OT - Kitchen Sink

Dobie

Im upgrading kitchen counter surfaces to granite and of course will need new sink and faucet. Since Ive had a two basin SS top mount sink forever I think I want a large single basin undermount SS sink this time. Large pans and things that would not lay flat in the double basin would be nice in the single. Has anyone made the switch or have any pros and cons to going single basin?

saluki2007

I can not speak from experience yet, but this is what we are putting in a farmhouse sink in our new home.  The only "negative" I could some up with is that you don't have a drying side.  Oh well.  I will trade that for being able to place large pans in there as you stated.

Zmokin

Dobie said:

Im upgrading kitchen counter surfaces to granite and of course will need new sink and faucet. Since Ive had a two basin SS top mount sink forever I think I want a large single basin undermount SS sink this time. Large pans and things that would not lay flat in the double basin would be nice in the single. Has anyone made the switch or have any pros and cons to going single basin?

That's exactly what i did.  I grew up in a house with a single large basin, and we used dishpans to make it two sinks for washing and rinsing the dishes (My dad refused to buy a dishwasher as he always said he had two perfectly good ones, my sister and me).  anyway, I hated the double sink my home came with and when we had our kitchen redone with granite, I was able to talk the wife into a single large SS sink.  I love it.  Now I can put large things in the sink and get them totally submerged if needed.  SS does require some care, but you will never get chipped enamel.  And I bought 2 dishpans for the dishes & utensils we hand wash.  I also picked out a sink that was an inch or so deeper than the dual sinks the home came with.

Little Steven

I did it and couldn't be happier...well maybe if it had an overflow :((

fishlessman

i like the big single basin sinks better. if you need a dry rack have them put it off to the side with the drain grooves machined into the granite countertop. place near me does a really nice job fabricating granite sinks out of the counter top material, i like them better than under mounts and or over mounts because it puts the sink openeing closer to the front, even closer than a farmhouse sink

SkinnyV

We did double to single, its nice. We have a drying rack so no issues needing split levels.
One regret I have is not getting the sprayer on the faucet.

Eggcelsior

One thing to consider for under mount sinks is reinforcing the seal/support.

Dobie

Thanks guys I figured there wasnt many negatives. We have a dishwasher for the regular stuff but having the large basin would help with the big stuff.

JWF

Agree with@eggcelsior, the guys who installed our kitchen granite and undermount held the sink up with small chunks of granite glued on with epoxy. 2 years later sink came loose. The good installers machine a notch on underside of granite and bury a bolt anchor in epoxy to attach sink to, or use wood screwed to the cabinets to help hold up the sink. Learned this the hard way!

Canugghead

Go for it, we did it and never looked back!

Zmokin

JWF said:

Agree with@eggcelsior, the guys who installed our kitchen granite and undermount held the sink up with small chunks of granite glued on with epoxy. 2 years later sink came loose. The good installers machine a notch on underside of granite and bury a bolt anchor in epoxy to attach sink to, or use wood screwed to the cabinets to help hold up the sink. Learned this the hard way!

Bummer, sounds like your contractor took shortcuts.  I just inspected mine and my "undermount" sink, is mounted on top of wood supports.  the granite is then mounted on top of the sink and a silicone seal is between the granite and sink.  I found my contractor on Angie's list, I've been very pleased with him and have used him for a couple of projects since my kitchen re-model.

Eggcelsior

@Zmokin yep. Mine was part of the new build and started to loosen after 2 years. I got some recommendations and went with a local granite supply/installer. I'll definitely be using them in the future when we redo the kitchen. They had no idea why it was installed the way it was and went way above and beyond the 100 bucks they charged.

Zmokin

Eggcelsior said:

@Zmokin yep. Mine was part of the new build and started to loosen after 2 years. I got some recommendations and went with a local granite supply/installer. I'll definitely be using them in the future when we redo the kitchen. They had no idea why it was installed the way it was and went way above and beyond the 100 bucks they charged.

Glad to hear you found someone good to fix it. 

NPHuskerFL

I prefer the large single basin SS under counter mount. A good SS sink won't be lite so as others have previously stated it is imperative it be mounted properly for longevity.

MediumRarely

Size your sink for the largest pan/pot/etc. you have.  When entertaining it is nice to be able to have those large items "disappear".  Also makes washing them a breeze.  Be upfront with your contractor/s  - extra support required (especially for the big stuff).  Mine is rock solid (I "helped" them during the install).  Hahahaha.

My sink specs are below fyi.

Cm23

We are in a remodel of our lake house and are making the change to the single.

Mickey

Love mine. Right end being a little larger and rounded.

Skiddymarker

One thing to consider is the amount of heavy pots and CI you might be dropping in the sink. Under mounts look fantastic, but they do pose an issue with heavy pots whacking the exposed granite edges. Friends are always washing large woks and pots and beat the hell out of the edge. They found a SS over mount to cover the damage and it still looks pretty nice. 

Personally, like the apron sinks. 

@Eggcelsior - our local HD suggests using silicon, could not believe it. Best way is to get the granite guys to install the sink and provide a guarantee. 

DoubleEgger

I love the single basin. Really happy with the Blanco.

Mattman3969

Skiddymarker said:

One thing to consider is the amount of heavy pots and CI you might be dropping in the sink. Under mounts look fantastic, but they do pose an issue with heavy pots whacking the exposed granite edges. Friends are always washing large woks and pots and beat the hell out of the edge. They found a SS over mount to cover the damage and it still looks pretty nice. 

Personally, like the apron sinks. 

Sounds like your friends needed a larger radius shaped into the cutout. I would suggest a minimum of 3/8" but 1/2-5/8" is even better. The less crisp the better.

Lit

We are about to redo our whole kitchen and are doing exactly what you said. Pretty sure we are going to go with a composite sink though not stainless but are doing the under mount. Also going with quartz for durability over granite and you can get the edges around the sink machined so they are rounded off and aren't as prone to getting nicks.

Mattman3969

@lit - out of curiosity what is more durable with Quartz over granite??

Canugghead

+1 on quartz.

Lit

@Mattman3969 quartz is harder and also very scratch resistant. Also doesn't need to be sealed and is not pourous so it doesn't stain easy. Price point is about the same as granite from reputable places we've looked about $60-80 a foot installed. Only negative I have heard is you can't put hot pans on it.

caliking

Our undermount 2 bowl ss sink started separating some months ago. House is probably 12 years old. Water was seeping through the gap between granite and sink and going in to the cabinet underneath. I researched the interwebs and this was recommended:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00ILFKWUY/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Some have used this for a first install, but apparently there are MANY ways to undermount a sink - not all of them last. Mine was supported with MDF strips and it was a **** to deal with.

Zmokin

So what does quartz look like, single crystal slab that is clear?  All white as it is a jumble of crystals?  or other?  like polluted quartz like amethyst?

Mattman3969

That is an excellent system @caliking. We use it anytime we have to go re-install a sink that other companies have installed and the sink failed later like yours did.

jtcBoynton

We went from a classic double split 50/50 to a double that has one large side and one small side.

Lit

@Zmokin quartz comes in many colors and I would say kinda looks like granite but doesn't have all the veins its more consistent.

Dobie

Lots of great info here, thank you.

theyolksonyou

This is a great post as we are due for a remodel.