Spray it with Stainless Steel Magic. It makes the water bead up nicely.

I have a stainless steel sink. Not a mirror finish. Aside from cleaning the food bits out of it (if there are any), I don't do a thing to it. If there are water spots on it, I don't care. It's a *sink* - meant to be used, not coddled. You can't see it anyway unless you are right above it, probably using it.

Ditto what Gladys said. No mirror finish either and no wiping down. I know there are threads about refinishing your stainless steel so that's always an option for me if I have a free morning. It will be interesting to hear what others say.

I have a Kraus sink also now for a couple of months. First few weeks or so I hated looking at water spots also and babied it, not anymore. I rinse it out all the time with hot water and a squirt if dawn, wipe the sides down all the time but once a week I clean the grid with a toothbrush. At this time I clean sink more thoroughly with dawn and spray it with stainless steel magic or twinkle and it shines up very nice. It does bead up water for a while like Treb mentioned above and It looks just like the day it was installed. Water spots come right off.
With my old sink I use to use bar keepers friend first all the time then stainless steel magic. I haven't had to use Barkeepers friend yet with the new sink but I have it incase I need it. BKF works great when needed.
The novelty of keeping everything looking brand spanking new will wear off soon. Enjoy your new sink.

I don't baby mine at all...waterspots don't bother me in the least...and no, they don't leave permanent marks. I wash it down daily with dishwashing liquid and about twice a week I give it a deeper cleaning with BKF and clean the grid. I NEVER, EVER, EVER dry it.

I had the Kraus apron sink. I loved that thing and wish I could have taken with us when we moved! But, it's a sink. Sorry, but you need to get over it and allow it to be a functional item in your kitchen.

Throw things in it, and splash around, and don't care what it looks like when I'm working in it. When I'm done, I'll give it a scrub and a wipe, but not overly so. Just like any knife, or stock pot. It's a work tool, not a Waterford vase!

I understand wanting to keep something new looking brand new but, as others have said, it is a functional work item.

I have a feeling you will naturally get tired of babying it and end up treating it like a sink eventually.

As for mine, I treat it the same way I have always treated every other sink I've had, which have all been SS sinks. When its empty, I'm done with dishes, I spray it out and scrub any obvious gunk with the same scrubbie I was using on the dishes. Usually, it still has a little bit of BKF on it which helps shine it up.

I've either never had scratches or I've never noticed them. I've also never had permanent water marks and I'm on a well with really hard water.

Just intentionally abuse it for a week or so until it develops that patina that keeps you from seeing any individual sin!

I wash mine with dish soap when I am done with the kitchen for the night, then wipe it with a microfiber towel. Once a week or so I use a little stainless polish on it and that takes care of any water spots that have accumulated.

The obsessing about having it look beautiful all the time will go away. But I do think that a little care doesn't hurt and keeps your sink looking nice for a long time.

It would be nice if my sink were always spotless, but not so nice that I spend a minute of my time making it that way! Daily, we just rinse - no cleansers, no drying. Once in awhile (maybe once a week), I scrub it down with BarKeepers Friend (although maybe I'll try Stainless Steel Magic now). I wash the grid with the scrubbie side of a green or blue sponge. I do not use a toothbrush and I do not dry the sink (maybe if we're having company). P.S. In my last remodel, in 2006 (previous home), I obsessed about both the sink and the cooktop grates for a few months. Every Sunday morning, I was up and scrubbing those babies. That didn't last long. I don't remember making a conscious decision to stop, I just naturally stopped doing it so often.

I clean it with Comet every other week or so, and if you really want it to shine, buff it with flour. Instructions in link.

There is no way you can keep the new factory shine unless you just don't use the sink ever.

Here is a link that might be useful: flour to shine sink

This post was edited by DBrown2351 on Fri, Sep 26, 14 at 11:53

My mental health couldn't handle the added stress of worrying about water spots in a sink. It is a sink, after all.

If it starts looking a little sad I'll use comet (maybe once every weeks) but I'm intrigued buy this Stainless Steel Magic now - may have to give it a try!

Ditto with jellytoast, although my sink is not stainless. I want things to stay looking nice as long as possible. Replacement is very costly. I also just find a clean sparkling sink inspiring!

The manufacturer does say to dry after use, which is kind of crazy. Lime buildup can absorb stains, maybe why. I only dry at the end of the day.

Drying the sink out before retiring also removes a water source for any little visitors in the night. So it's a good practice, like closing up food. Water is their first requirement when looking for a place to take up residence. I also stop the drain.

This post was edited by snookums2 on Fri, Sep 26, 14 at 13:02

Mom had one and I did not like it, it looked dark and dirty. I like ivory colored molded sinks. In my opinion Ivory instead of white or metal makes the room look warm, cozy and welcoming.

Huh, TIL drying a sink is actually a thing that people do. I think I've only ever dried a sink once. When I was staging my old house to sell it.

It wasn't until GW that I learned about this fascination w/ keeping water spots out of a stainless steel sink It's my total work horse.

In all these years of owning a SS sink, my sink have been shiny/spot-free for maybe 1 minute after install.

Amanda

I'm in the "It's A Sink!!!" camp. It's not a lovely accessory, it's a workhorse that comes into contact with all kinds of good and unsavory items. I don't care if it gets spots. I will not dry the damn thing. I have a grid in the bottom of mine, not to protect the finish, but because it allows water to flow underneath and makes the sink more of a multi-purpose zone.

