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“We have a large granite countertop and
around the back of the sink it has gotten dark. We also have a crack
that runs into the sink from the air vent for the dishwasher. I am guessing the granite was not sealed properly and water has soaked into the granite. What do I do now???”says this customer at the garden web forum. Can any of you stone gurus help?
She is right about the sealer (“assuming she paid for sealer).
I have NO idea what an air vent from a DW is. IF it is an air switch for a garbage disposal???? Then the crack is probably from when they cored the hole.
Either way, she should call her original fabricator and get them to fix it.
The air vent is a vacuum breaker and an overflow from the dishwasher in case something gets clogged.
If the material is darker then it most likely needs to be sealed again. Sealer can be purchased in a number of places now…I believe even Target is carrying it. I know for sure that Home Depot, Lowes, and Ace carry it. If the homeowner is uncomfortable about sealing it I would suggest that they contact the original fabricator or another fabricator in their area.
This is a good place to start.
http://www.stonefabricatorsalliance…&Itemid=60
A good granite fabricator should also be able to repair the crack that has formed between the sink and the hole for the vent.
Thanks. I thought the same about the sealant, but I am perplexed about an “air vent” and why it would crack.
I posted some of the comments here on that forum.
I am completely unfamiliar with the air vents. I understand the concept, just not seen them.
These vents vent tru the countertop?
Another thought, what if the vent is the top/front vent on the face of the dishwasher and the crack runs from the front edge profile back to the sink.
Like maybe a problem with a rod or something. Dunno..
The hole for the vent is drilled all the way through the material like a faucet hole and is most likely an 1-3/8″ diameter just like the rest of the faucet holes.
There could be a couple causes of the crack. It could have been cracked during the install and not noticed until this point. It’s also possible that they crack was caused when the hole was drilled. If they did it on site with the wrong style core bit enough heat could have been built up to cause the stone to crack. Also, if the cabinets were not level or if the top was not properly shimmed the top could crack after install. If the top was cracked before install it will still probably be perfectly flat. If it was cracked after install then you may be able to look down the top and see either a high point or low point in the top at the location of the crack.
The third scenario is the worst one. A lot of the time when a sink cutout is done in a granite top a groove is cut in front of and behind the sink. Then a metal rod is inserted into the groove and glued into the stone. This helps to strengthen the stone to help it survive the stresses caused at install. It’s possible that if enough water soaked through the stone that it could reach the groove cut for the metal rod. If the metal rod was not fully encapsulated by the adhesive the water could cause it to rust. The rusted metal would expand and cause the stone to crack. Most likely when this happens the crack runs parallel with the sink so it’s not as likely in this situation.
Posted By Chris Yaughn on 04 Oct 2010 01:44 PM
I am completely unfamiliar with the air vents. I understand the concept, just not seen them.
These vents vent tru the countertop?
Thanks for the link, Brian. That makes a lot more sense now that I see it.
I pasted you second paragraph in there. I didn’t want to scare her as much with the third unless she manages to reject the second.
Is this a regional thing based on something? I have never seen that. All of our DW drain lines go into the side of the garbage disposal. Or into the P-trap fittings.
Learn something new everyday, I guess.
The DW air gap is required code here in Ky. We actually install it into the soap dispender hole, get the final inspection, pull the air gap below the deck, secure it, then install the soap dispenser. Most states do not require it. i thought Ky was the only one.
We are required to have air gaps here also, we just run the drain hose up as high as possible under the top with out an air gap, the inspectors are usualy ok with doing that.
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