Arrgg. Double post. Sorry!

I had a double bowl and switched to a single bowl. I could not fit anything flat in the double bowl even though it was in a 33 inch cab. I am looking forward to my new single bowl in a 27 inch cabinet so I could squeeze in a dishwasher. Funny I would have thought the small bowl larger bowl combo instead of the same size double bowl would be better but I guess not. Good luck.

I went the training wheel model - Blanco Cascade with a very low divide...

I wish I had a single basin sink, but only because I have a prep sink now to take care of washing food without being over dirty dishes. Without a prep sink, I'd still want a double.

But my double is like a basin, and a basin and a half. It's the Kohler Clarity. (I've linked it below, but the prices on the Kohler site are their MSRP and I've always found their sinks for much less.) The smaller basin is about the size of the basins in equally sized sinks, the but the other side is larger. You can soak pretty large pans in it, flat. The other side is not small or extra shallow. There are stainless sinks configured similarly, too.

Here is a link that might be useful: Kohler Clarity sink on Kohler site

When we moved in, our sink had a double, but one side larger. Thought we'd hate it. Ended up liking it so much we're getting the same style (in stainless) with the new kitchen. Our one side is still large enough for a roasting pan and hubby's small beer brewing keg and we like having the garbage
disposal separate.

We just installed a 33" Ceco a9um-754) single bowl sink and I love it. I just put a plastic basin in it if I need a divide, but that is rare. I think you just have more options with a single bowl.

We currently have an equal double bowl 33 inch. It's ok, but when we need to wash the wok, baking sheets, or medium to large pan it's like doing sink yoga trying to get everyhing under the faucet to rinse. And it results in water getting all over the place due to splashing and deflecting the water stream.

I am torn between a silgranite double with low divide (33 in) or a large single bowl, maybe 24 inches or so. One gives me a few more inches of prep space in our only prep area, which is only 18 inches. The double is the same size we have so no extra counter, but I am completely in love with the flexibility of the low divide.

One thing I know is I do not want any configuration traditional double sink.

We went with a single with a built in drain board over DHs objections, but he admits it is easier to fit big things in this sink, and the drain board takes the place of what we used the 2nd sink for which was as a dish drainer, and it saved us space as we were able to use a smaller sink base and run the drain board over the next cabinet top.

Oliveri carries a nice selection of sinks with drain boards if that's of interest.

How do you use your sink? Do you bake cookies and/or things in large roasters? Do you can? If you do these things rarely or not at all, you might very well prefer a double bowl sink so you can wash in one side and dry in the other. If you're like me and often end up with kitchen projects that involve using several large pots at the same time, with maybe some large bowls thrown in, you'll prefer having a larger single bowl sink so all those things can sit on the grid at the bottom of the sink until you can wash them up. When you wash them, there is room in a large single bowl to put the hot soapy water in the largest pot and use that to wash all the large things with room left over to rinse. Alternatively, if your style is washing up the single large pot from spaghetti occasionally, the large, deep single bowl is not really necessary.

Personally, I went from a double bowl sink with equal sides to a 32" single. Making jam this year was so much easier! My daughter's rental has a double with a smaller side with GD and a larger side. It is *so* much more time consuming and inconvenient to wash the dinner pots and pans in her sink. Ultimately, this is a question of how you use your sink.

Have you watched the video on the Kohler Stages sink? In just 4 min. you can be prodded into thinking about how you use your sink. I really wanted the sink in this video, but I just didn't have the space for it. Regardless it gets you thinking.

Here is a link that might be useful: Kohler Stages sink

I keep waffling on this issue. I have a double sink now, 50/50 even - which is supposedly the worse configuration ever. Yes, it is kinda a pain when I am washing the fridge drawers and shelves or other huge items.

On a day to day basis, though, we really use the divide. One side can stack/soak dishes while the other is freed up for filling up water jugs, prep'ing veggies/fruits, rinsing our recyclables, etc. I really do think I am one of those people for whom the double sink works - and I don't have a prep sink. On the other hand, I am also one of those with a small kitchen and the idea of having a 'big sink' in a smaller cabinet is only possible with a single.

