Waivers

Natural Stone / Quartzite Acknowledgment & Waiver

Customer Name: ________________

Project Address: _________________

Material Name / Color: _____________

Slab Yard / Supplier: ______________

Date: ___________________

This waiver is to confirm that the customer understands the natural characteristics, limitations, and risks associated with selecting quartzite and/or other natural stone materials for their countertop project.

Quartzite is a natural stone. It is quarried from the earth, cut into slabs, reinforced, polished, and prepared by the supplier before it arrives at MMKB Countertops. Because it is a natural material, it will not look, feel, or perform like man-made quartz, porcelain, laminate, or solid surface. Every slab is unique, and no two pieces of natural stone will ever be exactly the same.

By signing this waiver, the customer acknowledges and accepts the following:

1. Quartzite Is a Natural Stone

Quartzite is formed naturally in the earth. Because of this, it may contain natural variation in color, pattern, veining, texture, mineral deposits, fissures, pits, surface movement, and other natural characteristics.

These characteristics are not defects. They are part of the stone.

The customer understands that the stone may include, but is not limited to:

● Natural pits

● Natural fissures

● Hairline cracks or fracture lines

● Mineral spots

● Color variation

● Vein variation

● Rough areas

● Open areas in the face of the stone

● Resin or epoxy fill

● Texture changes

● Small chips or voids

● Factory-repaired areas

● Areas that feel different from the rest of the slab

These items are common in quartzite and other natural stones and are not considered fabrication or installation defects.

2. Quartzite Is Often Full of Resin, Epoxy, and Factory Fill

The customer understands that many quartzite slabs are heavily reinforced with resin, mesh, epoxy, glue, or other factory-applied fillers before the slabs are ever delivered to MMKB Countertops.

Quartzite is often a fractured, layered, and delicate natural stone that is strengthened and held together by resin or epoxy during processing. This is normal for many quartzite materials.

The customer understands that epoxy or resin may be visible:

● On the face of the slab

● Inside natural fissures

● Along veins

● On the edges

● Around cutouts

● Around sink openings

● Around cooktop openings

● Along seams

● On polished edges

● In chips, pits, or voids

● In repaired areas of the stone

The customer understands that this epoxy is part of the slab itself and is not something MMKB Countertops created.

3. The Face of the Stone Is Not Altered by MMKB Countertops

MMKB Countertops does not refinish, polish, sand, hone, resurface, or alter the face of natural stone slabs.

The customer understands that the face of the stone is finished by the quarry, factory, distributor, or supplier before MMKB receives it. MMKB fabricates the countertops by cutting, edging, polishing the exposed edges, completing necessary cutouts, and installing the material.

MMKB does not change the surface texture, shine, smoothness, or factory finish of the face of the stone.

If the slab has rough spots, pits, dull areas, epoxy-filled areas, natural texture, uneven shine, or areas that feel different to the touch, those conditions are part of the slab and will remain after installation.

MMKB is not responsible for correcting, hiding, polishing out, or changing the natural or factory-finished face of the stone.

4. Customer Is Strongly Advised to Touch and Inspect the Slab Before MMKB Purchases / Receives Material

The customer is highly encouraged to physically inspect and feel the selected slab before fabrication begins. Slabs usually carry a rejection fee per the slab yards if it comes to my shop and is then rejected.

This includes touching the face of the slab with their hands so they understand how the material feels before it is installed in the home.

Photos, samples, and showroom pieces may not show every natural characteristic of the actual slab. Lighting, camera angles, dust, water, polish, resin, and slab position can all affect how the stone appears.

The customer understands that they should inspect the slab for:

● Color

● Veining

● Pattern

● Shine

● Rough areas

● Pits

● Fissures

● Texture

● Epoxy-filled areas

● Factory repairs

● Areas that may feel uneven or different

MMKB highly recommends the customer approve the actual slab in person before fabrication. The goal is to avoid any surprises after installation.

Once the material is cut, fabricated, or installed, the customer accepts the natural characteristics of the selected slab.

5. Edges May Contain Visible Epoxy, Fill, Pits, or Natural Voids

The customer understands that when quartzite is cut, the inside of the stone is exposed.

Because quartzite may contain natural fractures, pits, veins, voids, and factory epoxy throughout the slab, the finished edge may show epoxy, resin, fill, glue, fissures, chips, color variation, or rougher areas.

This is especially common on quartzite because the stone is naturally layered and often held together with epoxy or resin.

The customer understands that the edge of the stone may not look or feel exactly like the face of the stone.

The customer also understands that some areas of the edge may require additional fill during fabrication. This may be visible. Epoxy or fill on the edge is considered normal and may be necessary to complete the countertop safely and properly.

Visible epoxy, resin, fill, fissures, pits, chips, or rough areas on the edge are not considered defects.

6. Natural Fissures Are Not the Same as Cracks

The customer understands that quartzite may contain natural fissures. A fissure is a natural line, separation, vein, or fracture within the stone that was created during the formation of the material.

Fissures may look or feel like cracks, but they are natural characteristics of the stone.

Some fissures may be filled with epoxy or resin by the factory. Some may remain slightly open or textured. Some may be visible on the face, edge, or underside of the countertop.

