Urgent! undermount stainless sink advice need!!! My contractor is to install undermount stainless sink & granite counter top tomorrow, but he told me that I will have to break the granite if I decide to change the undermount sink later on, is this true or he does not know how to install undermount sinker correctly? Please advice. Thanks in advance.
John
Sounds like a load of rubbish. Are you sure you didn't take something he said literally that he didn't intend, e.g. "Yes, John, when we install this the seal will be so good you'll have to break it up to remove the sink, hohoho!"? I should try talking to him about it.
Neglecting everything else, it's only ~1.5mm stainless steel, and will not stand up to a man with an angle grinder.
I have an undermounted "granite" sink on my Silestone counter. The granite powder/epoxy sink is just siliconed (plus some metal supports) to the counter top and if the counter top can be removed from the base cabinets in one piece, replacing the sink would be quite easy. BUT, and it's a big "but", granite and Silestone counter tops can be installed on base cabinets in a way that make removal of the counter top very difficult if not impossible without breaking the counter top. My installation had something like plywood or MDX (?) board screwed into the top of the base cabinets, then caulking applied generously on top followed by the setting of the Silestone above it all. When I asked how this top could be removed, the installers said that it would be possible at times to use many screws driven from below the plywood or MDX and slowly tighten the screws, wait, slowly tighten some more, wait, etc...until the force of the many screws broke the adhesive between the plywood and Silestone allowing the counter top to be lifted off. He also said this may fail and either not remove the counter top--or break the counter top in the attempt.
So, to me, loss of a counter top does seem a possible outcome in a future sink replacement, not only for trying to replace a sink, but for any attempt to remove the counter top.
The shop that did my work has been in business for well over a decade and is the primary installer of Corian, Silestone and granite in northern Arizona, so I assume they know what they're doing. And from watching the sink and counter being installed, my counter top would have to be removed from the cabinets to be able to replace the undermounted sink. A new sink couldn't be installed with the counter top in place.
Of course, with an above-mounted sink, the counter top could stay in place as you replace a sink. Just hope that the opening req'd for the new sink matches the hole you have!
Craig
PS--personally, I find SS sinks to be too much work to keep sparkling. Have you looked at granite sinks (Moen, Pegasus, etc?)
PPS--an undermounted sink really "adds" to a kitchen, in my opinion, as well as making counter top cleaning easier. Given the unlikely event that you would ever need to replace the sink, go for the undermount! ;-)
And it's only "glued" on with Silicone anyway.
I just had new Granite counter tops and a Kohler 3356 sink installed. Mine was glued underneath with some silicone. I was afraid that it wouldn't hold, but I understand this is the stand method. So far (two weeks now,) everything is fine.
I'm figuring that if needed it might be possible to chemically attack the bond and maybe slowly wedge it loose. But I cant think of a possible reason why. The opening is cut specifically for that sink. I would only be able to replace it with another Kohler 3356 if it needed to be replaced.
I considered the possibility that the sink can never be removed, that's why we spent the $600 for a good sink.
Darrell
The alternative is to place around the edge, a stainless steel wire, which can be used to saw the set silicone off. The wire needs to be ~25% of the gap, or less.
We are in the process of replacing our counters with granite. After shopping around, my conclusion is that undermount sinks are not a good idea with granite. They are better suited to Corian type synthetics.
The typical undermount screws into the underside of the counter with 4 mounting screws. While the entire rim may be sealed with silicone, that glue will flex considerably more than the screw when overstressed. By contrast, a self-r****ng top mount sink is supported by the entire circumference of the sink and slab. While "typical" use of an undermount sink may not cause any failures of the sink, rock, or mounts, I think a top mount is a much more structurally sound system.
One of the installers we talked with said he would not put an undermount on a granite countertop without a structural wood "sink box" underneath to support the sink. He did not describe it fully, but he obviously did not trust the typical undermount. Remember, the weight of the sink alone is nowhere near the total weight. You have to add the water, faucets, disposer...
Also, silicone glue CAN be cut with a razor knife, but it is a tedious job...
well... Our sink (Franke BBX 160) sat on top of the standard sink base unit. The supporting rails were routed down by the thickness of the sink material so the granite surface sat flush across the sink and associated line of units. The Silicone was more of a seal han a glue as the sink is supported by the unit as intended.
And the tink unit it's self is bloomin' brilliant even if a tad on the steep (expensive) side.
Those screws are amazingly strong and if done properly, there's nothing structurally unsound about an undermounted stainless sink with a granite countertop. There should be no flex with a decent quality stainless sink. Make sure the gauge of steel is adequate. Faucets are typically not mounted to an undermount sink; usually separate hole are drilled into the granite.
-al sung Rapid Realm Technology, Inc. Hopkinton,MA
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