That SINK-ing feeling...

[Jenise]

The coming remodel of our kitchen requires that I purchase a new sink, and I've fallen in love with both stainless steel in general and this apron-front model spied at a local place in particular. It's exactly what I want configuration-wise, one large sink and a smaller disposal sink.

I took a picture to show my husband and architect:

Apron Front Sink.JPG

More details: it's 36 wide by 20 deep. It's 15 gauge stainless (where most of the Kohlers, say, are only 18, and the lower the number the thicker the steel). I thought I would prefer an under-mount until I saw this. The apron-front gives it a lot of scale and the big squares are perfect for my house, which has a Frank Lloyd Wright kind of raw/organic/industrial feel to it, and in which all the spaces are big and require chunky, oversized elements to fit in. Based on looks alone, this sink is PERFECT.

As you can see from the pictures, however, the sinks are square inside. Looks good, but will I find food sticking in the corners? Is stainless hard to keep clean? And because I run soft water (from salt), is corrosion inevitable? Any experience, advice or opinions?

I got a stainless sink about a year ago. It does get scratches from whatever you put in it, so the nice finish it came with has gone away. I'm a mechanical engineer, and in my working years I sometimes specified stainless steel parts. On my sink (Oliveri brand), the finish was "#2 bright", which is a smooth, satiny but not brushed finish. Now it has random, swirly marks from things rubbing it, and scouring, and a few shiny scratches from hard stuff. I expected that - drawing quality stainless doesn't have a hard surface. The scratches aren't deep, they're just shiny.

It's easy to keep clean - much easier than the 40 year old porcelain enamel sink it replaced.

Our water is hard. All I have to do is wipe it out with a damp cloth every evening to clean up the water spots. Once a month or so, I work it over with Barkeeper's Friend. I doubt corrosion will be a problem.

I'd worry about the sharp corners, too. You might have to get a plastic scraper with a sharp corner to get in there. I've seen some windshield scrapers that might work.

John

The stainless sinks we have in our commercial kitchen at my workplace have square interiors. No problems with food sticking in the corners.

Jenise,

Sounds like the style is right on. FWIW,these are the things I would consider:

1. is the size of the bigger bin right for what you need. Too big can be a problem as well as too small.
2. is the depth relative to your height ergonomically OK. After bending over many sinks I found that
anything more that 12" would create an issue for my back. This will be influenced by the height of the
counter , the width of the apron and your height. I had my undermount placed as far forward as possible
to allow a bit more comfortable depth
3.is the bottom sloped at all , or have those diagonal lines to the drain. I stayed away from square
because I didn't want crud collecting
4.does the position of the drain matter. I looked for a sink with off center drain because I was tired of
lifting what I was working on to allow water to drain. This makes a difference even in a large sink

As far as SS, it never looks spiff unless I polish it and wipe it dry. I have softened hot water and it
does spot. No corrosion after 1 year

After much searching I ended up with a Franke - 32" wide, 12" deep single bowl that is contoured- one
large section, one smaller. One of the best things about the sink was the slight rim on the inside
about halfway down that supports a SS wire shelf on the smaller side that acts as prep
drain and dish drain. I don't need a drain board cluttering up the counter top.

Hope this helps. I love that heavy industrial look and I hope it works for you

We have an all stairless kitchen that has its pluses and minuses. The sink is great. Very similar to the one in your picture. Ours has a drain area to the right, and we have a stainless drain rack that goes down into the small sink, and across the drain area. It lifts out easily for cleaning. The dishwasher (also stainless) is immediately to the left of the sink.

Jenise, I have had stainless steel before. In time it looses it's pretty shine, scratches easily, and does not look clean. With my last kitchen remodel, I chose a Kohler Executive, under mount sink. It has a huge left side that I can put a roasting pan in to soak. The right side is smaller. I absolutely love this sink. I bought the basin rack for the larger sink and the draining basket for the smaller side. I use a rubber mat on the divider in the middle. My sink is now 7 years old and looks like new. When the rack and basket get crappy looking, and they do, because I put hot pan lids down on them and we wash pots and pans on top of them, Gene removes them and sprays them with some sort of plastic paint. He brings them back to me looking bright and shiny. I did buy an extra set to have when the other set is being worked on.
The sink is not so deep that it hurts my back lifting the big stuff in or out of it. I think now this unit comes in all sorts of finishes. It is my favorite after 47 years of working at sinks!
Mine is a three hole, faucet/spray unit, soap dispenser and instant hot water (which we use all the time) but you can get a four hole, as well.
I think the square corners would be harder to clean.....I like the round corners for ease of cleaning and nice look. I did not want my kitchen to look totally industrial.

I "inherited" a steel (nickel?) sink. It shines when I scrub it, even after 7 or 8 years. I don't consider the lack-of-shine in between times to be a deficit.

When we remodeled our kitchen last year, stainless steel was a must-have for me. It is far better than an enamaled sink in most respects, and the minor scratches that come with use just add character.

[Jenise]

Follow-up: I haven't selected our new sink, but because of things many of you mentioned I reconsidered this sink and decided against it. As Christina suggested, I went back and measured it. Though I realized at the time I posted that the smaller of the two sinks was a little larger than I needed for a small, garbage disposal sink essentially, with Karen's comments in my head--in Huntington Beach we had a Kohler Executive, which I considered the perfect size--I could see that the ratio between the two sinks was really all wrong. That is, size-wise, as I well remember the divide of space on the Executive was about 80/20 whereas this sink's two bays divided at more like 70/30, or maybe 65/35. It's no problem having a larger small sink but not at the expense of the larger sink. I also want sloping, not square corners, and I want an under-mount vs. self-rimming. Hot little number though this sink is, it IS technically self-rimming and comes with every detriment of self-rimming. Since I'm starting from scratch, why put up with that? And why not have a sink that has a drain area that slopes into the sink, too? I always have dishes or pans drying in a drain thingie which right now is supported on several plastic cutting boards so that the mat tips over the edges of the old self-rimming sink. That situation HAS to go.

So thank you everyone for your advice--you saved me from a big mistake.