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The Kitchen Sink


fifi

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My husband and I had heated debates about our sink. I wanted double bowl, but with one large and one small. He couldn't see the point of a small bowl, so we got two equal size bowls. Both are about 14" across (the largest that would fit in the space we had). They are both 7 1/2" deep, but since they are undermount, feel about 9 inches deeper. I'm glad I didn't get anything deeper, because it would feel really awkward for me (especially now that I'm pregnant and can't stand as close to the sink as I used to!). We got a high-arc faucet, so getting large pots underneath is a breeze even with the shallower sinks.

Contrary to others opinions, we've been very happy with our double bowls. Here's why - we almost always only use one side. We got a dish drying rack that fits into the other side, so we have a place for non-dishwasher things to dry that doesn't take up counterspace. I think it's great!

We also hotly debated our faucet choice. I wanted a mixer faucet with a pull-out sprayer. Eric wanted a high arc faucet. We couldn't find a high arc pull-out that we liked, so we ended up going with a non-pull out faucet. And no mixer either, because that was the faucet that we liked. After we made the decision, I started hearing lots of horror stories about people's pull outs breaking and reliability being poor, so I think we made the right decision. And much to my surprise, I don't miss the mixer in the slightest.

Just call me a kitchen rebel, I guess!

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I haven't found a single valve faucet with the elbow things.

I am considering a foot pedal if I can get it. 

We have one like this

33939000.jpg

I can turn it on with my elbow. I do that when my hands are really goopy. Our local plumbers had a hard time installing it, though. I can only imagine how they'd react to a foot pedal!

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  • 2 weeks later...
Contrary to others opinions, we've been very happy with our double bowls. Here's why - we almost always only use one side. We got a dish drying rack that fits into the other side, so we have a place for non-dishwasher things to dry that doesn't take up counterspace. I think it's great!

That's our setup too. We have a small kitchen with no dishwasher and very little counter space; the only practical place to put a dish drying rack is in the sink. We have a Kohler enameled cast iron sink with their rack that they design specifically for that model. Fits great.

The downside is, that leaves us one rather small bowl to wash things in. Washing a big turkey roasting pan is a royal pain. But it does "encourage" us to wash dishes promptly... because they stack up and render that small sink unusable very fast.

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The downside is, that leaves us one rather small bowl to wash things in. Washing a big turkey roasting pan is a royal pain. But it does "encourage" us to wash dishes promptly... because they stack up and render that small sink unusable very fast.

That is my problem. I have a dishwasher so a rack isn't an issue. And I use a lot of large pots, baking sheets, racks, etc. NOTHING fits in that damned small sink. That is why I miss my big sink.

Linda LaRose aka "fifi"

"Having spent most of my life searching for truth in the excitement of science, I am now in search of the perfectly seared foie gras without any sweet glop." Linda LaRose

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I'll try to post a pic of my new sink and faucet in a couple of days. Busy right now trying to get accounting set up for the new year. The new sink is an Elkay stainless with a bowl that measures 16" from front to back, 28" side to side, and 7" deep. It's great! There isn't a rack or pan that won't fit in it. The faucet is a Moen single lever with the sprayer in the faucet head - that you can also pull out. It's great as well. Push down on the sprayer button and it stays down until you shut off the water. Great for leaving in place in the faucet head with the sprayer on and rinsing. PLUS, the faucet is high enough to get a bucket or a tall stock pot under.

All in all, I'm more than happy with my new sink and faucet. I wouldn't even think about getting one of those double bowl things that you can't even get a decent sized platter into.

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I am looking forward to that picture. My sink at the previous house was an Elkay (I think.) builder grade and not one of those that cost $1000 and it worked fine, Thank You.

Linda LaRose aka "fifi"

"Having spent most of my life searching for truth in the excitement of science, I am now in search of the perfectly seared foie gras without any sweet glop." Linda LaRose

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  • 3 weeks later...

