10'' deep, zero radius, kitchen sink; Too deep, Too squared?

15 years ago

My husband is 6'4" and I'm 5'4".

I'm interested in a 16-gauge SS, zero radius, under-mount, 10" deep, grate insert, satin finish, 30" single bowl sink with pull-down faucet on the perimeter and a some-what smaller version in the island.

My husband thinks the sinks will be too deep once the counter is placed.

What do you think of the depth of your sink?

Does the grate help any with the depth?

Do you think the zero radius corners are difficult to clean/keep clean?

By the way, my husband is a stay-at-home dad and I work from home. We share the cooking, upkeep of the house and the raising of the 4 kids.

We all, including the kids (Ages 10-16 with only one left that's shorter than me), share the prepping, cooking, cleaning...hence the two sinks. So one sink more shallow than the other won't help much since we could be at either, depending on the chore at hand.

P.S. My first post on any board ever, so please be patient with me if I've done something incorrect.

Featured Answer

Buehl

15 years ago

For an under-mount sink, the real depth of the sink is the sink's stated depth + the thickness of your countertop. So, if you have 3cm stone (or 2cm stone + subtop = approx 3cm), then your sink will be 10" + 1.25" = 11.25". Grids raise the "bottom" of the sink by 1" to 1.25". So, figure 10.25" depth for the sink, just to be conservative.

Is this too deep? It depends on several things:

(1) Your height (the taller you are, the more likely a deep sink will bother you b/c you have to reach farther down than shorter people)

(2) Your arm length (the longer your arms, the farther you can reach down w/o having lean or hunch over)

(3) Current condition of your back & shoulders...if you already have occasional problems w/your back or shoulders, it may exacerbate the situation if you have a very deep sink.

I'll be honest, I'm 5'10" (the shortest one in my family...the rest range from 5'11" to 6'6") with long arms and I would not want a sink any deeper than the 9" one I have (well, 9" + 1.25" - 1" grid = 9.25" total depth). Mocking it up is a good idea, however, you really need to use it for an extended length of time to see if it will eventually bother you (you might not at first, but after a while or over time it may start to bother you or your DH.)

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Comments (9)

TC44
15 years ago
We have the same sink you describe and love it (also get lots of compiments on it!). I am 5'4, my husband is 5'10 and our kids are 12 and 15 yrs old. The 10" depth has never come up as an issue in a negative way (although it does take a lot of water to even partially fill!). I highly recommend getting a grate as it cuts down on noise and protects the sink. Here are a couple different view of the sink. Hope this helps.

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rococogurl
15 years ago
I didn't have 0 rad corners but only difference -- same depth and overall size. For me, this sink depth and dimension is a real kitchen sweet spot, particularly with a pulldown faucet (I had KWC Systema.) It was a great sink and definitely not too deep. Grid is a must-have which raises bottom by about an inch.
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northcarolina
15 years ago
I am 5'5" and my back starts to hurt when I try to use the "deep" side of my sink for any length of time. It's topmount, but measuring from counter level, that side is only about 8.75 inches deep. Yours will be more like 11.5 inches including the counter, right? I would have difficulty with that depth. A sink grid would raise the functional bottom, but I always get the impression that utensils would fall through or get stuck in the grid, which would annoy me to no end -- but I haven't used one, so better listen instead to the people who have. I am not quite sure what I am going to do when it's time to choose a new sink since all the ones that have the features I want seem to be deeper sinks.

Do you have a way to practice using a sink that's that depth? Mock up something with a utility sink, maybe? I think the only way to know is to stand at one and work for ten minutes or so to see how it feels. I have to lean forward slightly to reach the bottom of mine, that's why it hurts after a while. Possibly height does not matter as much as arm reach or torso length.
northcarolina
15 years ago
p.s. If you mock up something with a utility sink, you might want to measure up from the floor rather than down from the top, depending on whether the counter is at the same height as your kitchen counter will be.
analysisparalysis
15 years ago
We have that sink also - with the grate (nothing falls through - the grates are close together). Ours is flushmounted, so it is truly 10" deep. My husband (6') doesn't do handwashing, so I can't speak to that height - but it's fine for me at 5'4". The other day, I had two 9x13" pans (stacked, not nested), two flat platters, and two nested salad bowls in the sink and you couldn't even see it from a few feet away - love how well the sink hides the dishes until I have time to deal with them!

Given that your sink will be another 1.5" deep due to the undermount, you might want to do as suggested and try to mock up something to see how it feels. And for soaking/washing dishes, I recommend having a plastic tub to put in the sink - it takes a TON of water to get a depth for soaking in a 33" sink (you didn't mention width, though - perhaps yours won't be such an issue?).
northcarolina
15 years ago
Analysisparalysis -- thanks for the correction on the sink grid not catching utensils, I wouldn't want to give them a bad rap without Actually Knowing anything about them. :)
Buehl
15 years ago
Even our grids with wider-spaced spokes are not "utensil traps". I was skeptical about grids, too, before I got them with my current sink...but they're great! No more backwash of water when I drain pasta, no more food, etc. getting caught on dishes sitting in the sink when I try to rinse something down the sink, no more blocking the drain with dishes that were either put over the drain or drifted down to the drain b/c of the sink slope, and no more dishes, etc. drifting down the slope b/c the grid is flat! If you wash things by hand, they're great for drying dishes on.

The grids were included in the price of my cleanup sink. I liked the grids so much that I ordered one for my prep sink (grids were not include with my prep sink).
hellonasty
15 years ago
I have Julien 10" deep zero Radius sink with grid. Love it. Have no problems using it (we do have a DW too so not a ton of hand washing going on anymore). I am 5'4, husband is 5'7. He doesn't have problems with the depth either.