First work station sinks are useless IMO and the pic you post shows exactly why . Once any of the doodads go on the sink you have a tiny sink the cutting boards are always too small and all that stuff now needs to be stored near the sink . As for good quality stainless sinks there are many. IMO you get the best simple deep one bowl sink that you can afford. Truly not a huge difference in how they work or last. I run a catering bix from my home with 2 back to back small ikea sinks with attached drainboard they are now 16 yrs old and still look awesome and function just like the day i bought them . Just remeber the lower the # of the grade of stainless the better .

+1 what Patricia said about the grade. I looked for 16 gauge stainless (I believe that most home kitchen sinks are 16 or 18 gauge; some commercial sinks may be 14 gauge.) I also looked for sound deadening coating on the under side of the sink.

Take a look for some of @Joseph Corlette's comments (here's one); he has replaced countless sinks for homeowners (often when people are switching from double to single bowl.) Joseph recommends using a Hercules Universal Sink Harness (Braxton Bragg) or a Sink Strap from Gran Quartz for sink installations.

I do live in Canada but never used a disposal even when we could compost is the way to go so I stand by my advice .

Franke, Blanco, Rohl, Elkay and on and on. Not sure why you began a new thread to follow the farmhouse sink thread - but I would suggest you go to a local dedicated plumbing supply. Look at them in person, knock on the bottom. Figure out what you like, and do not like.

I've had a Blanco for over twenty years with absolutely zero issues. You'll replace the entire kitchen before almost any decent SS sink becomes any problem whatsoever

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The OP has not said how wide her sink will be, i.e. what size is her sink cabinet. If the sink is e.g. 30" wide, I agree with Patricia's comment. That is too small to have the various accessories in there and still have a workable sink. If her sink will be 36" wide or more, that is better. Keep in mind that the shelf to hold the accessories cuts into the interior space of the sink. I must admit, I'd rather just have a cutting board separately, not in the sink, and I do not know whether the other accessories are needed, or are they just marketing to make people think they need them.

One brand the OP did not mention is Elkay. We are very happy with our Elkay Crosstown 16 gauge 36" farmhouse sink, with the valuable corner offset drain, Model EFRUFF3417R. We bought quite a few years ago, maybe 10 years, I don't remember. It is NOT a workstation (but Elkay does have workstation sinks). Elkay also has the same sink with a sink grid, EFRUFF3417RDBG. We are just not sink-grid people, but many love them. You can go to the Elkay website and see the workstation sinks they have if you want that, but be aware that the Elkay website shows full retail prices that are almost double what it actually costs to buy them in a store or online.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Elkay-Crosstown-16-Gauge-Stainless-Steel-35-7-8-in-Single-Bowl-Tall-Farmhouse-Apron-Kitchen-Sink-EFRUFF3417R/314835034

Agree on Elkay, as I mentioned above. Especially nice in the workstation category.

Point is? Many are great. Best is see touch feel in person. Shipping and online? Risk the dent: )

I sell a ton of Elkay sinks - they are excellent. Personally I have a Blanco sink for about 18 years now. Looks the same as day 1.

Good luck!

Guys, stop hating on the garbage disposals. Not everybody has the space or opportunity to do composting -- millions live in cities with no back yards and so forth.

That commenter brought up garbage disposals out of the blue, entirely OT. Neither the OP nor any of the other commenters mentioned it. And I agree that the commenter is tone deaf to the millions of people live in cities without gardens and without the space to compost. And oblivious to those cities having rat and roach problems - not isolated to New York or LA.; there are about 50 U.S. cities of all sizes and locations with noted pest infestations - including San Jose - in which food that is not ground in the disposal is an attractant and increases those pest populations.

I can only imagine everyone composting in a Manhattan high rise. