked with Soapstone for
kitchen countertops? It is supposed to be workable with woodworking
tools, circular saw with a diamond blade, diamond hole saws, diamond
jig saw blades for sink cut outs, and edge treatment with carbide
router bits. The current This Old House magazine issue has an article
on DIY soapstone installation, it sounds pretty workable. Could one
expect to get a clean enough cross cut with a circular saw with a
diamond blade and edge guide to be able to join two slabs together
with a respectable looking joint line? I can buy soapstone locally
from a lumber supplier for $40 a sq. ft. so the price is attractive
compared to other stone products. Any suggestions or advice drawn
from experience would be appreciated. Thanks

Sorry, no experience, but I have some knowledge of it from when I was a
geologist. Soapstone is composed mostly of the mineral talc and is very
soft - easily carved with a pen knife. It is also very dense - it will not
absorb liquids. Not unless there is a physical crack and even then the
liquid is not being absorbed.

I can only guess as to its workability with power tools. My guess is that
the only problem would be the potential of chipping. Since diamond blades
cut by abrading, chipping should be very minimal if at all. It would be
easily sandable too, either by hand or power.

--

dadiOH
____________________________

dadiOH's dandies v3.06...
....a help file of info about MP3s, recording from
LP/cassette and tips & tricks on this and that.
Get it at http://mysite.verizon.net/xico

"Soapstone" is a catch-all term for a lot of different rocks. The
common quality in all of them is that they contain a lot of the
mineral "talc", which is very soft (Mohs 2-2.5, 3 at best).

Thus, the rock is very soft and probably workable with common wood
tools.

-Zz

I have th eissue confused. I originally confused porouseness with
hardness. Soapstone is totally non porous. Any sealer put on it would
just sit on top. As is the oil used does the same but it's only a
fine layer wiped on. It can still be scrached but with some sanding
and oil it hides scratches.

On Sat, 2 Aug 2008 20:54:38 -0400, "dadiOH"
wrote:

On the contrary, it is about as impervious a material as you will ever find.
And for the poster who posted to you, soapstone - all soapstone - is very
soft.

"dadiOH" wrote

On the contrary, it is about as impervious a material as you will ever
find. And for the poster who posted to you, soapstone - all soapstone - is
very soft.


When I was in high school, the 60's, all lab tables in science classes were
made of soapstone. It was heavy and durable. When I asked as to why the
soapstone, I was told that the surfade did not react to a lot of chemicals.
I am not sure about that.

I know that I have seen a number of antique soapstone sinks.

On Aug 2, 1:38*pm, "d.williams" wrote:
Have any of you kitchen remodel gurus ever worked with Soapstone for kitchen
countertops? It is supposed to be workable with woodworking tools, circular
saw with a diamond blade, diamond hole saws, diamond jig saw blades for sink
cut outs, and edge treatment with carbide router bits. The current This Old
House magazine issue has an article on DIY soapstone installation, it sounds
pretty workable. Could one expect to get a clean enough cross cut with a
circular saw with a diamond blade and edge guide to be able to join two
slabs together with a respectable looking joint line? I can buy soapstone
locally from a lumber supplier for $40 a sq. ft. so the price is attractive
compared to other stone products. Any suggestions or advice drawn from
experience would be appreciated. Thanks

I'm following this thread with a great deal of interest; hoping to
learn something. I love the feel and look of soapstone. I can
certainly envision it in a vanity application, I don't know If that
would be the right choice in a kitchen. It marks easily. (That would
mean it should be easy to refinish as well?)
As far as permeability is concerned...no clue, but googling my butt
off.

I may give it a try on a small bath vanity to see how it works out. I was
given a small sample piece. but haven't put a cutting tool to it yet. From
what I have been able to find out, it is very resistant to chemicals, ( thus
the chemistry lab table application ) and seals and darkens with the
application of mineral oil. Here is a link to the This Old House install.

http://www.thisoldhouse.com/toh/how-...207908,00.html

Thanks

"Robatoy" wrote in message
...
On Aug 2, 1:38 pm, "d.williams" wrote:
Have any of you kitchen remodel gurus ever worked with Soapstone for
kitchen
countertops? It is supposed to be workable with woodworking tools,
circular
saw with a diamond blade, diamond hole saws, diamond jig saw blades for
sink
cut outs, and edge treatment with carbide router bits. The current This
Old
House magazine issue has an article on DIY soapstone installation, it
sounds
pretty workable. Could one expect to get a clean enough cross cut with a
circular saw with a diamond blade and edge guide to be able to join two
slabs together with a respectable looking joint line? I can buy soapstone
locally from a lumber supplier for $40 a sq. ft. so the price is
attractive
compared to other stone products. Any suggestions or advice drawn from
experience would be appreciated. Thanks

I'm following this thread with a great deal of interest; hoping to
learn something. I love the feel and look of soapstone. I can
certainly envision it in a vanity application, I don't know If that
would be the right choice in a kitchen. It marks easily. (That would
mean it should be easy to refinish as well?)
As far as permeability is concerned...no clue, but googling my butt
off.

On Aug 3, 8:43*am, "d.williams" wrote:
I may give it a try on a small bath vanity to see how it works out. I was
given a small sample piece. but haven't put a cutting tool to it yet. From
what I have been able to find out, it is very resistant to chemicals, ( thus
the chemistry lab table application ) and seals and darkens with the
application of mineral oil. Here is a link to the This Old House install.

http://www.thisoldhouse.com/toh/how-...207908,00.html


All looks pretty basic except the undermounting part. That is not for
the squeamish and I would not take a chance like that, not that close
to the sink's edge. I'd go this way:
http://www.vanceind.com/50insinkundermounter.aspx

d.williams wrote:
I may give it a try on a small bath vanity to see how it works out. I
was given a small sample piece. but haven't put a cutting tool to it
yet. From what I have been able to find out, it is very resistant to
chemicals, ( thus the chemistry lab table application ) and seals and
darkens with the application of mineral oil.

The mineral oil will darken it because it wets the surface but it really
doesn't do anything to seal it because of the built in impermebility of the
stone. Mineral oil never dries but will eventually wear off; in the
meantime, it can be a dust catcher.

--

dadiOH
____________________________

dadiOH's dandies v3.06...
....a help file of info about MP3s, recording from
LP/cassette and tips & tricks on this and that.
Get it at http://mysite.verizon.net/xico

dadiOH wrote:

Mark & Juanita wrote:
d.williams wrote:

.... snip
together with a respectable looking joint line? I can buy soapstone
locally from a lumber supplier for $40 a sq. ft. so the price is
attractive compared to other stone products. Any suggestions or
advice drawn from experience would be appreciated. Thanks

I know you are asking for experienced opinion, but you might also
want to check the porosity of soapstone. I seem to recall reading
that it is one of the more porous countertop stones and requires a
good deal of periodic care re-sealing it to avoid staining.

On the contrary, it is about as impervious a material as you will ever
find. And for the poster who posted to you, soapstone - all soapstone - is
very soft.


Then I stand corrected. Sounds like soapstone's only deficiency is being
soft and thus subject to damage.


--
If you're going to be dumb, you better be tough