In the past, kitchens were extremely small and designed specifically for food storage and preparation. They did not need to be visually appealing, simply functional. Once the food was prepared, it was brought into the dining room where everyone had gathered. Today, however, the kitchen has become almost a center focal point of many homes and also the room that the most thought and care goes into when building or renovating. Families use their kitchens as much more than just a room to prepare and store food. They are places for gathering with family and friends to prepare a meal together and because of the increased role they now play in a home, the visual appeal of a kitchen is important as ever. If you are looking to create a new kitchen, or simply update your existing one, one of the most visually impacting changes you can make is switching to one of the many undermount kitchen sinks on the market today.
Whats Wrong With A Standard Sink?
Aside from the bathroom, the kitchen is the most labor intensive room in your home to clean. Cooking on a daily basis quickly takes its toll on the level of cleanliness the room can maintain and, even with regular light cleaning, a more thorough cleaning is required on a somewhat regular basis. One of the biggest complaints many homeowners have when cleaning their kitchen is the difficulty involved with keeping their kitchen sinks clean. More importantly, the area around the sink where it meets the counter top can seem almost impossible to keep looking its best. It seems that kitchen designers and manufacturers knew this when they created the undermount sink. There is nothing ‘wrong’ with a standard kitchen sink, however, there are many more things that are ‘right’ about an undermount kitchen sink.
Why Should I Choose An Undermount Sink?
Undermount sinks have two major categories of benefits, form, which refers to the items visual appeal, and function. Like any modern kitchen appliance or fixture, consumers are demanding, more than ever, that the products they buy are not only easy to use but also look attractive as well.
Functional Benefits Of An Undermount Kitchen Sink
The most obvious functional benefit of an undermount sink is the ease of cleaning. Since the sink mounts underneath the counter top, the hardest part of the sink to clean is eliminated. The area where the sink meets the counter is no longer on the top surface of the counter, making those hard to reach places when cleaning a thing of the past.
Undermount kitchen sinks are also ideal for people who do a lot of food prep in their kitchen. For example, if you are cutting vegetables on the counter and have waste to dispose of, you can simply wipe the waste material into the sink to be disposed of. By eliminating the ridge found with normal sinks where they are joined with the counter, the material slides right into the sink. If you have small children, we all know that spills are not uncommon. With an under mount sink, if something is spilled on the counter it can flow directly into the sink instead of pooling up on the counter and eventually spilling over onto the floor.
Visual Benefits Of An Undermount Kitchen Sink
One of the most appealing benefits of an undermount kitchen sink is its visual presentation. While traditional sinks are available in a variety of materials and designs, an undermount model is probably one of the most modern in structure. With consumer demand increasing for sleek design and sophisticated style, clean lines and minimalist designs are more popular than ever. An undermount sink eliminates the appearance of the break in the counter top where the sink is installed. Visually, it creates a seamless counter surface from a distance since the upper portion of the sink itself is no longer visible. Even up close, the sink presents a unique appearance, increasing its modern styled visual appeal.
What Types Of Undermount Sinks Are Available?
Almost all of the major kitchen appliance manufacturers offer some type of undermount sink in their family of products, including Kohler, Franke, and American Standard. This allows you the freedom of choice is you prefer one brand name over another. Undermount sinks are also available in a variety of materials, with the most popular being stainless steel. While many consumers believe they look best when paired with a marble or granite counter, they can be installed in counter tops of any material. They are available directly from the manufacturers, often with the choice for custom features or design. For convenience purposes, they are also in stock at many local home improvement stores in stock models that may be somewhat less expensive than a custom piece.
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