IceStone from Brooklyn Navy Yard for Countertops

I have never installed it but i believe i have seen it. If you do not mind that it is porous and like it you should probably buy it.

To me it does look like Caeserstone which is not porous so why not go with the Caesarstone?

just call icestone and ask for a reliable instillation company.
you can ask then 1000 product questions also.

It's definitely good-looking and a good local-biz story, but it's VERY porous -- we had some installed at a commercial office building in an employee pantry, and due to some miscommunication or oversight, it wasn't initially sealed by either IceStone or the installer. The coffee stains were phenomenal, and it ended up getting scrapped in favor of Caesarstone.

Caring for Your IceStone Surface..a bit of an headache??
"

Immediately wipe up spills with a damp cloth and water, especially acidic liquids like coffee, wine, fruit juices, and vinegar.Use CHENG Concrete Countertop Polish on your surface once a week to maximize the durability of the sealer and wax.
Use cleaning products that are free of chlorine bleach, ammonia, acids or citrus scents. Avoid harsh cleaning products such as Windex, Brillo, Ajax, Spic n’ Span and Clorox Greenworks. Instead, use the cleaning products recommended in these guidelines.
Place a tray under coffee machines and soap dispensers to prevent any drips from staining and etching the surface.
As with all surfaces, use trivets and cutting boards to help protect the sealer."

Great. Yet ANOTHER high-maintenance countertop material.

JUST USE FORMICA ALREADY!!!!

Also, this stuff isn't as "recycled" as you might think.

In the video they explain that they CANNOT use recycled glass from the garbage -- they can use only pure glass that's "left over" from other manufacturing applications.

Primer took the typed words right off my keyboard. Caesarstone seems superior in every way and offers more looks and colors. You DO NOT want a countertop you have to wipe stuff off of right away. No matter how attentive you are, there will be things you miss, guests doing their own thing, etc. Sooner or later you'll have a coffee ring under a mug, splatter from the tomato sauce you didn't see, wine drippings, lemon juice squirts... Resealing is a royal pain. You just never seem to find the time to do it even if it is simple. I'm about simplifying life--not complicating it. Do not see why this product is preferable to others already well-established in the market.

And this crap needs to be resealed every six months (not annually like marble or granite) ... and requires special waxing and polishing WEEKLY.

Plus you can't use 99% of all regular kitchen cleaning products on this oh-so-delicate countertop.

Remind me ... what's the advantage??

Sounds perfect for those New York kitchens where the only appliance that's used with any regularity is the telephone -- to order take-out.

"The White House Council on Environmental Quality visited IceStone on June 15, 2011 to showcase IceStone as a prime example of how companies can successfully create green jobs in the United States."

Uh-oh. Sounds like IceStone is going to be the next Green company to go bankrupt. Anytime a Green company gets a White House visit, they go bankrupt (see: Solyandra).

Wow, with all that maintenance required, I can't believe anyone would buy this miserable excuse of a countertop. If you buy it, you will just end up having to replace it with granite down the road once it starts looking like sh*t.

If you spend some time on IceStone's website, you'll find several explanations of why the material is preferable to other countertop options, despite its maintenance requirements. Using healthy ingredients, ensuring the factory is safe and employees are well cared for (how many granite quarries can say they do that? and finding a smart way to reuse glass is more than most countertop manufacturers can claim.

Thanks everyone. Regarding Cesarstone, I really, really do not like the way it looks installed over time--and I've seen a lot of it in my showing of apartments. I've ruled it out already.

The thing about wiping up spills--all the manufactured products tend to have language like that, at least all I've looked at. Some of that language is just self-protection for the makers, I suspect.

Still hoping for someone with actual experience with this stuff...

I've no idea how one hates caesarstome but loves ice stone since the limited range of ice stone choices nearly mimic caesarstome plus Caesar has many non quartz looking choices like pebble and misty carrera. Caesar also requires zero maintenance or sealing and essentially will not stain. Any hints of stain come off with Bon Ami. This includes red wine, balsamic vinegar and raspberries left overnight. Manufacturers don't make up care requirements to "cover themselves.". You sound like you are rationalizing away drawbacks for some reason of your choice. But it is up to you obviously. And despite a very wide range of broad knowledge many of us on here have, and a lack of any endorsement of this product, you seem determined tomove ahead with it. You may try to consult Gardenweb.com to see if there are any reviews or additional opinions.

Follow up: imrenovating a kitchen and came across ice stone. One "color" in paticular was beautiful as it seemed to capture the sea and beach and look like it had bits of shell. Very pretty for a beach house. It is abouttwo times or more the cost of caesarstone but it was a fun way toadd some pop to thekitchen. I had forgotten this discussionuntil we got home and my husband did a little googling. I just called the kitchen place and told them to forgetaboutpricing it. We'll likely go wicaesarstone " baja" which looks a bit likesand and captures ebeach theme. Wewerewillingto swallow the significantcost of going with ice stone, but ewearproperties make it a strange choice for a carefree kitchen. We entertain a lot and i dont want to worry about guests ruiningte counter or having to take time from my weekend to care for it (alas, we have no staff to assign the chores to and tthey fall to me). Porous? Sealing regularly? Polishing required? Are you kidding? Quartz is nearly indestructible. We'll add some flavor with the back splach. Just saved myself about $3500.

"If you spend some time on IceStone's website, you'll find several explanations of why the material is preferable to other countertop options, despite its maintenance requirements. Using healthy ingredients, ensuring the factory is safe and employees are well cared for (how many granite quarries can say they do that? and finding a smart way to reuse glass is more than most countertop manufacturers can claim."

Sorry, but when I'm purchasing something for my home, it's all about ME.

How the factory treats its employees and the environment is at the bottom of my priority list.

@ matt: agree 100%. if the product is inferior nothing else can matter. If you want a boat and a yacht maker treats everyone great but the boats sink, ... Or if the holistic "medicine" is all natural but doesnt work... Or if the clothes are " made in the usa" but dont fit right...

tee pees are good for the environment too.. oh yea, and they employees.. but I don't see too many peopled living in them anymore

>(alas, we have no staff to assign the chores to and tthey fall to me).

You should have your husband do the chores.

Pebbles!