I hope you find more clarity than I have in mulling this over for months!

Okay, I'll be the contrarian by saying that my preference and final selection was the Silgranit Diamond equal bowl double. I am thrilled with the selection because it works for me. Sure it would be nice to have a large single when I am washing big roasters or refrigerator bins but my daily routine includes washing a few things by hand and putting the cleaned items in the second bowl, spray rinse and put away later. I do not like clutter on my countertop and with a single, where would the just washed dishes go but on the countertop.

The Blanco Silgranit equal double is much deeper and the bowls are much larger than my old cast iron. A 10" skillet lays perfectly flat in one or the other bowls. The saddle between bowls is slim, unlike cast iron, allowing larger items to fit that did not before.

Previous advice given was right on when suggested to really think out how you use the sink daily. I posted solely to show you the other side of the story so that you would not think a single was the only way to go.

I cook with big pots and pans, I would jump off the roof before I lived for more than a few weeks with a double bowl sink, of any configuration. The house we are buying has the cheap faucet and equal double bowl, yuck.

We are heading to Lowes today to by this sink, I would like it bigger but that is the cab. size we need to work with.
It�s great because with the little set in sink it will be handy to wash smaller items or clean fruite, while still having use of the rest of the sink.
We will also be putting in a high arc pull down faucet

Here is a link that might be useful: American stan. single bowl

We have a 35" kohler vault apron front sink with smart divide (low divide), it's the best of both worlds!

Is this the one you mean, clarygrace?

Why is it the best of worlds? I've never really seen the advantage of the short divide, but I've never seen one in action either. Although the picture doesn't look like it, the two sides are not the same size-one is considerably smaller. I'd love to hear how you use your sink and why this set-up works for you. Gotta say, until I watched the Stages 45 video, I never really analysed how I used a sink. Figuring that out made me much more capable of choosing something that worked well for me. I bet a good description of how this works for you will ring a bell with others.

susannesl, sorry I was in a rush when I posted, had workmen here finishing up paint trimwork...indeed that is the sink we own. it is a 35" 60/40 sink, low divide provides the ability to use the sink as a double bowl if needed, has the width capacity to clean large items like roasters, cookie sheets with the ease of a single bowl. We have the disposer on the 40 side. Another feature of the sink is that it is 9" depth and not 10", so a bit easier on the back as well.

The video may be of help.

Here is a link that might be useful: smart divide video

We like our double bowl - 70/30? Not sure. The large basin is big enough to hold the turkey roaster, canning pot, and anything else flat except for half sheet pans. I like having the garbage disposal on the small side. We scrape/rinse on the small side and stack dishes on the large side. It is great for hand washing pots and pans - one side full of hot soapy water, the small side for rinsing.

Like steph and pcweary, I'm a fan of my 50/50 double bowl. Do some of you folks cook institutional quantities? I can't imagine why your pots won't fit in such a sink otherwise. I have no trouble at all washing large stock pots, skillets, dutch ovens, and my wok. Cookie sheets and turkey roasters do not have to lay flat in order to clean them properly. We have many items that won't go in our dishwasher, so we hand-wash every day. After spending what I did to totally redesign my kitchen, I have no intention of dragging out a cheapo plastic basin for clean-up. I'd rather configure my sink for everyday functionality, rather than the 2-3 times per year I cook whole turkeys. Many of you would probably consider my kitchen tiny, although it is larger than those of most of my family/friends. Definitely no place for a prep sink.

I'd always had a single bowl sink until this house, which has a very large double bowl sink, with one side smaller than the other. The garbage disposal is on the smaller side. I totally agree with TheRedHouse's post, and I find it a very inefficient setup. If I were to have a double bowl sink again, it would have to be equal size bowls or a 60/40 split (if the sink was very large). However, I intend to replace this with a single bowl. It is especially bad because, since the garbage disposal is in the smaller sink, all the dishes need to be scraped/rinsed on the small side which means that my very large sink often functions as if it were a much too small sink. I really hate it. We are working on updating our kitchen from the floor up and just finished putting in new floors. Applicances are next, then counter tops. When we get to the counter top, I'm looking forward to replacing the sink with a single bowl stainless sink. I will probably get one that's a bit smaller overall (but still big), but it will seem much bigger and be more usable than the huge one I have now.

