Green Countertops
Green countertops are recycled or renewable countertops that have minimal impact on the environment during their production/ creation. They are comprised of different combinations of natural and man-made materials to make composite slabs. Most green countertops integrate some form of recycled waste into the mix. Many are attractive and viable alternatives to conventional countertop surfaces.
Here is a comprehensive list of companies that make green countertops. They are categorized by type of material used.
Metal
Alkemi: Offers countertops made from 60% post
industrial aluminum waste and resins.
Eleek: Offers recycled aluminum countertops designed specifically to fit standard kitchen countertops.
Hetkastone: Offers Shetkastone,
a revolutionary product that has a 100% sustainable life cycle. Products that
are produced from Shetkastone are manufactured from
pre and post consumer waste paper.
Richlite: Offers paper-based countertops.
EnviroGlas EnviroGLAS Terrazzo is made of post-consumer and post-industrial recycled glass. Each EnviroGLAS product is about 75% recycled glass and 25% binder by volume.
Trinity Glass Products Offers recycled glass and concrete countertops.
Vetrazzo All of the glass used in Vetrazzo is recycled, and it makes up about 85% of the total material. Most of the glass comes from curbside recycling programs.
VitraStone Offers eco friendly sinks and countertops made from a special blend of ceramic cement, fly ash, and recycled glass.
Stone
IceStone IceStone® durable surfaces are strong like granite, not as porous as marble and heat-resistant like stone. The chemical composition is benign and 99.5% inorganic making it a very safe material from the standpoint of toxicity and fire resistance.
Caeserstone: Offers quartz countertops.
Lithistone: Offers countertops consisting of a natural mineral binder, different grades of sand and stone, recycled material, and organic mineral pigments.
Wood
Endura Wood Products: Offers a wide variety of certified and rediscovered woods and wood products for homes and business.
Craft Art Company: Offers reclaimed wood countertops.
Eco-top: Offers countertops made from a 50/50 blend of bamboo fiber, and recycled wood fiber salvaged from demolition sites. These materials are bound together by a water-based resin formula that is both petroleum-free and VOC-free.
Mixture of Materials
Syndcrete: Offers cement based countertops made from post consumer bottle glass, tempered glass, wood chips, metal shavings, shells, and more.
Squak Mountain Stone: Offers fibrous cement based countertops comprised of recycled paper, recycled glass, coal fly-ash and Portland cement.
In addition to consideration of the countertop material to be used for your kitchen or bathroom, the materials used in the countertop assembly should be taken into account as well. There are some key components of countertop assembly that are frequently overlooked. It’s important to choose the right materials that will not offgass toxic compounds into your home’s air. Something to think about when installing new stone countertops is the adhesive that is used to attach the stone to its substrate. Most adhesives are epoxy-based and very high in VOCs. It’s best to use adhesive that is specified as zero-VOC and substrate that is specified as formaldehyde-free plywood. In addition, most resins contain petroleum based products which are not green. However, it’s important to note that there are alternative natural resins available to be used in the production of man made countertops.