Photo courtesy of and copyrighted © 2007 by J&M Lifestyles. Used by permission.Fiber Optics in Concrete Countertops
Decorative concrete contractors can add an exciting new technique to their repertoire that always elicits a “wow” reaction from clients: embedding fiber optics in concrete countertops.
by Chris Camara
With fiber optics, that scene can be replicated on a gleaming, polished bar top. The tiny points of light can form star patterns, a company logo, or even an outline of Mickey Mouse.
“It’s certainly dazzling for customers, even if they don’t end up choosing it,” says Lane Mangum of the Raleigh, N.C.-based Concrete Countertop Institute. In the CCI showroom, for example, a huge array of color samples is displayed on what she calls the “rainbow wall.” While clients are impressed by what’s available, they’ll end up with gray or another low-key color.
The same is true for fiber optics. While the effect may not be for everyone, contractors who master the technique can give themselves a competitive advantage. It demonstrates, skill, patience, innovation, creativity and an attitude that they’re not afraid to try something new.
And it definitely attracts attention. Elizabeth Maurer, who owns Liquid Stone Concrete Designs with her husband, Gerry, brought a countertop embedded with fiber optics to a bath and kitchen trade show in Valley Forge, Penn., recently. Twenty people at a time crowded into the booth, crouching under the countertop looking for drill holes, and asking how the bulbs are changed.
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