I do not cook in industrial portions but I do use real cookware, in sizes needed to cook a meal, 12 inch skillets, half sheet pans and the rack from the grill(bbq all year) for an example. And a double bowl sink always has that horrible division of space with the divider in the way.
Having to soak my skillets and sheet pans, then turn them and soak again (after the water gets cold and yucky) to get all parts covered is a waste of my time and hot water. With a large single bowl you can just sit them flat in the bottom and get them clean in half the time and if you want to divide the sink you can. I was able to wash in the small removable sink while large items soak in the part that was left of the bowl AND have dishes drying/draining above.
My new sink will be several inches less in width then this one, we are not renovating the house we are buying and very few sink bases can accommodate a sink that is 3 feet wide inside but it will still be immensely more practical than a double bowl.

Look at all that USABABLE space.

{{!gwi}}

And now we have a divided sink.

{{!gwi}}

Something you canâÂÂt ever do with a double bowl of any configuration.
{{!gwi}}

I'm the type of person who ALWAYS has clean, dry dishes on the counter, waiting to be put away. Knives, large bowls, pots, etc. I find it's nicer to dry them in a recessed area than on the counter, so that's why I chose a double-bowl (again).

However, I think if you have a large enough single bowl, you can dry their pots/knives/etc on the sink grate to one side of the single bowl sink. The sink grate lifts them up off the bottom so that they don't get wet when you're running the water. So with a sink grate, a large single bowl is probably as good as (or better than) a double-bowl.

@cooksnews, you are too funny, re: institutional quantities :-) but it *would be* nice to be able to let a large cookie sheet (which I cook meat on) to soak flat *in the sink*....As it stands, I have to let it soak on the counter, and I have to be careful not to spill water everywhere. I feel this problem is a small tradeoff when compared to the gain I get by not having to use a dish rack on the counter.

oh, mgmsrk - you posted at the same time I did, so I didn't get a chance to see your pics. Now that I have, you are completely right! If you have the right do-dads for it, the single-bowl definitely seems more versatile than the double.

That is why I share the photos, single bowls are more versatile if you buy a brand with the right accessories or you can adapt. You can always just put a large tub in one side to use as a sink and they make the expandable drain racks that go over just about any sink but the ones made to do the job are super nice ie drain in removable sink. Now that baby cost a bit but the one I picked up today at Lowes was $169.00 and comes with a stainless small sink, cutting board and strainer so while I will have to adapt a bit as it will be smaller it will have pretty much the same usefulness at a great price.

Can someone tell me how to stop the stupid math things coming up?

mgmsrk - where do you get expandable drain racks? I've been trying to find a rack to fit my sink bowls, to no avail. (They don't come with custom ones.)

http://www.stacksandstacks.com/expandable-over-the-sink-dish-drainer

Amazon is out at the moment but that is the style I was thinking of getting for the new house. Ohhh but BB&B has it, and I have a coupon!

http://www.amazon.com/Amco-Over-Sink-Dish-Expandable/dp/B000Y52CHK

http://www.stacksandstacks.com/adjustable-over-sink-dish-drainer?id=175&sku=17489

http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?SKU=11785700

I don't know how to make them all active links, sorry.

Here is a link that might be useful: another dish rack for sink

mgmsrk's pics:

Stacks & Stacks $14.99
{{!gwi}}

Amco Over-sink, no price-out of stock
(gigantic pic, looks a lot like #4)

Another S&S $15.99
{{!gwi}}

Bed, Bath, and Beyond $14.99
{{!gwi}}

pawa-my dishes don't actually dry well down on the grid at the bottom. Maybe not enough air flow? I tend to place them on a towel on the counter to dry, which is less good than a rack, but OK. The towel thing is also a good incentive to put stuff away soonest!

mgmsrk-I like those expandable racks; unfortunately, my small kitchen doesn't really have a place to store it between times.

clarygrace-Thanks for that video-it explains well how low divide sinks are used. I'll store that one away for general knowledge.

