I was amazed at the difference between all the strainers I had used for over 30 years and the kohler I installed almost 4 years ago.

The Kohler stays up when it is supposed to, seals when it is supposed to, doesn't stick in the up or down position. Last week I replaced (for 50 cents) the little O-rings that help the seal underneath, because they had worn. Any other strainer, I have had to throw it out and get a new one.

After about a month, you forget the extra $ and just enjoy the functionality.

It seems so TKO to rave about strainers, but when it is something you use so frequently and you find something that does its job so well, it really is worth it to get a good one.

I found a Kohler strainer on eBay and paid $50 for it. I thought that was too much, even. I needed two more, but didn't ever see any more before I needed to get them, so I bought a $35 off brand at Lowe's for my kitchen sink. I put the Kohler one in my butler's pantry Shaw farm sink. There is a huge difference, but I am not sure you would notice it unless you have the Kohler one to compare it to. I haven't used my sinks that much (we are not moved in yet), but my plumber noted the difference and said he had never put in such a heavy duty strainer and drain as the Kohler one.

Thanks for the input Sharon and Minnt.

My husband and I really noticed the difference in weight when we held both the Kohler and another brand in our hands. The difference was substantial.

Yesterday I found on eBay what I think is the same Kohler we were looking at at the hardware store are watching the bids. There is a second listing on eBay that has a Buy It Now Kohler DuoStrainer for $34.95 plus $7.50 shipping. That would be more than half the cost at the store we were shopping at.

What about nickel vs. chrome as finishes on a strainer? Is one better than the other?

Jodi-

Avoid the nickel if you can.

If you use nickel, you have to be very careful what cleaners you use on it and the sink. For example, Barkeepers Friend, Bon Ami or Comet will damage the nickel finish. We often use BF on pots and the sink, so avoiding nickel was a must for us.

I ordered Mountain Plumbing strainers for my Blanco sinks (1 Blancowave and 1 Blancosupreme). The quality is very good and they are much less than your price for the Kohler. Plus they come in 18 finishes. I was told by the plumbing showroom this is the only brand I could get with a matching strainer for my disposers. Paid $33.75 for basic strainer and $45 for disposer flange with matching strainer, both in brushed nickel. Prices went up late last year, though. (Link below is for basic strainer. Disposer models are MT200 or MT201, depending on model of your disposer.)

Concerning finish, the rule of thumb I have heard is for the strainer to match either the sink or the faucet. I chose the brushed nickel to match my Danze faucets. alku05 is correct, this finish is easily damaged by cleansers (ask me how I know!). If I could order again, I would choose the stainless finish to match the sink, although I'm not certain it would be more durable. There is some sort of clear coating on the brushed nickel finish, sort of like a polyurethane coating, that starts peeling off if damaged.

OTOH, as you will see many places on this blog, do get what you like and want and don't worry about what others think!

Here is a link that might be useful: Mountain Plumbing sink strainer

Thanks for all the input! Before coming here again to check the post, I found a "Buy It Now" for the exact Kohler I wanted and bought it. Total cost with shipping and CA tax was $45.25 and the seller lives only about 45 miles away so I *should* get it quickly. Only time will tell. :-)

And ... I decided on the Polished Chrome which is what we saw in many Blanco store displays. We've had polished chrome in our existing sink for years and it still looks brand new.

Jodi-

HD carries Kohler strainer assemblies in stock for around $35. They also carry the Kohlner garbage disposal flange and the Insinkerator air switch. Or, at least the ones here do.

which kohler did you get? tomorrow i'm planning to order ready to order an elkay lustertone stainless sink and was going to get one of their strainers (lk35 or lk99), but i guess it doesn't matter. i just had no idea what to get. i'd rather know i'm ordering a decent/substantial one. so welcome any suggestions; just want something basic in chrome or ss.

does anyone have the garvin lock and spin? faucet depot says:
Note from The Faucet Depot Management: This product is a well made basket strainer and typically much better quality than most made by sink manufacturers for their specific sinks. Very good value for the price.

Okay, I'm joking and I'm not. I obviously don't understand how these "strainer assemblies" work. Do they do something that my old hardware store stainer basket doesn't do? Do I HAVE to have one with my new $600. Elkay sink? Because I'm going to be REAL embarrassed when I talk like a total fool to the builder--who builds his mega-buck houses(not mine).

I don't ever stop up my sink. I use a white hard plastic flat drop-in disc in my disposal. What I handwash I do in a dishpan. New sink will be one bowl, about 31" long, with disposal. Do I have to have a fancy strainer? Will one come with my sink that MUST be installed?

Back when I was willing to clean a yucky basket strainer I bought really nice (!) all stainless ones for $5. from Ace Hardware. Guess I should get with the times. LOL.

