One of the most underrated tools in your kitchen is the kitchen sink. We spend hours using it, and it is used by everyone in the household, day in and day out. Therefore, the level of importance on this highly used item is immeasurable. It must be aesthetically pleasing, low maintenance and built to last. We have put together this quick guide to help you in your quest for your perfect kitchen sink.
Choosing your perfect sink has a huge impact on how successful your kitchen design is. It should be based around yours and your family’s lifestyles and compliment your requirements with ease. Do you have a big family? Do you entertain regularly? Do you have pets? Is there another downstairs sink i.e. utility or is this your only sink in the family area of your home? Have you considered how your worktop material can dictate your limitations, as can size of your carcasses and layout of your kitchen. With so much choice on the market these days, it’s easy to get lost in all the options, but we are on hand to help you decide what is right for you and your home.
A great question to ask yourself when looking at kitchen sinks and remodelling is ‘What do I have now, and what do I like about it?’ Working out what you currently like about your situation and which parts of it that you would like to change will greatly influence your decision and ensure you are happy with the outcome. Pay particular attention to size. If you have large kitchen sink, or a sink and a half, you may not be content with downsizing or opting for a single sink because although you are replacing for new, it can feel like a downgrade and you regret your decisions for replacement. It is also important to consider your colours and textures, and how they make you feel. Do you have a light sink that constantly shows tea stains? Do you have a dark sink that highlights the limescale in your water?
Certain worktop materials have limitations on which sink can be paired with them due to practicalities, for example, laminate worktops are not waterproof at their core. When installed correctly, the surface is of course waterproof, but any weak points such as edges should not be subjected to constant flows of water. For this reason, laminate worktops must only opt for sit-on/ inset sink options, however, there are plenty of modern alternatives on the market to explore. Solid wood worktops require maintenance to keep them from decaying due to water damage. Most people still opt to have under-mount sink options with their wood, and if they keep on top of the upkeep, such as oiling the surfaces every few months and not allowing water to sit on the surface for any length of time, they will find it will last year after year.
Quartz, granite, and solid wood worktops mean that most limitations do not apply. These worktop materials are waterproof, therefore, sink material and sink style choice are almost completely down to personal preference. Solid surface worktops have absolutely no limitations to your sink options to pair with it, and solid surface adds in a selection for moulded or integrated sinks, often in the same colour as your work surface, for he ultimate choice in hygiene and minimalism.
Kitchen units and layout can have a significant an impact on your sink. This is important to consider if you are designing your kitchen from scratch. If you are opting for a 600mm carcass, your sink/s will need to fit inside that and it may not leave as much room as you hoped, particularly if there is a dishwasher, washing machine, and/or shelving either side of your sink carcass because these features mean that there is no ‘wiggle’ room in expanding upon your carcass space, should your chosen sink be just ever so slightly larger than what your cabinets allow. Again, these points hark back to considering what you are used to, and making sure your layout and product changes are advantageous to your lifestyle. If you are in the market for a Belfast sink, make sure your sink units are designed to take them.
Just like worktops, sinks themselves can be made from many choices of material such as plastic, stainless steel, granite/ composite, or ceramic. Just like worktop materials, each sink material possibility comes with advantages and disadvantages.
Stainless steel sinks are available in inset and undermount models, within countless designs, brands and budgets. They can be as basic or as high-tech as the buyer desires with options to suit everybody out there. Stainless steel is a timeless choice for kitchens and considered a fail-safe option by many. The pros of this material are strength, durability and stain resistance. They also provide the user with the maximum amount of sink space in ratio to the size of the carcass that they are inside of, because the walls of the sink are so thin. This means that whilst all sinks may have the same external size, when comparing stainless steel to the likes of granite or ceramic, the internal sink size significantly reduces in comparison. Cons of stainless steel are that it can show scratches and abrasions over time, and if it is a particularly low-quality model, they can produce tin-like sound when being used.
A very popular sink material choice is granite or composite sinks. These kitchen marvels are heat and stain proof, and are a very popular choice all over the world for their longevity and durability. Composite sink brands such as Schock or Franke offer neutral colour palettes to suit every décor, typically to include light and dark grey, beige, cream, white and black. These sinks are available inset or under-mounted and are incredibly hard wearing. The drawbacks can be the limited space inside the sink if you do not have a large sink carcass, and the fact that they are slightly porous and can be permanently stained by things like rust. Customers also the necessity to check the hardness of your water in their local area. If there is a high limescale presence in your taps, do not opt for a black sink, because it will show limescale constantly.
Solid surface sinks are a fantastic choice to accompany solid surface worktops. Seamless, hygienic, low maintenance and incredibly discreet from an aesthetic point of view, it is no wonder that we make and sell so many with our kitchen worktops. You will typically see solid surface integrated sinks in commercial restroom areas or hospitals due to their durability and low maintenance. They are a perfect candidate for any kitchen. The drawbacks ban be the limitations on specific sizes, but of course this can be avoided by having a bespoke size designed and made, however, the price tag of a bespoke sink can be considerably higher than a standard solid surf ace sink bought from a brand.
We hope our guide has been useful! If you would like to see otr discuss any of the above choices, please feel free to call us on 01562 750000 or email on sales@solidsc.co.uk.