Remember, sinks are mostly below eye-level. It's not the first thing you notice in a kitchen. Be obsessive over your stainless appliances, but trying to keep a kitchen sink pristine is like telling someone not to poop in your nice toilet.

"trying to keep a kitchen sink pristine is like telling someone not to poop in your nice toilet"

Trying to to snort water out of my nose as I read this and crack up!! Another gem for the GW quote book someone mentioned a few weeks ago!!

Oh, my sink is most definitely a beautiful spot in my kitchen! Makes my day, lol. It is also a workhorse but I like to keep it clean and take good care of it to have for as long as possible. My old builder stainless was plain unappetizing. For sanitary reasons too as it's a busy spot! I think they can be more germ laden than toilets IIRC. I almost had a heart attack when I learned someone had washed the dinner salad in their kitchen sink, lol.

I almost had a heart attack when I learned someone had washed the dinner salad in their kitchen sink

Where would you suggest they wash it, the bathtub?

I'm not a germaphobe. I don't scrub the grid or the sink, but I keep them reasonably presentable and hey, I'm still alive!

Colander, bowl. The salad spinner from the cabinet! Those things are awesome.

When I put things away they have hand washed, they are not quite clean and washed with a sink rag. So I doubt the sink is very clean after it's been washed either. Just not a clean place to be soaking lettuce.

I just had a new stainless sink put in, a cheapo, but huge, Ariel. No mirror finish. I figure a sink is meant to get wet and is a utility. So I use it as such to clean i, I use a stainless steel scouring ball and Comet. I suspect that, because of the mirror finish, you shouldn't use the SS scouring ball, which is a shame because that's the best way to keep a SS sink clean. Taught to me by my father.

Another tip about SS sinks (but i don't know what the mirror finish is and if it will prevent this): After cutting garlic, swipe your fingers that smell like garlic on the SS. the smell will go away. I think it works with onions too.

Yes it does work on both! As does the dull side of the knife blade. Amazing easy remedy!

Brushed SS. Rinse, no wiping. How boring. No spots.

" ... but trying to keep a kitchen sink pristine is like telling someone not to poop in your nice toilet."

Believe it or not, there are threads on this very topic. :-)

jellytoast, holy crap.

I scrub mine down with SOS after I wash out paint brushes in it. lol. . That is why I bought SS - so I wouldn't have to worry about it.

Jellytoast- I refuse to believe anyone could actually be that vacuous without seeing a link to said conversation.

That's like saying "here's my guest room, but no one is allowed to sleep in the bed"

Is this a house or an art gallery?!?

Not very well apparently. I shall get out the Bar Keepers Friend and scrubbing toothbrush tomorrow!

Maybe...

I enjoyed reading the comments and laughed at a lot of them. You are all of course right in that it is a sink and should be used. I do petsitting and so I see a lot of SS sinks and have to admit most of them aren't that well taken care of (meaning are used as intended). Right now I am washing it out every night with Dawn and it looks great. I was not familiar with stainless steel magic and I think when I buy that and spray it that I will be less fanatic. I was just worried that if I let the water sit on the sides that it would leave permanent stains. If I know they will wipe off again then I'm good with not worrying about it. Is the stainless steel magic available in grocery stores? Thanks for all the comments and laughs.

I rinse my Franke and have never dried it. After cleaning a raw poultry, I scrub it with BKF and rinse. To keep the grid fresh, once a week or so I pour in Oxyclean and fill sink with hot water and Dawn. Let soak and give a good rinse.

I do the same after (horrors-alert--trigger for the squeamish and pristine kitchen crowd) bathing the dog.

I rinse my Franke and have never dried it. After cleaning a raw poultry, I scrub it with BKF and rinse. To keep the grid fresh, once a week or so I pour in Oxyclean and fill sink with hot water and Dawn. Let soak and give a good rinse.

I do the same after (horrors-alert--trigger for the squeamish and pristine kitchen crowd) bathing the dog.

But, after all you've been through together, would you feel comfortable soaking your lettuce in that sink bowl? ;)

Mine gets washed with dish soap if there was raw meat in it. Otherwise, it's just rinsed out after dinner. On the weekends, I mist with white vinegar and wipe it out with a microfiber cloth. Mine is 36" and split 60/40, so the grids fit in the dishwasher. They go in about every other week :)

When I got up this morning, I thought about scrubbing the sink, and drying it, and then shining it up with a flour rub. Then I realized it's beautiful outside, so I left and went out for breakfast :-). (p.s. No one would ever mistake me for a great housekeeper).

I don't soak food in the sink but I believe a good cleaning makes it clean. I also throw at least one lemon rind a day in the garbage disposal. But then, I wear shoes in the house, too. Might account for my excellent immune system.

As long as we're into true confessions here :-), occasionally I rinse the cat litter box in the kitchen sink (where else am I supposed to do it?). But then I sanitize the sink with either bleach or Oxyclean.

I don't soak food in the sink, although I do rinse food in it. And yes, I also wear shoes in the house!

Wait, what's wrong with wearing shoes in the house?

I used to go barefoot everywhere as a kid and my dad was always getting onto me for it.

Then we moved to the country where we had scorpions the same color as our carpet. To this day, I won't go barefoot anywhere for fear of stepping on one.

Many people do not allow wearing shoes in the house because shoes bring in all the unsanitary things from lawns, sidewalks and roads. Some of those same people shower before taking a bath so they are not washing their arms with water their butt sits in.

Many people do not allow wearing shoes in the house because shoes bring in all the unsanitary things from lawns, sidewalks and roads. Some of those same people shower before taking a bath so they are not washing their arms with water their butt sits in.