I have the stainless Elkay Aquadivide, which has a lower center divider like the Kohler Smart Divide. I love it. I got two even sides, but at least one company makes a 60-40 model. When I have a pan too big for one side, it still rests within the confines of the sink leaning on the divide, so I can wash it without getting water all over. I put the wet dishes on a dishtowel or one of those microfiber dish drainer pads, then I dry them immediately and put them and the pad away because I like to have my new counter clear (new kitchen made me a much better housekeeper). I liked the slightly higher divider of the Elkay because it gives me a good 4" of water to wash in.

Last year there were a lot of threads about smart divide sinks, but I can't seem to find any of them.

Absolutely love our 70/30 double bowl sink! It's perfect! The GD is in the large bowl.

The large bowl fits all my pots & pans, including handles, as well as my longest cookie sheet, refrigerator shelves & bins, and Vent-A-Hood insert (I hand wash it). I can also fit several mixing bowls along with miscellaneous other items in the large bowl at one time.

The small bowl is perfect for filling pots (all but my 12qt pot fit in the sink)...with a pull-down, I find pot filling works best when the pot is in the sink (there's no "hook" to the faucet head to hook it on the pot like my pullout has). It's also small enough that if I want to soak utensils, etc. I can do so without wasting water or having to find space for a dishpan.

As to using tubs & accessories to mimic a double-bowl - you have to find room to store all those things when they are not in use...I know I don't have extra storage space for that!

If you do not have a prep sink, I think a double-bowl sink is more useful than a single...if it's big enough. Personally, I recommend a 36" sink base for a double-bowl and a single-bowl for anything less than 33" wide. 33" is iffy - you could go either way.

I think if your larger bowl is at least 20" wide, you will be OK.

Overall Dimensions:
35-1/8" x 20-7/8"
Interior of Large Bowl: 21-3/8" x 18-3/4" x 9"
Interior of Small Bowl: 10-1/2" x 15-7/8" x 7"

Large bowl at work (21.5" wide):

Small bowl at work (10.5" wide):

Some other threads:

http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg0115411824187.html
http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg0717064115325.html
http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg0514051915205.html
http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg0519354019922.html
http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg101814182982.html

I definitely prefer a large single bowl. I have a double bowl right now and I find myself holding the pan in between the bowls in order to rinse it.

Large single bowls used to be de rigeur on GW, but now the consensus seems to be pulling back and is a bit more, um, divided.

Really, it's about how you use your sink.

How important is it to you to soak sheet pans flat?

Do you have a prep sink? If not, you'll often prep over dirty dishes in a single sink.

Do you wash a fair amount the old fashioned way, in the sink? Then get an old fashioned sink, where you soak on one side and rinse or dry in the other.

The Smart Divide is a solution many people seem to like.

But really it comes down to your habits and your kitchen configuration. Sounds like somebody up above inherited a backward double bowl--with the prep sink on the dishwashing side. The sink style needs to fit with the whole kitchen layout.

One thing not yet mentioned is that when you are using a disposal in a double-bowl sink, you will for sure wish you had installed it in the opposite side of whereever you installed it. Also, the disposal will be in one drain, which means that the other drain will still have the slimy strainer to dump. And if you don't dump the strainer of the non-disposal side, or forget to put the strainer in, you will have clogs. A single-bowl sink will not have these issues.

I bought a large single-bowl sink for my kitchen, which had a double-bowl sink before, and I would never ever go back to a double-bowl. But that's just me.

Our previous house had a double bowl (which we picked out), one side larger than the other. It was a very nice sink. But the constant banging of handles and tilting pans and cookie sheets and roasters to wash them was annoying.

I love love love the Kohler Riverby single bowl sink in our new house. It's so much more roomy. DH was skeptical and even loves it now.

Ginny20, I realize I am responding to an old post, but here I am reading about sinks as I ponder what to buy for our kitchen remodel. I looked at the Elkay AquaDivide last weekend, and another brand with same, in the 60/40 split - I think it was. In some ways it does seem like a nice compromise, and yet perhaps I could not lay the largest items flat. I have been using a deep Elkay SS 2 bowl for the past 14 years, it has been a workhorse.

