This thread reminds me that I need to order the sink harness system from BB and get is installed.

Just about the first thing my GC crew said when they came in after the counter and sink was installed with adhesive only was that I needed to get one--they have to regularly re-install sinks that are only adhesived in.

The second thing they said was to comment what a lousy place the seam was in (in their opinion). And a lousy job.

Our contractor screwed blocks of wood to the inside of the cabinet just under the sink to help hold it up. They did a lousy job so my husband redid them and reinforced them. You could also build a cradle which just means wood vertical to the floor of the inside cabinet front and back on each side with wood at the top horizontally to make a frame to support it.

My installer said all he had to do was to simply stick the cinclips to the side of the cabinet and push up to the lip of the sink and attach the cinclips to the cabinet. He gave me a guarantee that the sink would never come down again. He said it was the best system he ever worked with.

We are DIYing our cabinets and planning to use a "Sink Setter" to support our undermount sink. Looks like it can also be used to deal with a sink that is falling too:

Here is a link that might be useful: How to repair a granite undermount sink with The SinkSetter

This post was edited by feisty68 on Tue, Mar 25, 14 at 0:26

You can spend $38.00 for a sink setter or $4.99 for a Hercules Universal Sink Harness. The HUSH is a one-person installation.

Trebruchet - I didn't see this before our granite was installed and really wish that I would have. They used wood 2x4's that are bracing the sink, which I guess will work, but it is just ugly. Things are pretty tight in our cabinet for our sink, but I'd love to get the HUSH system if we can retrofit it. I've looked at the photos online and I can't tell how high up we need to get beyond the lowest point of the sink bowls.

*Is it sufficient for the "clips" that are screwed into the side of the cabinet to be only slightly higher than the bowl?
*The sides of our cabinets are plywood - I'm assuming that will be fine to screw into and we don't need any other blocking or anything, correct?

I've attached a picture showing how things are right now in the sink cabinet. On the right is the cabinet, to the left is the one sink bowl, and underneath, you can see the 2x4 that's providing support.

The HUSH is nifty. I didn't know about it unfortunately. I paid CAN$28 for the sink setter, and it was a one man installation job.

*Is it sufficient for the "clips" that are screwed into the side of the cabinet to be only slightly higher than the bowl?
*The sides of our cabinets are plywood - I'm assuming that will be fine to screw into and we don't need any other blocking or anything, correct?"

andreak100:

I've retrofitted HUSH's before. Simply screw the clips to the top of a piece of plywood, then screw the bottom of the plywood to the cabinet sides. This pushes the clips high enough to work perfectly.

Plywood cabinet sides are plenty strong enough to support the harness and sink.

I am a fabricator.

Only a schlock fabricator will install a sink, even a vanity sink, with only the silicone caulk to hold it in place.

There are a variety of mechanical systems and techniques to secure sinks that can be employed.

A previous poster commented that sinks separating is one of the main problems with granite. That is simply incorrect. My shop has done many thousands of sink installs and we have never, ever, had one fall away from the counter.

If a fabricator tells you the silicone adhesive is adequate I'd STRONGLY suggest you look elsewhere.

Is "plumbing strapping" an acceptable method? That's what our fabricator says he does to support sinks. I'm assuming he means this?

fiesty68:

It depends if he has a method by which he can place the strapping under tension.

Thanks Trebuchet - I see what you mean.

Why would you want to use products and practices that are time consuming and failure rates are high? Get rid of separation anxiety by using a product that will never fail and are super easy to install or remove if necessary! I recommend cinclips from GranQuartz. That is what my fabricator used in my house and when he left sink was useable and he did not use any epoxy or glue. Just trying to help with the problem.It's your call! Read more at cinclips.com

This post was edited by DowB on Mon, Mar 31, 14 at 23:05

oldryder posted... "A previous poster commented that sinks separating is one of the main problems with granite. That is simply incorrect. My shop has done many thousands of sink installs and we have never, ever, had one fall away from the counter. "

oldryder I believe you must have misread my post. I didn't say "that sinks separating is one of the main problems with granite." I said, "One of the most seen problems of stone countertop installations is undermount sinks separating from the stone."

