I two more questions for some kind person: What are the pros and cons of cleaning/maintaining a porcelain or acrylic or stainless steel sink? I'm trying to decide on the best looking, but practical type of sink for a granite countertop. I was told that acrylic is easier to maintain than porcelian, but has anyone had experience with it? Thanks for any insight at all. Sis
Both clean well. What you really need to avoid is abrasive cleaners, especially with the porcelain. Once scratched, all types become dull and stain easily. It's about personal preference. I like the porcelain for appearance, but the stainless steel for easy clean up. Porcelain can be cleaned with bleach, just like a toilet. There are various gauge thickness of the stainless, the heavier is less likely to get dented. Unlike porcelain, acrylic is less likely to chip if hit with an iron skillet. Have you thought about having a sink made from granite to match the countertops? Another option (my favorite) is soapstone if cost is no concern.
Each type of sink has its strengths and weaknesses. A porcelain coated cast iron sink is very heavy and durable. The thickness means it will be very quiet when you are running water. The down side is that if you drop a heavy object into the sink, the porcelain will chip, exposing the cast iron which will subsequently rust. That said, porcelain cast iron sinks have been used for decades and in some respects are considered upscale due to their cost. There are porcelain steel sinks that are quire cheap and are in my opinion a very bad choice as they are loud and can dent and chip quire easily.
Stainless comes in various thickness and finishes. The heavier the gage of steel, the more durable and dent resistant. Stainless sinks can be loud when you run water in them and don't retain heat very well. This is mitigated somewhat by choosing a quality, heavy gage sink that is undercoated to deaden the sound and insulate the sink. The highly polished stainless sinks are very beautiful in my opinion, but will show scratches and abrasion with use. A satin finished sink isn't as good looking initially, but shows less wear and tear.
Acrylic sinks fall somewhat in-between in most respects including cost. Plastic is a good insulator, so your water stays hot longer than with metal. They tend to be quieter than stainless. The color is uniform throughout the products, so if they get scraped it doesn't show. Plastic has the advantage of being polishable. If you are talking about a sink made of solid surface material like Corian or Swanstone, then you can sand and polish the surface back to like-new condition with a series of sandpaper and Schtochbrite pads. I have a Swanstone, self r****ng sink in their desert sand color and my mother has a Swanstone sink that is integral to her counters. My only issue with my sink is that it stains somewhat with coffee. However, you can use Softscrub with bleach and the stain instantly disappears. The manufacture also recommends letting a solution of bleach and water stand in the sink to remove food stains. I haven't felt the need to buff or polish it in the last 7 years.
I think your choice of sinks is somewhat dependant on the style of your kitchen. I would consider a large porcelain cast iron farm sink in a very traditional kitchen. In a sleek contemporary design, I might go with an undermount stainless sink. As much as I like acrylic, I'm not sure I would combine it with granite. I like the idea of having the sink fabricated from granite. You might also look into soapstone.
In any event, make sure that your sink will accommodate large sheet pans and roasters if you use them. I choose a sink with a very large bowl on one side and smaller bowl on the other side. I find this much more functional than two medium sized bowls.
look at fhpsinks.com, we have their composite and like it.
Hi Sis
Something to think about! Why are ALL commercial kitchens done in Stainless?
What you have to watch for is there are low and high end stainless sinks. The high end sinks are thick and a much higher quality stainless, heck you can even get 360 stainless if you want and can afford it. High end stainless is as quiet as cast iron and retains heat as well as polycarbonate sinks.
Porcelain over cast iron is also an excellent choice provided you never use an abrasive type cleanser in it. Stick with cleaners like Delete or Bar Keepers Friend, never let Comet touch it and it will look new for 100 years.
Various plastic and fiberglass sinks are often gel coated and have a very low lifespan. Easily damaged. Even solid polycarbonate is prone to easy scratching and developing pits.
I've seen soapstone mentioned in a few posts, WARNING, Don't Do It! We had a soapstone bathroom sink. Soapstone is an easily carveable product used by sculptors. Thus it scratches very very easily! I also had a Woodstock Soapstone Stove, loved it, but it too scratched very easily. And when they stain, the stain goes clear through!
The only two I would recommend staying completely away from are fiberglass and porcelain over stamped steel. You'll be replacing them in short order.
As an aside: When I redid my kitchen in my last house, I used a medium/high end very deep bowl twin stainless and placed a garbage disposer on each side (kids never get the garbage on the side with the disposal, a disposal on each side cured that problem and was handy). After 15 years the sink still looked brand new. I also installed a water spigot that could be pulled up, high enough to fit under a 5 gallon mop bucket. It looked like a normal kitchen faucet set in the down position and it was a single lever faucet as well, with sprayer.
TTUL Gary
Thanks so much for your advice! Sandy
Thanks very much for all of your advice! One silly question though; many people mentioned that some sinks don't retain heat as well as others- what is the purpose of a sink retaining heat? for dishwashing? I wasn't sure. Thanks. S
I'm going to look at that website now,thanks very much! S
Thanks so much! You're right about the commercial kitchens. I'm going to check out the sinks you mentioned. Also,thank you for the insight on the products you have used, it really helps. S
I believe that it has to do with sanitation codes.
How about a vitreous china sink? Or a fireclay sink? Hugely expensive, but beautiful and very durable. We have a stainless sink in the kitchen, but vitreous china sinks (and toilets) in the bathrooms. They are now 22 years old and still look new, whereas a porcelain sink in a guest room is rusting in spots after 8 years. However, at the time the china sinks cost about as much as my car was worth.
Thank you very much. I'll check out the website! S
"Vox Humana" verbositized:
I've had applied food service sanitation and at one time held a certificate for same. You can even use sealed wood in a commercial kitchen if you wanted to.
Commercial Stainless is easy to keep clean and looks good for years and years. Although with energy costs going through the roof, there is a trend now to use a stainless frame with a drop in polycarbonate sink because of the longer heat retention.
TTUL Gary
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