I like the low divide offered by blanco and the harmony by elkay but am looking for a sink not so deep. I am short and have 3cm granite. At 9.5 inches I am concerned at 5'1. Any feedback regarding too deep sinks? I saw a low divide in stainless at furgusons which was their brand and very nice. They also have a new low divide made for them by blanco but only in dark colors.

There have been many threads (some very recently) covering all the sink issues you've asked about with tons of great feedback. Sinks are such a popular topic, they could almost be a spin off forum on their own!

In addition to whatever responses you get from this new thread, may I suggest you also try the search function on the GW forum or google (which some folks find more user friendly) to see what info may already be available?

That said, we're here to help and the info I received from fellow GW'ers (new and from the archives) was invaluable to me.

I am 5'1" and the depth of the sink was never really a concern to me with our 3cm granite. Mostly because I don't do a lot of hand washing anyway. That said, I ended up with the Blanco Cascade Precis which is not as deep as some. I was sure I wanted Blanco to replace my enameled cast iron sink, and that model fit in the existing base cabinet (remodel not new kitchen) without forcing me into some version of double bowls.

I LOVE my sink :)

"I would hate for it to crack and there would go my granite countertops. Also I noticed that there is not much room for a kitchen faucet behind it."

Any cracks in composite sinks that I've heard of show up at delivery, not after installation. Even if a sink cracked after installation, it would not transfer a crack to a stone top. Sinks make tops stronger. I've never heard of a sink crowding a faucet, but it can be tight, especially if a bar overhang is past the faucet.

Treb, she may be thinking that if the sink was sandwiched between plywood and the granite, then a cracked sink would mean probably replacing the countertop. But if it was installed a better way...... :)

Regarding room for a faucet behind a sink - this has been an issue for others here - it's not that uncommon an issue.

There are a couple of ways to handle this issue:

1. If the sink is in front of a window and the window can be changed, install a counter-height window and, if possible, bump out the window 6" to 9". This gives you more room overall behind the sink and is a nice design element. It also helps to minimize window splashing.

If the sink is not in front of a window or you cannot change the window, increase the depth of the counter the run of cabinets the sink is on 3" to 6". This not only gives you more room behind the sink for the faucet, but it also gives you more and deeper workspace. (You can combine (1) and (2) for even better function!) Two ways to accomplish this:

• Order 3" deeper base cabinets - which has the added bonus of more storage
  or

• Pull the cabinets out 3" to 6" from the wall and then install them

If you cannot do either of the two above, then get a faucet that allows you to mount the handle in front of the faucet. The most common issue with a faucet and limited space is that there is not enough room behind the sink to allow the faucet's handle to move freely and/or fully. By getting a faucet that allows you to mount the handle in front of the faucet, you move the handle to a place where there are no space limitations. Just be sure there's enough room for the faucet itself to move fully/freely.

In fact, many people here mount the handles in front even if they have enough room behind the sink...

1. With the handle in front of the faucet rather than on the side (left or right), drips go into the sink, not on the counter

2. It reduces the distance to the faucet's handle from the front of the sink & the counter's edge

Some things that impact the amount of space you have behind a sink:

1. Depth of sink (front-to-back)

2. Window sill if you have a window behind the sink that is above the counter

3. Overhang of a counter if the sink is in front of a raised counter (usually 1" or so of overhang)

Regarding height vs sink depth, the shorter you are, the less an issue sink depth is. This is one of those times when their greater height works against taller people. In general, the taller you are, the farther down you have to reach to get to the bottom of the sink - and the more you have bend over/lean down to reach the bottom of the sink.

For shorter people, the bigger issue is a faucet's placement and its "reach". If you are short (or have short arms), you will have to reach and lean farther forward to reach the head of the faucet and the handle of the faucet. The closer to the edge of the counter you install a faucet, the easier it is to reach. In addition the deeper the faucet's "reach" (how deep into the sink it extends), the easier it is for everyone, but especially shorter people, to use.

Thanks for the comments. I do not think the depth will be too much of an issue. I really love these sinks. My concern now is still the faucet placement. I have a window behind my sink and faucet placement may be tight. I seen one of these sinks in a show room today and the handle of the faucet hit the wall behind it. Also since there is not much space behind and in front of the sink, it seems like the granite would be weak. Comments please. Thank you.

katie234:

When you attach a Silgranit type sink to the counter by way of the cabinets with a Hercules Universal Sink Harness they become one unit and are incredibly strong.