Here's the pic of the sink, finally. The specs are in my last post above. The Moen faucet's stock number is 7385C (*005) in case you want to check one out. The proportions of the sink in the pic didn't come out quite right so I put an oven rack in to give an idea of its size. That's one of the many great things about this sink - soaking oven (or refrigerator) racks. Same with the stove drip pans. That's my hand pump off to the right. I wouldn't be with out it. Fresh cold water right from the well whenever you want it. There's nothing like a glass of cold, fresh water on a hot summer day. Also very handy during power outages.

i2153.jpg

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I have a triple sink, stainless steel. The left sink is huge and I can soak my large roaster in there no problem. The middle sink is very small and is where the garburator is. The right hand sink is slighly smaller than the left hand sink. The left and right hand sink are very deep as well.

It is an undermounted to my granite counter top.

Marlene

Practice. Do it over. Get it right.

Mostly, I want people to be as happy eating my food as I am cooking it.

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Nick, that picture makes me want to cry. I want my big sink back. :sad:

Linda LaRose aka "fifi"

"Having spent most of my life searching for truth in the excitement of science, I am now in search of the perfectly seared foie gras without any sweet glop." Linda LaRose

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there's nothing like a big sink.

Yes.

At least for my taste, cleanup is the most unpleasant task when cooking.

I decided that when I have to employ myself as my own 'Plongeur' (profess. pan/glass/china cleaner in a resturant, aka something I would never do for money alone), I want to spend my 'salary' for having a real 'Plonge'.

i2189.jpg

Detail Plonge

Sometimes, cleanup is almost a pleasure.

Make it as simple as possible, but not simpler.

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Why don't people buy 2 separate sinks and put them beside each other rather than a double sink that is not what they want?

Mrs. Varmint wants a double sink, but she wants one basin to be HUGE and the other just to be big. She hates the "disposal" basins. Any guidance?

Dean McCord

VarmintBites

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Here is what I am doing. I will have the big single sink for clean-up with a disposal. Then there will be another single sink (in my case in the island) for prep work. It won't have a disposal because veggie scraps go to the compost heap. I invision most meat prep being done in the bigger clean-up sink. I separated the two sinks because my diary (there it is again) tells me that when I have friends and family cooking together, we are doing different things at the same time. Even clean-up occurs at the same time since I am a clean-as-you-go freak. Having the sinks in different places lets us do our thing without bumping butts. :biggrin:

Oh yeah... there is a small sink in the beverage area with filtered water. Filtered water also goes to the ice maker in the same area.

Linda LaRose aka "fifi"

"Having spent most of my life searching for truth in the excitement of science, I am now in search of the perfectly seared foie gras without any sweet glop." Linda LaRose

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she wants one basin to be HUGE

That's essentially all you need if you have a DW nearby.

If there's workspace enough, add a prep sink.

And what about those big-ass commercial basins? Usually, these are free-standing assemblies with legs. Why not build these into your cabinetry?

Bingo.

Make it as simple as possible, but not simpler.

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I looked at those and didn't go that way. For one thing, in my configuration I will be putting the clean-up sink in the one corner that is there. That way I avoid the "lost corner" syndrome. The other corner is the walk-in pantry, the other is the dumb waiter. I just didn't see any advantage to the big commercial basin in my case. A nice big single sink will accommodate all of my grills, stock pots, etc.

Linda LaRose aka "fifi"

"Having spent most of my life searching for truth in the excitement of science, I am now in search of the perfectly seared foie gras without any sweet glop." Linda LaRose

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The second sink needs to be adjacent to the main sink, simply because of food clean-up (i.e., disposal). My wife wants to dump the scraps into the one sink, and then rinse in the main sink. The "prep" sink would need to be adjacent to the main sink. This is one of her 2 requests in our kitchen update.

Dean McCord

VarmintBites

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Well... That is where your analysis of what you really do comes in. I came to my solution by that kind of analysis. My solution would not necessarily fit how you work. The illustration here is the value of analysis of how you work in a kitchen.

Linda LaRose aka "fifi"

"Having spent most of my life searching for truth in the excitement of science, I am now in search of the perfectly seared foie gras without any sweet glop." Linda LaRose

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