From the Mountain Top to Your Kitchen: Where Does Your Worktop Come From?
By: Matt Crick
Submitted: 2009-01-17 09:16:44 | Word Count: 498
Granite worktops are a beautiful, practical and affordable edition to any kitchen. But did you know that Granite actually comes from way up high in the mountain tops?
That’s right: Granite is a type of igneous rock (which is basically a rock formed out of old volcano magma) and has a coarse texture. It comes in many colours from pink to dark grey, or even black, and the colour of the rock is a consequence of differing chemistry.
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When it is first taken from the mountain it can usually be extracted as a massive, hardy rock and thus has been widely used as a construction stone. The rock is usually found in the mountains, often in small dikes called “aplites”.
John Porter from Worktops.uk.com, a worktops expert says: “Granite is a fantastic work surface and when you look at where it comes from that’s not a surprise! As cooled mountain magma found in the mountains – surviving children’s cooking misadventures and a cutting boardless accidents are a breeze for these worktops. We defiantly recommend it for student houses, and families who need a hardy worktop, which although durable, will keep its looks too.”
So where is Granite quarried? As a fairly common rock, Granite is found and obtained from many places including much of Europe and China – although the nature of the location does affect the colours and patterns on the rock.
The process of quarrying is tricky and must be done with much care. First shelves in the quarry are made, so that the stone can be taken out in blocks – Quarrymen usually start from the top of a mountain and gradually work downwards.
After this the stone has rows of holes drilled into it. These go towards making new shelves from which the Quarrymen can work off next time. Then comes the exciting bit: Small explosives are put into the holes, and are ignited to crack the stone, forming metre high blocks of granite to be taken and used. Workmen in cranes eagerly await the arrival of these blocks, often weighing several tonnes, before hoisting them into a loading truck.
The next stage of the process is carried out in a factory, where workmen cut the blocks of stone into slabs, ready for the use by stone fabricators. It is the fabricators job to fashion the stone to the specifications of those using it. So, it is these guys who make your worktop look fantastic and cut it to fit your kitchen!
“These worktops are fantastic,” John Porter exclaims, “and affordable too. It is nice to look at a fully finished surface and think about the level of work that goes into it too. Granite has a nice history to it as it has usually come from a mountain across the globe – and is now in your kitchen!”
John Porter Worktops offer high quality Granite Worktops at exceptionally affordable prices. Simply visit http://www.worktops.uk.com now to find out more.
Author Resource:-
Matt Crick is writing on behalf of John Porter Worktops, offering a host of solid surface worktops and kitchen work surfaces at the best prices in the UK. They also have a huge range of home kitchen worktops, splashbacks, breakfast bars, as well as many kitchen accessories that will transform your kitchen. Their kitchen worktops and work surfaces boast a diverse range, including laminate worktops, wooden worktops and stainless steel worktops, to name but a few. They will help you find the right size, colour and price to exceed your requirements. For more information visit: http://www.worktops.uk.com
