Finding the Best Contractor for Your Countertop

 

When you’re considering remodeling your bathroom or kitchen, there are plenty of decisions to take into consideration—the type of material, the colors, the patterns, the styles. You have to figure out what flows best in the space you’re working with.

But in order to make sure the countertop you choose looks its best, you have to make sure you hire a quality contractor to install it. A high-quality installation will help your countertop last longer and look as good as it possibly can. 

When you walk into a room—whether that’s your kitchen or bathroom—the countertop is what catches the eye first. You want to make sure that, no matter what type of material you end up choosing for your countertop, it looks stunning and retains its beauty for its entire lifespan. For that to happen, you have to hire a skilled, professional contractor who knows what they’re doing when it comes to countertop installation.

This is a simple enough fact to digest. But what isn’t so cut-and-dry is the process of how to find a quality contractor. There are many installers who claim to be the experts in what they do—but how can you trust that they’ll transform your room into what you envisioned?

We put together this article to shed some light on how to choose the right contractor for your countertop. To get the best out of your remodel, you have to put the best work into it. It’s possible to find a contractor who will do that for you; you just have to know how.

Read on for tips on how to find the best contractor for your countertop.

Ask for Personal Recommendations

Reading reviews online is a good place to start, but it shouldn’t be the end-all-be-all for your decision-making. At the end of the day, those reviewers are just strangers on the internet. If possible, you want honest reviews and recommendations from people you know personally.

Your friends want the best for you. If they had a good experience with a local contractor, they won’t be shy in singing his or her praises because they want you to have just as great of an experience. The same can be said for a negative experience. If a friend hired a contractor for an installation that didn’t go as planned, they’ll let you know so you won’t suffer the same fate.

If you’re at a friend’s house and their bathroom or kitchen countertops stick out to you (in a good way, of course), ask them what contractor took care of the installation. They’ll probably be just as excited to tell you as you are to save that information. From that good recommendation, you’ll definitely know what contractor to call. 

Get Professional Recommendations Too

At the end of the day, it’s not just your friends’ opinions that matter. The professionals are in this business day in and day out—it’s literally what they do. In many cases, the same people who sell you the countertops will be the ones who complete the installation. You don’t have to go off of the reputation that they sell you, though. 

Before they head in to do the job, ask their company for professional references. You can contact those references to confirm the positive reputation of the installers or hear an honest review of how they fall short.

For many sellers/installers, they’ll have a photo album that showcases the past work that they’ve done. In order to get a good idea of how they’ll finish your remodel, flip through the album to see if their work matches what you have in mind. 

If you’re buying countertops instead from a home improvement store (as some people do), you can ask the sales associates for contractors that they recommend. They see customers like you every day and know plenty about the industry. 

Interview a Handful of Contractors

To get the best installer out there, avoid going with the first choice you’re presented with. Instead, keep your options open for a while, and see what’s out there in terms of quality. Call around and ask questions:

• How long have you been in the countertop installation business?
• How much experience do you have with this specific type of countertop?
• Who else is on your crew? How much experience do they have?
• Are you in the middle of any current jobs that I could see to get a good idea of how my countertop will turn out?
• When can you start?
• How long will installation take?

Experienced, high-quality contractors will have answers to these questions that you want to hear. 

Get Written Estimates 

After you’ve interviewed a number of contractors, pick your best options and get written estimates from those professionals. They’ll come to your home, get a good idea of the job, and ask for the brand of countertops that they’ll be working with. Once you’ve got the material on hand, the contractor will want to take a look at that too. 

Trust Your Instinct

After you’ve gone through the interview process, looked over the estimates, and chosen the contractor that will work for you, trust your instincts. You’ve done all the prep work—now it’s up to the contractor to follow through on their promises.

As long as you keep communication open with your installers, the remodel should go smoothly and turn out just as you envisioned it would.