I am glad to hear you have had no problems, but I don't think you can say you are unaware of sink separation problems from other companies that use adhesives only to mount sinks. I believe we are in agreement that there is a right way and a wrong way to mount sinks. Adhesives only without a mechanical system is just wrong.

This happened to me and my 5 MONTH OLD BABY WAS IN THE SINK GETTING A BATH AT THE TIME. I had just had the granite & sink installed 2 months ago. They came out to fix it but with GLUE/APOXY again.. I feel like it still was not fixed right what are my options?
YES MY SON IS OK but he was in it full of water going head first down into a corner cabinet sink.

How HORRIBLE Shelly.

One option is the sink setter I linked to above.

That sink setter looks awesome, feisty!

Shelly4nier:

Until you confirm the sink has been properly mechanically fastened, your child must stay out of the sink.

Stick a camera under there and post the pics, please.

My kitchen sink dropped out and I ordered what was to be an easy and cheap fix. It was a was a sling - what a contraption that was - I threw it out. I then researched every fix out there and I have found the easiest and sure way to remount a kitchen undermount sink and never worry again. I used a product called Cinclips. All I needed was the clips, screw gun and silicone. I'm a woman and I didn't need a man to fix it! I did not need to touch the stone, just placed the clip on the inside of the cabinet as instructed and screwed it in. Very simple. I got mine at their website Cinclips.com, but then found it later at a local hardware store. It was well worth the price - I would have paid double.

chach123:

The "sling" was undoubtedly the Hercules Universal Sink Harness. It can be tricky to adjust for the inexperienced.

I've used the Cinclips with excellent results and for the less mechanical among us, they can be the best choice. Very fast and simple to install, but cost 7 times as much as a HUSH.

Time is money, and I'd gladly spend 7 x the cost for something that's not frustrating like HUSH. I will be hush about HUSH; in my opinion, it's not a product that I would endorse. I'm a homeowner without the skills of a mechanical engineer and Cinclips was the ticket for me.

One reason for separation might be excessive stress on the sink. For example, a new disposer could have been installed and the angles of the pipes are such that the weight of the disposer and the angles of the pipes stress the sink/counter joint. When installing disposer, especially when changing from a 1/3 hp to a full hp, the weight is quite a bit more and usually larger. Because it is larger, the pipes will likely not fit without changing the angles. If installed by stressing the pipes, it will in turn, stress the sink which might be why it continues to separate. Glued pipe fixtures require replacement to get the right angles. Hope this helps.

AlZ.Heimer:

There is no disposal made that will substantially alter a sink held with a Hercules Universal Sink Harness.

I made an account here just to say THANK YOU TO KEVIN. It made my life better.

I followed Trebruchet's suggestion for my undermount apron front sink, and purchased the HUSH. It was relatively easy, though I also added some corner brackets to distribute the force on the sink. I could have done it myself, but did allow my husband to help ;) We've been using our sink for a month and everything is rock solid.

W just got our new cabinets installed and original intentions were for overmount sink. We just decided to have granite countertops and the installer said to be sure to get undermount sink which we did but just now measured and the cabinets are 32 on inside and sink is granite 33 inch sink. Can a granite sink be cut down? Any thoughts on a solution to my dilema?

"Can a granite sink be cut down?"

No, but the sides of your cabinets can usually.

I'll have to check with the company who built the cabinets. My husband didn't think the cabinet would be strong enough if cut down - they're 3/4 plywood. Our sink is a dual mount granite - can it be mounted on top of the granite counter top?

Model link, please.

http://www.menards.com/main/p-2443382-c-8510.htm

That sink can be a drop-in or undermounted.

Thanks Joseph - I talked to the fellow who made our cabinets and he agreed with you that it would be ok to cut down the cabinet and so I'm good to go - I was a bit depressed last night so glad I had someone to share my concerns with!! :) Appreciate all your feedback! Jeannie

Our sink is undermount in granite and my husband built a cradle for it to sit in under the sink. He screwed in wood blocks to the sides of the cabinet so that the sink would have something to sit on. One of the nicest things about having granite is no sink over mount or caulk around the edge of an overmounted sink. You can do it yourself to make sure your sink is safely and securely in place. Take blocks of wood and corner block the sink securing either to the cabinet or taking 2 x 4 wood lengths all the way to the floor of the cabinet. We just screwed in 8" wood lengths to the side of the cabinet so it wouldn't take up storage space in the bottom of the cabinet. Our kitchen sink weighs 126 pounds and is still snug as a bug in it's "cradle" after several years.

