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greenhaven_gw

My new Elkay sink is RUSTING!

greenhaven
9 years ago

Gah! Went away for a few days, and I come home to rust streaks along the "grain" of the rim of my drop-in Elkay double sink. I have never seen such a thing, and I am irked.

Please tell me this is not normal? It is a mid-gauge sink, 20g, I think? No standing water on it, everything was clean and dry when we left on Wednesday and the windows were closed and the air conditioner on.

I suppose I will be replacing the sink, now...

Comments (24)

  • olympia776
    9 years ago

    Not exactly help but commiseration - my bluestar range rusted! I got a new door and kickplate for it. For the sink, argh, that sucks! I hope they will replace it for you! Is it undermount?

  • ardcp
    9 years ago

    greenhaven- i had an elkay ss sink pre remodel. is it possible that something metal was on it and left rust marks? i ask this because when i would leave cans to soak in the sink (for recycling) it would leave rust marks. i just used a scotchbrite type scrubber and soap and it would go away. this happened many times and the marks always came off. sometimes i used baking soda if the mark was stubborn.
    hope this helps!

  • live_wire_oak
    9 years ago

    Did you use any steel wool to scrub something?

  • greenhaven
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    browneyes776: The sink is a drop-in. That sucks about your Bluestar! :o(

    ardcp: there is a rust-stain in the bottom of the sink where DH left a soup can to soak, but these others are unrelated, and patchy/spotty in nature. I'll have to take a picture. I should have known to do that anyway.

    LWO: nope, no steel wool or S.O.S. I use the Scotch-Brite "natural" sponges and have scrubbed with the scrubby side of those but nothing else. I have also never scrubbed with any cleaner besides a bloop of dishsoap.

  • Mrs_Nyefnyef
    9 years ago

    I echo Live_wire_oak - if you used steel wool on a stainless steel sink, the steel wool leaves microscopic particles behind that will rust.

    Why don't you call Elkay and see what their advice is?

  • Vertise
    9 years ago

    "patchy/spotty in nature"

    Possibly transferred from rust residue left behind from the sponge or towel used to dry during cleaning?

  • olympia776
    9 years ago

    Bluestar sent replacement panels - thank goodness. My rust sounds like yours too - with the grain and tiny little spots/patches. I think sending pics of a rusty bluestar logo over helped us in getting replacements!

  • cat_mom
    9 years ago

    Try a little BKF (Barkeepers Friend) powder, or ZUD powder with your scrubbie, and see if that removes the rust streaks.

  • Gracie
    9 years ago

    I found this interesting. Bleach and antibacterial soaps (triclosan) can cause rust.

    Here is a link that might be useful: rust

  • greenhaven
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Ah ha! mayflowers, best info yet! Although I have not used beach R triclosan products on my sink, salt is a slight possibility.

    browneyes, I can see where that would be a motivator, lol!

    snookums, great thought, but I do not have anything that i dry that rusts, so, I doubt that is it.

    I think I will take some photos, do the BKF, and see how it resolves. If it continues to be a problem I will replace it or ask for it to be replaced. I have never had a SS sink rust before? One more thing to do homework on before purchasing. Why does even a sink have to be complicated now?

  • feisty68
    9 years ago

    Greenhaven, a sink should not be complicated :( . I'm sorry you're dealing with this. I find it bizarre that we are supposed to treat every single product with excessive care now. It's a *sink* - all sorts of cleaning materials and chemicals should be *expected* and designed for. Elkay boasts being "family-owned" since 1920...but still, no one makes 'em like they used to. I've been expecting issues with my Chinese-made Ruvati but so far so good.

  • greenhaven
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Feisty68, I know in the big picture it is not a big deal, but you pretty much nailed it with this statement: " I find it bizarre that we are supposed to treat every single product with excessive care now. It's a *sink* - all sorts of cleaning materials and chemicals should be *expected* and designed for. "

    ExACTly. DH thinks we should have gone with an enameled sink. Maybe he is right. *sigh*

  • Fori
    9 years ago

    I would clean it really well because it's more likely to be something ON the sink that is rusting than the sink itself.

    If it comes back, well, a call to Elkay is in order. Good luck!

  • ardcp
    9 years ago

    i had an elkay drop in from lowes and never babied it by any means! no you shouldn't have to baby a sink. either the sink is defective or something weird reacted with it because ss should be pretty bulletproof (except for scratches)
    hope you can isolate the cause or get a replacement!

  • Bunny
    9 years ago

    I'm on my second stainless sink. No issues with either besides scratches, which were expected and of no importance to me. I don't baby it because it's a freaking sink!

    Nowadays everything needs special treatment and special, or at least restricted, cleaners.

  • daisychain01
    9 years ago

    This comes up every few years on this forum. Read the responses in the link below. No need to panic.

    Here is a link that might be useful: rusting sink

  • Vertise
    9 years ago

    Greenhaven, I was thinking about the rusting can in the sink getting rusty water/residue on it or your sponge/towel.

  • greenhaven
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    daisychain01, that is excellent news, I hope it works out for me! Not panicked, just disgusted.

    snoookums, the can incident was a couple weeks ago, and I replace my sponge about once a week. The link daisychain gave said hard water is sometimes the cause, and we do have that. Come to think of it, we have softened water, enough so that if there is salt in the tap water that would explain a lot...

    My plan is still to scrub it up good with BKF and see if it recurs.

  • Sunshyne
    2 years ago

    @greenhaven what ever happened with your sink? we are looking at elkay and wondering if you were able to resolve the issue w/o replacing?

  • mamag70
    2 years ago

    Our contractor just installed our new Elkay sink this afternoon and it has rust spots! We haven’t put anything in it, the contractor tested the water in the faucet and that’s it! So frustrating!!

  • Cooking in the Kitchen
    2 years ago

    @mamag70 how’s your Elkay sink doing? I have the same issue. My contractor just installed it then tested out the water 2 days ago. A few hours later we found rust spots all over the sink.

  • PRO
    Joseph Corlett, LLC
    2 years ago

    Rika:


    It's contamination, not rusting stainless steel.

  • Shannon_WI
    2 years ago
    last modified: 2 years ago

    @Cooking in the Kitchen - my municipal water has a good amount of iron in it. When water dries in my stainless steel sink, there is a reddish hue left behind. It is not the sink, which is a custom 14-gauge SS sink. It is the water. People with different minerals in their water might get white spots in their sink instead. These water marks wipe off with a damp sponge, or if I have not cleaned the sink in a few days, with BarKeepers Friend. Takes very little time, and is easy.

    People who don’t want a sink that gets water spots or scratches should choose a different material for their sink like enameled cast iron or Silgranit.