You could jump up and down on the granite/sink when attached this way and it wouldn't fail.

Katie234, we just installed a Silgranit Super Single sink and there is plenty of room for our faucet. The handle does not hit the wall in back, and the sink/faucet is in front of a window too. The granite is not too thin either in front or back of the sink. I can post a picture if you would like.

Katie234 I have ample room for my faucet but I am posting the picture just to show you that this model has a handle on the right and it only moves forward and right/left. It can not move backward by design, if that is a concern in your space. I'm sure there are other faucets with similar design.

I knew it was only a matter of time before Trebruchet mentioned the Hercules Universal Sink Harness. I was waiting for it. I hated to ask separately about it. So, slight tangent here...

Treb, Do I ask my granite guy if he uses them? Do I just buy one and have it here and say 'Here, you're going to use this.' Or first 1, and if he says no, then 2. :) (Or then I rethink my granite guy.)

Interested in Treb response. In my case, I did not specifically ask for one and I was thrilled with my granite install with the exception of no mechanical support. Called the fabricator and told them if you want a happy customer and a great reference, I'll need that HUSH installed. Sales guy brought the owner to my house. They inspected and insisted the sink wasn't going anywhere but they wanted me to be happy. The owner had brought one and he installed it himself. Lesson to me......if I ever get granite again, it will be stipulated in the contract.

Hi Katie, my faucet handle hit the raised bar behind the faucet so my husband just recalibrated the control on the inside that regulates the hot and cold. In other words it now gets hot when the handle is straight up and cold is completely forward so the handle never tilts backward toward the raised bar. All he did was twist something and fool around with it and then it worked just fine. It took some getting used to hot being straight up but now I never think about it. I was heartsick when I first got it and it seemed like it wasn't going to work out because I really like my faucet. My husband is an engineer and he can fix anything, I love that about him. I'm so glad he can make things work out that I never even thought would be a problem when I picked them out.

phonelady, I like your point about not having another drain. Is there room for a garbage disposal being that the drain is toward the back?
I will certainly ask the granite fabricator about this hercules universal sink harness. I have gone to two a plumbing supply places and they do not push the silgranit, so I have to get my info from here. I can see the faucet may be a problem but workable, I will take Buehl's advise and look for a handle in front.
I also read a review and a comment on Amazon that their sink cracked near the drain after 5 years. She thinks it is from pouring boiling pasta water down the drain.

I'm so glad I read here about making counters deeper as Buehl suggests in #2, above! On one side of my kitchen I have deeper base cabinets which allowed me to keep my rangetop from bumping out (and have huge pot drawers). On the cleanup side I just had the cabinets set off the wall, and therefore have enough room for my sink, faucet AND seamless granite. My GC typically seams at the sink, and my wider countertop made an exception easy to justify.

PurpleEyes, I would love to see a picture of your sink and faucet.

Not only plenty of room for the garbage disposal but I can sit my r/o tank upright now the piping has been removed from the second drain. Before we had to lay it on its side due to space crunch. We had a remodel, not a new build, so we had our plumber come out and look over all the products we were considering to make sure we would have no surprises.

I guess you need to weigh one negative review on Amazon with the many many positive from GW posters and go from there. No guarantee even the most highly recommended product won't have sort of failure. At some point it comes down to a leap of faith based on the best info you can gather.

Gr8day- glad you posted that pic! I remember seeing it before and thinking "now THAT'S a tight space", yet look how great your faucet looks there.

Has anyone done the cafe brown blanco sink? I am considering it or anthracite to go with solarious granite. Husband wants brown not sure if it is a good match. Appliances are. Black.

Fogelhut - you should call Blanco's customer service number and have them send you sample chips of both colors. That way, you can see it in your home, and against your granite, or granite sample. The number is 1-888-668-6201. The samples come in the regular mail, and take about a week to arrive.

I also googled Solarius granite. The Solarius slabs vary a lot. Some have black streaks, some have honey streaks, so the color of your sink would depend on your particular granite slab. If your counter isn't installed yet, go to the granite yard and take a photo of the slab. You should start a new thread if you still need advice after receiving the Silgranit color chips, and include pics of your slab or your counters.