DAMN!!...startin' FIRES in the Kitchen!!

So the builder of the house put these beautiful granite back splashes on the counter top. He ran them from the countertop to the underside of the cabinets. AND, they're the same thickness as the countertops (about 1-1/4" thick). We don't want any of that, so we're getting rid of it, in favor of some tile (TBD).

OMG...is this stuff HEAVY!!

So tonight I decided to take the vertical granite down a piece at a time (i.e. break it, into smaller pieces). Well, I thought a couple good whacks with a cold chisel would do it...but NOOOOooooooo! They cemented this stuff to the wall board!

I wound up having to break out the angle grinder with a stone cutting blade and scoring the vertical slab, then driving wedges behind it to even remove a single piece!! Safety glasses, gloves, respirators...and I told the wife to get some water ready in case of fire. Well, the Metabo definitely was throwing some sparks, and we definitely had FIRE. (Quickly extinguished by my bride with a squirt bottle and a wet towel...and a bucket of water to spare).

I had to grind almost 1/4" into the granite to get it to break where I wanted it to, just because of how they adhered that granite to the wall.

Grind...drive wedges...grind some more...drive wedges...grind...drive wedges.......finally it broke where I wanted it to.

A couple small fires on the floor in between, but it's all good now. Respirators all around for the glass shards and dust.

WOW...these guys meant business when they stuck this vertical granite on the walls!!

Man, this is never easy!

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk
Ugh.. sounds like Murphy’s law already hit your renovation. Sounds like a huge job, but I’m sure you’ll eventually get it done. Hope it goes easier for you in the future.

Try an air chisel and maybe a 4 sided box with no ends ,,,, might work

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk


Normally granite is cut using a wet saw, cutting it dry just makes lots of sparks and dust. Try using a bit of water as you cut, it will make a muddy mess but it’s better than burning your house down.

Why not just put tiles on top of the back splash, it would save you a pile of work, just scuff the surface so the glue will stick to it.

Why don’t you just cut out the Sheetrock behind it as well. Then put a new piece in when you do the tile.

a reply to: diggerdog

Tried and air chisel first (I have five of them). All that did was spray rock chips all over the place. I needed a better line, so that's why I broke out the grinder. I'm using a 1/8th " stone blade now, on a Metabo ambidextrous angle grinder. Went through three blades tonight, but the blades are cheap. Those score a line, and I can get wedges behind the stone, and continue to apply pressure until it breaks where I want it to.

This stuff is so heavy, you dare not just pry it away from the wall because you'd suddenly have 600lbs of granite to deal with and keep it from falling on the floor.

I'm looking now at how they must have set this granite to begin with. They must have used the countertops as a support to stand the granite up vertical. Disassembly is much more difficult!

I'll stick with the Metabo and a stone blade, and take it down a piece at a time. Shame there's no one who wants big granite like this! This must have cost thousands of dollars to do, and we just don't like the stuff.

Anyone want about 6 tons of granite, in slabs about 24" wide and 10 feet long??? If not, this S# is coming out in pieces! Even a 24" x 36" piece weighs over 200lbs. It's just CRAZY heavy!!

You pulled out granite to replace it with tile? That's kind of like covering an oak wood floor with linoleum. It was a thing-back in the day. Kind of like grinding up filet mignon into hamburger. But, whatever floats your boat.

originally posted by: Quauhtli
Why don’t you just cut out the Sheetrock behind it as well. Then put a new piece in when you do the tile.

I probably will have to cut most of the sheetrock out, because the glue/cement they used to adhere the vertical tile just rips the paper off the sheetrock underneath.

I'm going to cut out all the sheetrock and replace with new, such that I can put new tile up on the wall were the stone was.

a reply to: schuyler

Interesting observation.

The granite is black (and radioactive...as most is). It's a horrible choice for a kitchen. I've often noted I don't like fake things, so I'm going to put in a subway type tile which looks more natural for the space, rather than the thick deep black colored granite.

I was enamored with the granite when we bought the house because we just had formica contertops in the old place. However, after a while I grew to dispise the granite for how disfunctional it was and how dirty it was. The stuff is impossible to clean because you can't see any dirt...but you can feel it.