MMKB is not responsible for natural fissures, factory-filled fissures, or the appearance of fissures in the selected material.

7. Pits, Rough Spots, and Texture Are Common

The customer understands that quartzite may have pits, rough spots, and textured areas on the surface.

Some areas may feel smooth while other areas may feel slightly rough, open, grainy, sharp, uneven, or filled.

These areas are part of the stone’s natural makeup and/or factory finish.

MMKB cannot guarantee that the surface of quartzite will feel perfectly smooth everywhere. MMKB does not alter the face of the stone, and therefore cannot remove or correct surface texture, rough spots, pits, factory fill, or natural openings in the face of the slab.

8. Staining Is Possible

The customer understands that quartzite is a natural stone and may stain.

Although quartzite is often considered durable, it is not stain-proof. Some quartzites are more porous than others. The risk of staining depends on the specific stone, how porous it is, how it was processed, how it is sealed, and how it is maintained.

The customer understands that staining may be caused by, but is not limited to:

● Oils

● Grease

● Wine

● Coffee

● Tomato sauce

● Citrus

● Juice

● Food coloring

● Spices

● Cleaning chemicals

● Hard water

● Soap residue

● Makeup

● Ink

● Rust

● Metal cans

● Plants or flower pots

● Standing water

● Acidic products

The customer understands that sealing helps reduce the chance of staining, but sealing does not make natural stone stain-proof.

The customer is responsible for routine care, cleaning, sealing, and maintenance after installation.

MMKB is not responsible for staining, etching, discoloration, water marks, oil spots, chemical damage, or changes caused by use, cleaning products, food, liquids, or lack of maintenance after installation.

9. Quartzite May Still Etch, Dull, or React to Chemicals

The customer understands that some materials sold as quartzite may contain minerals that react differently than expected. Some quartzites may be more sensitive to acids, cleaners, or household chemicals.

The customer understands that acidic products, harsh cleaners, abrasive pads, bleach, ammonia, vinegar, citrus, and other chemicals may damage, dull, etch, or discolor the stone or the factory resin/epoxy.

Only stone-safe cleaners should be used.

MMKB is not responsible for damage caused by improper cleaning products, chemicals, spills, or lack of care.

10. Seams, Veins, and Pattern Matching

The customer understands that natural stone patterns are irregular and cannot always be perfectly matched.

MMKB will make reasonable efforts to place seams and lay out material in a way that works with the slab, the kitchen layout, structural limitations, and safe handling of the stone. However, MMKB cannot guarantee perfect vein matching, color matching, or pattern continuation at seams, edges, backsplashes, waterfall panels, or cutouts.

The customer understands that seams may be visible and may contain adhesive, epoxy, or fill.

Natural stone seams will not disappear.

11. Chips, Fragility, and Handling Risk

The customer understands that quartzite can be brittle, fragile, and unpredictable during fabrication, transport, and installation.

Because quartzite may contain natural fissures, fractures, or epoxy-filled areas, there is always a risk of chipping, breaking, cracking, or material failure during cutting, fabrication, delivery, installation, or normal use.

MMKB will use professional care when handling and installing the material, but the customer understands that natural stone has risks that man-made products may not have.

12. Customer Approval of Material

The customer confirms that they have selected and approved the natural stone material for this project.

The customer understands that once the slab is cut or fabricated, it cannot be returned to its original condition.

The customer accepts the natural characteristics of the selected stone, including all visible and non-visible variations, epoxy, fill, pits, fissures, texture, color movement, and potential staining risks.

13. No Guarantee of Perfect Appearance or Feel

The customer understands that quartzite is not a perfect, uniform, man-made product.

MMKB cannot guarantee that the stone will be:

● Perfectly smooth

● Perfectly shiny

● Free of pits

● Free of fissures

● Free of rough spots

● Free of epoxy

● Free of factory fill

● Free of natural cracks or lines

● Perfectly color matched

● Perfectly vein matched

● Stain-proof

● Chip-proof

● Etch-proof

● Maintenance-free

The customer understands that these conditions are part of choosing natural stone.

14. Customer Responsibility

The customer is responsible for understanding the material they selected before fabrication and installation.

MMKB strongly recommends that the customer:

● Visit the slab yard in person

● Inspect the actual slab

● Touch and feel the face of the slab

● Look for rough areas, pits, fissures, and epoxy

● Ask questions before approving fabrication

● Understand that natural stone requires care and maintenance

● Understand that sealing reduces risk but does not eliminate staining

MMKB wants the customer to have no surprises after installation. The best way to avoid surprises is for the customer to personally inspect and feel the slab before work begins.

15. Acceptance

By signing below, the customer acknowledges that they have read and understand this waiver.

The customer accepts that quartzite and natural stone materials may contain epoxy, resin, pits, fissures, rough spots, texture changes, factory repairs, visible fill, staining risk, and natural variation.

The customer understands that MMKB Countertops does not alter or refinish the face of the stone and is not responsible for natural or factory-existing characteristics of the slab.

The customer agrees that these natural and factory-related characteristics are not defects and are not grounds for replacement, refund, discount, repair, or remake.

Customer Signature: ______________

Printed Name: __________________

Date: _______________________

MMKB Countertops Representative: _____