If your floor couldn't handle the added weight of 5 extra adults in the room at the same time, then you have bigger issues.

I did not have that issue in my kitchen.

Has anyone experienced having to reinforce the floor in any way to support the weight when replacing formica with stone / quartz countertops in an older row house?

Also check with your contractor, you may have to reinforce your bottom cabinets, because stone countertops are much heavier than formica.

We had great service from Statewide Granite on Kennedy at Carlton for a bathroom and a kitchen. My bathroom counter is 16 years old, and the kitchen island maybe 12... The sealing thing is no big deal. It takes three minutes and a cloth. I put hot pots right from the stove on my granite. It's the best. And Statewide has a terrific selection. WHen we replaced our stove within the island, and it didn't quite fit, Statewide came quickly to sand down an edge and help us fit it in.

Assuming you can find a color you like, quartz is objectively better. You need to re-seal granite every few years or so (bottle of 511. costs like $35 with tax) and do not need to do so with quartz.

Quartz tends to be in somewhat plain colors, although they do make ones that are meant to mimic marble and some consistent forms of granite. If you're looking for a busy, random pattern, you won't get that with quartz.

Home Depot, Ikea, Lowes, and inf small stores carry them. The brands are essentially all the same - Silestone, Cesarstone, Viaterra, Zodiaq - they're all made with the same process and generally only vary perhaps a percentage point or two in the amount of stone vs. acrylic resin. Pick whatever color you like and don't sweat brands too much.

If it makes a difference, Silestone's counters have an anti-microbial finish that is patented to them, so the others don't have it. Whatever.

Stop by the Home Depots or Lowes here in town imo. Seeing the colors makes things a lot easier.

Need to replace our old formica countertops in the kitchen and thinking of using quartz or granite., can't decide which is better.Does anyone have a recommendation for where to go for a good selection that has good prices and does a high quality job on installation. There are so many listings for these kitchen/bath/granite stores within 30 minutes or so, but I don't know how reputable they are or how good a job they do. Thanks for any suggestions!