I am glad I found this, I will be working with an undermount sink eventually and was wondering how to mount it properly. Now I know. BTW it looks like the Hercules device will only work on double sinks so get cinclips if it is a single sink.

Nope...HUSH works with single sinks, too. (Pic from BraxtonBragg website)

Doesnt look evenly supported IMO. Probably works fine though.

We used these clips with our quartz countertops. Worked really well. No drilling into the counter or cabinets. Found them on AMZ. http://www.amazon.com/Undermount-Sink-Clips-Brackets-Kitchen/dp/B00YO4TNME/ref=sr_1_17?ie=UTF8&qid=1445909091&sr=8-17&keywords=undermount+kitchen+sinks

My sinks are currently falling out of my countertops. My fabricator is blaming this on the lack of climate control in my house, which is under construction. There is no mechanical means of support, merely a skimpy bead of adhesive.

It sounds like your fabricator needs a dose of truth serum.

Sandy:

Your sinks must be mechanically fastened in place. While silicone does have adhesive properties, its function here is that of a gasket. Hercules Universal Sink Harness (Braxton Bragg) or Sink Strap (Regent Stone Products). No other methods, please.

Thank you!

So i sent your recommendations to the fabricator and they not only ignored my email, but this is how they added support to my sinks.

Sandy K:

That sink is coming down I promise, but it's going to leak before it does. Gross. Insist on a HUSH please.

Aside from the sink issue, they butchered my Princess White Quartzite. They used the wrong blade, according to two other fabricators. It chipped terribly and the repairs look awful. The seams were uneven and they polished them down, destroying the shiny surface. I’ve filed a formal complaint with the Arizona Registrar of Contractors and we have an inspection appointment in three weeks. In the meantime, I’ve found new slabs and a new fabricator. Have to replace.

Joseph - Not to threadjack, but I notice you are a big proponent of the sink straps. I also saw you mention Pete's Sink Mount at one point - you don't seem to as much anymore. Has anything changed or is one better than the other for certain applications?

Good grief! Sandy, you send your contractor Kohler's installation instructions which shows a mechanical fastener. Kohler makes one specifically for their undermount sinks. Or you can use the HUSH fastener that Joe likes. But to get your contractor to respond remind him that he's not following the manufacturers installation instructions and he needs to fix it correctly!

unraveled_wi:

A HUSH is $4.95; Pete's Sink Mount is $300.00 with shipping. I suppose a HUSH would hold a retrofitted Kohler Whitehaven short apron front, but I charge my customers for the Pete's in that application only. Those dang sinks are heavy and the adjustment on the Pete's can't be beat.

Joseph - thank you! We're looking at a stainless steel sink, so the Pete's would be overkill.

I'm latroe here, but chipping in on Pete's Sink Mount. I looked at my husband like he was crazy...$300?! But ours is a full farmhouse sink. Heavy as hell. The contractors had no problem installing Pete's and the sink looks great and is secure.

The sink was 30 1/8" side to side. The cabinet opening of our 1942 cabinets was 30 1/8". Ooh! The wood groaned a bit to fit the sink, but it is strong and secure. A good spending of $300.

I suppose stainless sinks don't need this overkill, but a heavy sink like ours? Definitely needed.

My contractor secured our stainless double sink under cabinet mount with the HUSH system. That was about five years ago. The sink has separated from the granite countertop and we now have a roughly 3/4 inch gap between the sink and the countertop. I am repairing it tomorrow and I will not be using a HUSH. I intend to try the Never Fall system. Yeah, I paid $30 for it but i won’t have to fix this thing again.

I just realized this is a pretty old thread but I am going to post it anyway. Might keep someone from wasting his or her time and money on the HUSH.