Routing Out the Rumors

Anyone can spew half-truths and misleading information to make an easy sale. What we, as professionals in the business, have to do is constantly fight the falsehoods in order to spread the truth about the products on which we make a living.
It is a never-ending battle these days. A lot of the false information and scare- tactic advertising comes from surface manufacturers in an effort to increase the bottom dollar. Some of these are megacorporations with very deep pockets that can spread dubious facts  with little effort, making their stories appear very real to consumers and designers alike. What are we to do?
Start by educating yourself and your sales staff. If you’re to win any battle, it pays to be armed with the correct information.
You can gain a lot of this information from other professional fabricators and from education-based websites. One of these is StoneAdvice.com; another is the Marble Institute of America. Both have a wealth of stone knowledge available on their respective Websites.
You can also attend workshops based on fabrication skills, business planning and stone maintenance. Some of these workshops are free; you’ll have to pay to attend others. Either way, a couple hundred dollars is nothing compared to the education value you’ll receive.
If you’re a member of the Stone Fabricators Alliance (SFA), the regional workshops scheduled throughout the year are free to attend and participate in, giving you and your employees hands-on training and knowledge.  After all, knowledge is power.
However, let’s also get back to some of those other Websites out there. Along with a wealth of legitimate knowledge, there’s just as much misinformation about stone.
Most of the twisted truth comes from those directly competing with natural stone. They seem bent on taking our information and altering it to make their products look better.
For example, is radon coming from stone countertops? Sure … but with a little research, you’ll find that the amount of radon emitted from stone countertops is far, far less than the dangerous amount it would take to harm humans. (In fact, in some areas of the world, you can get more radon exposure from just digging a hole in the ground.)
What about bacteria? That claim is simply ludicrous, in my opinion; you’d have to wash a countertop with a bad chicken leg to get the oft-noted “dangerous levels of bacteria” it takes to make you ill.
For example, I remember the days when maple butcher-block counters were popular. I don’t think anyone was killed then from bacteria-related illness strictly because the tops were wood.
Unless your client is a complete slob, the bacteria scare should be easy to combat with your own research and education. It doesn’t get much easier than telling your client to wipe-up spills and clean with any non-acidic cleaner, even window cleaner. (That’s right; window cleaner doesn’t harm granite.)
The use of FDA-listed pesticides, such as Triclosan, is really not necessary for reducing bacteria. That is another piece of misinformation spread by big competitors.
Here are a few more examples of everyday propaganda:
• “Granite will crack if I put a hot pan on it.” Not completely true; in most cases, you would have to heat a pan to more than 600°F to damage granite. Your everyday range and oven at home doesn’t get that hot. In fact, I cook on granite. There are restaurants that serve very hot dishes on granite.
It is possible to damage some granites with extreme temperature fluctuations. Think of an ice cube being exposed to hot water; the ice cracks from thermal shock.
Almost any material can crack from thermal shock. However, most people don’t keep their counters in frigid conditions; unless your client is Mr. Freeze, the likelihood of cracks from hot pots during everyday use is extremely slim.
• “I understand I have to seal my counters often with some chemicals.” Again, not completely true; in fact, some granites don’t even need sealer at all, because they’re just too dense to absorb it.
Another thing to consider is that sealers have come a long way in recent years. New sealers on the market today are so effective that some stones can be sealed with a lifetime warranty against stains. Turn that fact into a little “propaganda”, and you have just created a new sales pitch for your company, giving you a leg up on the competition.
• “Granite scratches easily with abrasive cleaners.” Yet again, here’s something with a grain of truth that builds into a mountain of misinformation. Some stones are harder than others, so knowing more about the stone you’re working with is a big benefit.
A case in point is Black Absolute, which is a rather soft stone and scratches more easily than most granites. In fact, Black Absolute – in the wide majority of cases – isn’t really graite at all, and most likely is a basalt (gabbro), diomite or dolomite.
A good way of arming yourself with information is testing samples of various stones with cleaners and other household objects, such as Scotch-Brite® pads. Again, the more you learn, the better you become at combating the propaganda used against us.
There are many more rumors and untruths out there for us to deal with every day. Giving yourself, and your sales team, some good ole skoolin’ on the stones we work with will help increase your bottom line, and – more importantly – also better the industry we love.
Until next time … Donny Taylor.
Donny Taylor is a fabricator in Florida and a member of the Stone Fabricators Alliance. To ask him a question, log on to www.stoneadvice.com, or send an email to donnystoned@hotmail.com.