This was a helpful thread to read, and I did watch the Kholer video - what a sink!

While I am enchanted with the low divide sinks, I'm leaning toward a single bowl sink. I have never washed dishes the traditional way, and I set them on the counter to dry (which as someone else said they did - I'll stop doing once I get my new kitchen!)

I do use large items, and it seems I am forever filling those large/wide/rectangular items with water to soak...and setting them on the counter. I don't want to do that on my new granite counters, so this is enough reason for me to consider the one bowl sink.

I do not have a prep sink, and thought having the 60/40 low divide was a nice idea for such, but I realize I can also just wash my produce in a clean bowl with a strainer while the bowl sits in the sink. I can envision being able to move the two around, without bumping or maneuvering around the tall divide that I have now.

I really like the idea of having one, large open space without obstacle. It seems like it will work better for the way I work in the kitchen.

Mominator, I've been having this same dilemma (and read through this thread a few weeks ago), though my issue is that I have a small sink cabinet (to better use space on either side).

I've opted for a double sink with one standard size and one small bowl. I've never used a single sink, and I know how we work at our house - DH cooks, piles cooking dishes in the sink, we eat, then scrape plates into the disposal. A single sink (even with a drain on one side) would be a pain for us. I don't see DH cleaning up as he goes (he's unlikely to change his ways after 25 years!). I'm hoping the value of the cabinets beside my sink base will offset any inconvenience of the double sink.

Annkh, I hope that works out for you! yes, DH's are hard to train! Mine and my ST (Sloppy Teenager) are still in training!

I lived with a double bowl sink (equal sizes) for 2 years and the entire time we only used the one side with the garbage disposal! Both bowls were too small to easily wash our nonstick pans in (which are the only things we hand wash). So now we have a single bowl, not huge but larger than either of the double bowl sink sides. Very happy with it!

Hello

Yes, its been a long time, we finally installed the Kraus single bowl 30".
http://www.amazon.com/Kraus-KBU14-30-Inch-Undermount-Stainless/dp/B003U26QZS/ref=sr_1_3?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1362710320&sr=1-3&keywords=kraus+undermount

It has been awesome, it is 10" deep, and I love it. Its hard though if you cook everyday as much I do, to keep the grid clean.

But overall I will definately recommend, using single sink over double sink. Just keeps things simpler and clean to manage and also classy.

Good luck.

Hi Tinan and Prads, good feedback!

A lot of people seem to like the Kraus sink.

Prads, Glad you're happy with your choice. I'm looking forward to finally having a single bowl SS sink (also 30") again. I bought the Ruvati, which was just a bit less expensive than the Kraus and, on paper, seemed comparable. I've only seen it in the box, but so far I love it. I can't wait to ditch my double sink!

My new sink comes with a grid, and I'm wondering whether I'll want to use it or not. Have you tried the sink with and without the grid?

A final thought--when I read posts praising double sinks I find myself wondering what in the world these people are talking about---and I imagine they wonder the same thing when I'm extolling the virtues of a single basin sink. It just shows we're all different and use our sinks in different ways---definitely not a one-size-fits-all choice.

Double sink is best for use in kitchen, it helps out to do lot of work at the same time, you can use a single side to clean any thing one the other side you can use the other side to cut to place anything. Double sink is best option though.

I have a double sink now, probably a 70/30 split. We don't have a garbage disposal so I don't use the smaller size much at all. I am going with a large single this time even though I didn't think the double was a problem except for the holidays.

I love the idea of thinking how you use your sink before deciding which configuration will be the best for your use. I am looking forward to a single. I do think that a single is easier to configure as you can't turn a double into a single but you can easily make a single a double with the right accessories.

Holly-kay, your last sentence sums it up perfectly for me! I can't wait to get my single bowl sink, and for my kitchen to be finished! I went with the Mirabelle SS, 14 gauge, and I am looking forward to using it.

Hey guys this is a great site for get granite kitchen sink.There are more kitchen sinks in this site.You could watch single bowl kitchen sinks,single bowl stainless steel sinks etc.I hope this is the great site in the world to get a sink.