I am pathetic. Living in this old builder's special starter home all these years might be the reason. Will someone educate me before I do something rash or embarrass myself?

Here is a link that might be useful: how embarrassing!

The strainer basket assembly is the actual plumbing part that joins your sink to your drain system. You kinda have to have one for your sink to work. :~) The basket fits in the drain assembly, and the whole piece is needed because 99.9% of sinks don't come with them or the ones that do supply a really el cheapo one. The heavier duty ones last much longer and work much better, just like the heavier stainless sinks give better actual performance.

live_wire-oak: so, it's sort of a part of the sink in the way that a pop-up drain assembly is part of a bath sink? (But different!) If it's part of the plumbing, I understand your explanation that I need the "assembly" piece(s). But, then can I just leave the strainer basket itself out permanently if I want? The basket just lifts out and doesn't fasten to anything?

(Please bear with me. I am trying to get this.)

bj- thank you for being confused with me! i wish kitchen faucets would come with drain assemblies like bath faucets do! but it seems they don't if you look at the picture of the elkay sink, you'll notice there's just a rough edge around the drain area. at least that's the case with the one i'm ordering (elu2115). i don't believe you need to keep the strainer in - but just need the "collar" that has a small tailpiece that attaches to the pipe.

Glad, the sink strainer that I got was the Kohler DuoStrainer (K-8801-C-CP).

The Duostrainer features solid brass construction and the removable basket strainer has an open/close stopper. It also comes with a "tailpiece" which I suspect is the part that actually connects to the plumbing system in your house.

Here is a picture of it:

{{gwi:1566985}}

Jodi-

Now that Jodi has her question answered and has ordered her strainer assembly, is it OK to hijack this post with a related question? With all this discussion about the quality of strainers, I was wondering if anyone knows the quality of the strainers that come w/the Ticor sinks?

Have at it Buehl, this forum is here for all to learn. :-)

Jodi-

Ticor supplies sink strainers with their sinks (when bought through Galaxy Tool anyway). Sink strainers are not something I ever gave a special thought to.

The two strainers were supplied free with our Ticor 1-3/4 SS sink but we used only one of them as we have a waste disposer in one bowl.

The strainer is working just fine. All of the parts that show topside of the sink are polished stainless steel and match the polished stainless steel flange of the Insinkerator disposer in the other bowl. The removable strainer basket assembly holds back water just fine by pushing the strainer basket down and pulls up to release.

The strainer part (called the waste bowl) underneath the sink that attaches to our (black PVC) drain piping is made of very heavy gray PVC material.

Our very thorough plumber had no complaints when installing the strainer and made no negative quality comments about the piece.

I am perfectly satified with the looks and function of the strainer and don't anticipate any problems with the piece. I'm even more pleased we didn't have to spend one nickel extra for the strainer(s).

Thanks Teedup!

thank you for posting the info jodi! a couple of the faucet places have it for around $40 (in chrome - more for other finishes) plus shipping. i see it comes with both a 4" tailpiece (like you picture) and a 1.5", which is what i was looking at.

Sorry, I read that wrong. It is a 4"x1.5" tailpiece...not two different lengths.

We got the Kohler DuoStrainer (K-8801) for our new sink for under $42 from FaucetDirect.com. There was also an option for $20-30, and I'm glad I spent the extra. I've always hated sink strainers...They never seem to stop the water completely and the black 'plug' on the bottom gets slimy, no matter how clean you keep the sink. These, though, are amazingly better. Just the little O ring to seal the drain and so nice and heavy. I didn't know there were decent strainers out there. Ours has a chrome basket, but the main part underneath looks like brushed stainless.

We paid $34.95 through The Hardware Connection on eBay for our Kohler DuoStrainer, plus CA tax and shipping, so I think we got a pretty good deal.

I'm happy to hear it will be worth the money.

Jodi-

OK, my turn for a do-do question. If I have a garbage disposal (batch), I DON'T have the buy anything additional to attach the disposal to the sink, do I? I just need to find a good rubber stopper somewhere for when I want to fill the sink with water? (Assuming that didn't come with the disposal.)

We are going to have our sink put in on Friday, but our S305 came with two different drains. One has a little basket and the other is a basic one. I really don't know how they're going to look with them being different. What did all the Ticor people do?

I have those spin lock style strainers but not sure of the brand. Like them very much. I always end up replacing those rubber gasket bottom ones w/ the spin lock variety in every house we've owned.

i was going to get the garvin spin and lock. but, where i ordered from had a stocking number issue and sent another brand. after sending me three of the wrong ones, they finally credited me and i got the kohler with the rubber stopper.