What is Sintered Stone and Do You Treat It Like Real Stone?
By Frederick M. Hueston
Every once in a while, a contractor will call me and ask about a “new” stone product they’ve run into. One name that keeps popping up is Sintered Stone. At first glance, it sounds like something right out of a horror movie, but it’s actually one of the many types of sintered stone that have been flooding the market over the last decade. If you’re not familiar with it, this is the stuff that goes by brand names like Lapitec, Neolith, Dekton, and a growing list of others.
What Exactly Is Sintered Stone?
Despite the name, it isn’t quarried out of the ground like marble or granite. Sintered stone is a man-made product created by taking natural minerals (things like quartz, feldspar, and silica) and fusing them together under extreme heat and pressure. Think of it as a cross between porcelain and natural stone.
The result is a slab that can:
- Mimic the look of marble, concrete, wood, or other surfaces
- Offer strong resistance to scratching and staining
- Deliver durability that appeals to designers and homeowners
How Does It Behave Compared to Real Stone?
Here’s the tricky part. Fabricators, installers, and restoration pros sometimes assume sintered stone will act like granite or marble, but it doesn’t.
- It doesn’t etch from acids like marble.
- It’s harder and more scratch-resistant than most natural stones.
- It resists staining better than granite.
Sounds perfect, right? Not so fast. The very qualities that make it durable also make it a challenge to work within restoration. Unlike marble, you can’t just pull out your diamonds and polish it back up to a shine. If it scratches, chips, or dulls, repairs can be limited. In many cases, surface damage is permanent, or it requires factory-level equipment to restore.
Can You Polish or Hone It?
This is where many pros run into a wall. Sintered stone is not designed to be refinished the way natural stone is. With marble, if a client doesn’t like the dull spots, you can hone and polish until it looks new again. With sintered stone, you’re usually stuck with the finish it came with.
Some manufacturers have developed repair kits, but they’re limited in what they can fix.
So, Do You Treat It Like Real Stone?
The short answer is no. While it shares some ingredients with natural stone, the way it’s manufactured changes everything.
When you approach a sintered stone surface, think more like you’re dealing with:
- Porcelain tile
- Engineered quartz
Cleaning should be done with pH-neutral products, just like with natural stone, but avoid promising you can polish or restore it the same way you would marble or granite.
