FAQ

POLISHED CONCRETE BENCHTOP versus GRANITE Benchtop OR MARBLE?

Do you prefer "wow" or "nice"? Do you prefer unique or common? Modern or traditional? Our polished concrete is unique, modern and gives you the "wow' factor. When people see concrete benchtops, they are immediately attracted to it and will start touching it and asking questions. I see granite and marble as 70's floral designs - too busy, not soothing to the eye. Even stressful.

A granite benchtop. Its quality stone, but it looks like 70's lino.

POLISHED CONCRETE BENCHTOP versus corian Benchtop or engineered stone?

Do you prefer a blank canvas or a canvas with personality, movement, a story? Concrete has far more character than corian and engineered stone. Concrete feels like quality. Have you ever tapped corian or engineered stone? It gives off a plastic sound. Give it a try.

One of these is aesthetically interesting and soothing. It gives the eye a place to rest but has character.

What else does concrete have to offer?

You can really personalize your benchtop with concrete. Embedding of simple gems is inexpensive and adds a great touch. How about an integrated drainage and trivets. There are unlimited options with concrete. Trust us to keep it simple and stylish.

How does your sealer look and perform?

I am a lover of concrete, I prefer not to put a heavy coating of plastic type sealer over our quality material. You will appreciate the feel of the stone, not a heavy coating. The sealer I perfer for concrete kitchen benchtops both penetrates and leaves a micro layer of about 0.2mm. Its called a reactive sealer. I can apply the sealer to a matt, semi gloss and high gloss finish. Under normal circumstances, the sealer will not scratch or stain. It will hold up to your keys, plates and cutlery on a busy daily basis. Like all stones and their sealers, if you leave acidic substance for many hours it will itch the surface. The worst known products are mustard and vinegar, where you have approximately 2 hours before these products will etch the surface. I have searched hard and wide to find the best sealer possible for our benchtops. Check out its application method here and you will start to understand why it works so well.

Its not pavement concrete, right?

Because I love every benchtop I make like its my child. Well not quite, but my passion to get everything just right may have you thinking so. Digitizedstone is a small company that highly values your satisfaction.

Pavement concrete = 30mpa (compression strength)
High Performance Concrete = 60mpa
Ultra High Performance Concrete = 80mpa. The concrete we use.

Our concrete is fully premixed (by men in white coats) in bags to achieve ultra high strengths. Our concrete mix costs around 9 times the price of basic concrete, but the quality, the consistency and the ease of use allow me to focus on making great moulds and finishes.

Where do you make it and how long will it take?

All our benchtops are fabricated in our workshop and are delivered and installed by us. From the moment I take templates from your cabinets, it will take no longer then 3 weeks before your benches are installed.

Can my cabinets support it?

Yes, in nearly all cases your cabinets will be able to support our benchtops. We will advise you if adjustments need to be made. Regardless of the edge thickness appearance, your benchtop's actual thickness will be from 20mm to 50mm thick. This will depend on how we reinforce it, either glass fibres or steel.

HOW MUCH DO THEY COST?

Our standard price is $1050 per square meter, installed. Most kitchens, up to 50mm thickness, are charged at this rate.

Undermount sinks cutouts are $300
60-120mm thickness is $1250psm
Difficult installations, such as crane hire, are an obvious expense

High Performance Concrete

Our mixes consist of a proven formula of glass fibers, polymers, mesh fiber, the highest quality cement and locally source sands. Both steel and/or mesh fibers are used in strict guides to reinforce our concrete against spans, counter-levers and transportation.

Jamie O'Toole - Concrete Artisan & Digital Sculptor

Testimonials
“Jamie made and installed our polished concrete kitchen and laundry benchtops and we couldn’t be happier with the result! He was very professional and very accommodating with us as we changed our minds many times. He worked with us to find the right colour and pattern by making many samples for us. Jamie is very passionate when it comes to finding the right design for his customers. His experience was very appreciated making sure we ended up with a benchtop strong enough to accommodate our extremely large sink (commercial size). When it came to installation, he was meticulous with his measuring and templating. The install only took a couple of hours and our three benches (large kitchen L, coffee station and laundry) all fit snuggly. The benchtops have been installed for a number of months now and with two kids and a clumsy husband they still look as good as they did on the day of install. Jamie was a pleasure to deal with and the overall result was fantastic. We will definitely be return customers for our next project!”

— Adam and Michelle Bryant

“We started with a picture and simple idea; a concrete table top with recycled timber legs, and we were amazed with the attention to detail Jamie gave to this project to bring our beautiful family table to life. Whether it be the multiple finish samples provided, the 3D sketch-ups of options and even a visit to our home to get a feel for the space - the service provided to us was first class. The finished product exceeded our expectations and the craftsmanship was beyond reproach, but best of all, Jamie took the time to listen to our concerns, provided guidance on our choices along the way and gave regular updates on progress. We would highly recommend Jamie and would not hesitate to use Digitizedstone again in the future”

— Ray and Christine Hezkial, Harrison

More testimonials can be found here.