The Sink

After painting came the sink. The old sink was a cast iron Kohler that showed major chips and was a pain to clean. Because the plumbing was set for it, I searched for a perfect match so we could make it an easy swap.

Yeah, right.

Although it was a standard 33" x 22" sink, it was offset. The left bowl was smaller and shallower than the right bowl. The right bowl was nine inches deep. The left bowl, 5 inches.

I played with a lot of sinks. The acrylic sinks look beautiful, but then I heard there were issues if you put a hot pot in it. There are times when I will take a pot from the stove and set it in my sink. Acrylic was out.

The composite granite sinks are gorgeous, but at that time I was searching for the perfect match. Composite granite sinks were in the $250 range but required a separate faucet. Cast iron was out.

I kept coming back to stainless steel. The Kohler Toccata was an almost perfect match, but it would have to be special ordered.

One day at Lowe's, we found a ready-to-install sink and faucet package from Franke. Together, they were less than the Toccata. We purchased the Franke.

We called our plumber. Yes, we've done plumbing in the past, but this kitchen sink seemed daunting. These are the times when you need an expert. And the expert saved us. The original plumbing for the sink, garbage disposal and dishwasher was a Rube Goldberg design (for those of you unfamiliar with Rube Goldberg, http://www.rubegoldberg.com/ .) I wish I had taken a photo of it. The drain pipe had actually fallen away once as the dishwasher was draining, creating a flood in the kitchen which then seeped downstairs into my husband's office. Because the drain pipe would often slip down, we propped a box under it.

Our plumber, Keith, noted other issues. The opening for the sink was not centered for either the window or the cabinet under it. Someone simply cut a hole in the formica and didn't seem to care where it ended up. And although this sink matched the outside measurements of the cast iron one, the opening created issues for clipping the sink in correctly. Keith solved the problem with a piece of plywood. The sink and faucet cost $229.00 and included a faucet. The plumber cost $350.00. But the new sink does look beautiful. I was amazed at how it made a difference in the kitchen's appearance -- even with counters that are still blue. And the plumbing is now trustworthy as well. So far, new sink and new paint. Next step is to turn my blue formica counters into faux granite formica counters. But it already looks so much better!