Why soapstone when remodelling?

Did you know that UNQ Stone’s top seller material is Soapstone? That’s true and it has been for a while now. There are many reasons why this is our biggest seller in which you will find out in just a bit. But first let’s talk about marketing. There has been created a huge marketing demand for this type of stone in the industry and there are companies that are specialized in it and would only sell soapstone. Architects and designers have a soft spot in their hearts towards it, distributors love to sell it and fabricators absolute adore cutting it.

How to expect a slab of soapstone

This is always produced in “honed” finishing due to its rustic appearance. To be more precise, a honed finishing is reachable through a sequence of abrasives in a polishing machine that will make it have a matte look as you can see on this close-up picture bellow.

Usually, slabs are cut in 2cm and 3cm thickness, where this last one is the most commercialized. Blocks vary in terms of size from 110” – 127” of length x 70”-78” of height, this will depend on the bench of the quarry, mining bench utilization, quarry phase. Most importantly, natural stones never really have a recipe and are unique and rare, they can never be reproduced in a lab.

There are countless kinds of Soapstone in the Brazilian territory, shades vary from light grey, green until dark or darker black Soapstone. The darker, the best! All Soapstone quarries have different densities and therefore each and every one of them are composed by different types of stone molecules. You can find these quarries in the Brazilian states of São Paulo, Goiás and Minas Gerais.

The best quarry of Soapstone is located in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, it’s where the original Black Soapstone “PA” is mined. They are known for their higher density and etching proof properties compared to others from its kinds. The demand for this is incredible and you might want to ask for this kind once you shop for it. All distributors and most fabricators are familiar with it. We only suggest and sell two types of soapstone. Original Black Soapstone “PA” and Barroca Soapstone, both from Minas Gerais.

Check it out our quarry video where it shows the whole production process from quarry to a finished product. Be ready to dance through this great video.

 

 

 

Benefits of using soapstone

Now, hold on tight because we have a countless list of benefits that will make up your mind into using this stone:

1. ETCHING PROOF

Yes, you heard me well, it is the only etching PROOF material of all times. It is extremely dense which makes it have nearly 0% absorption. You can spill acid substances like vinegar, oil, wine, lemon and this won’t etch.

2. THERMAL CHARACTERISTICS

It absorbs 6 hours of heat, put this in your fireplace and you will have a huge lodge economy.

3. HEAT RESISTANT

Resistant works so strongly that it is very common to use this stone to cut into a pizza shape and use it to bake pizzas in a wooden stove. I can say it is indestructible in high temperatures! Can I hear you say “lifetime warranty”?

4. EASY TO FABRICATE

Despite its hard density, it has talc in its composition allowing this to be a very easy stone to cut. Stone molecules are so steady and stick together that in case something chips it is easily fixable.

5. APPLICABILITY

Suitable for external and internal environment.

6. APPEARANCE

Natural rustic yet modern appearance. This can pull out a modern project in the city and a cottage house in the countryside. SKY is indeed the limit!

7. DENSE CHARACTERISTIC

In all cases, dense stones are great in terms of durability. In this case, the older Soapstone it gets, the best. This is like wine or your old fender guitar. Years just make it look better!

Oil application

When you go into your distributor or fabricator you might want to ask them to water the slabs for you to see how the installed product is actually going to look like. Once fabricator cuts this into a beautiful counter or island or fireplace, they will add about 3 coats of Mineral Oil, Ager by Tenax or Mountain Green Soapstone color enhancer. This coat is to enhance the color of the stone and it offers an extra protection against natural kitchen scratches you get from knives. We recommend to reapply a coat once a year. If you feel like something scratched, guess what, it is easily fixable. Call your fabricator and they will come with a manual polishing tool to remove right off. Make sure to tell them to apply a color enhancer for protection after this is done.

Mockup applications

 

 

 

 

Curiosity: Christ The Redeemer is made of soapstone

Its etching resistant characteristic led the 19 century sculptor Paul Landowsky, to use this stone to overlay the entire statue with Soapstone. Over the course of 98 years, the Christ Statue located in Corcovado Mountain, in Rio de Janeiro is a religious symbol that remains intact also due to its soapstone etching resistant, dense, heat resistant characteristic. Imagine having the same stone they use in Rio’s postal card in your own kitchen or fireplace, isn’t that neat?

 

To wrap it up, I think by now you made up your mind towards this stone. If you have absolutely any questions, please, write your comment below. We would love to hear your thoughts. If you get interested in our soapstones, fill out our contact form and we will send you to the nearest distributor in your area.

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