ETA - P.S....did you know black granite is radioactive? It really is! There are radioactive isotopes in the granite. You can walk through the house with a Geiger counter, and when you walk into the kitchen it goes crazy. So, there's that too.

A 12 guage would do the trick ,,, Can you locate some one who does countertops ,,, give the stone to him if he will remove it ???

a reply to: diggerdog

We have (3) stone masons working for us right now, and no one wants the old granite. No one.

It's all custom fabbed, and only someone with the exact same counter tops would be able to use it...which is zero.

Everyone I've talked to said they'd be glad to remove it...with a sledge hammer. Pretty much what we are doing, but a little more carefully.

ETA...a 12 ga. might do the trick for YOU, but with this much granite, I'm damn sure not firing some 00 buckshot into this stuff!!! It might break some of it, but it would also definitely KILL some people in the vicinity also!

LOL peace

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk

When do we get to see pictures of this glorious sounding kitchen???????

If they were nice, why did you take it out? I am a builder, still have my license. I talked lots of people from taking out better stuff and replacing it with more modern inferior materials. Styles go in and out. I worked with them and found alternative ways to make things better. Some of the old houses here have beautiful stained glass windows and trim, trying to retain some of that actually increases the value of their house. I saved a lot of people money, I had a way of getting women to alter the changes they wanted to make and because of that I never had to advertise and was very busy. Everyone wants to put a little change in their home to make it feel like their own. Steering that change to stuff that increases property values is important. I knew a couple of tub manufacturers and could go order special made seconds from them. A three thousand dollar huge whirlpool four person tub for five hundred bucks is a great deal...complete with a huge motor. heater, and fancy jets and controls. Pays to know the owners of these businesses. They have to be considered seconds though, the people they wholesale to might get upset if they sold non-seconds to someone at a third of what they pay.

I passed on the savings completely to my customers and friends.

a reply to: rickymouse

I too am a builder, 42 years in the construction industry, so believe me, I'm not going at this without some forethought.

The issue which drives the granite removal is several-fold. First, this project isn't just a minor cosmetic change to the kitchen, it's a wholesale renovation. The section of granite which needs to be removed is a 'backspash' which runs from the countertop up to the bottom of the upper cabinets. The entire granite countertop is being removed in favor of a green-grey quartzite one which is a superior quality to the granite. So, the existing granite matches the existing countertop which is being replaced. Therefore, it's got to go.

Second, there must have been a sale on ugly granite when the original builder built this house! That, or his dad must have owned a granite quarry, and he got free seconds. It's a dark black color with a heavy dark brown undertone...and it's everywhere, which makes the whole kitchen "dark" and dreary. And even though we have windows and lots of natural light, it's still not enough, and no amount of lighting will cheer the space up (we tried that already). It'd be great for Dracula or somebody, but it's not for us.

Third, we're removing cabinets where the new range hood will go. This will leave a space not only between the cabinets, but also above the existing granite up to the underside of the hood. Then there is also the area above the hood to the ceiling. Our intention is to lay subway tile (the real stuff, not some kind of peel & stick crap from HD) from approximately the elevation of the countertop (but there isn't countertop at the range location) all the way up to the ceiling.

Lastly, we bought the house new, but we didn't have it built. We always knew we were going to have to take this granite out. I know the builder (and his father), and their specialty was foundations and framing, not interior design. This house was one of his first spec homes after his father retired. He's a good builder, but kitchen design is definitely not one of his callings. He got all the pieces right, but all in the wrong proportions (way wrong). For example, he put in an island (good) and made it two levels (good), but then made both levels so small that neither one of them was usable...for anything (bad x 2). Then he tried to be cool and made the island this crazy trapezoidal shape which made it completely dysfunctional to the point where the whole kitchen became dysfunctional, it was just a giant obstacle. That has since been completely removed, and replaced with the new island (shown in the pictures).

So, in summary, that's why we're removing the granite.

Great input though, for others who may be contemplating upgrades. And yes, I can see why you never needed to advertise. Quality workmanship and sensible planning always sell themselves.

a reply to: hiddeninsite

I already posted a couple in the other thread.

After numerous houses and renovations over six decades, I've found it much more productive to change my view on what is and isn't okay. Saves lots of time and money, neither of which I have much of (diagram that sentence). I'm guessing it was the thickness you found objectionable? Good luck & Safe grinding!

ganjoa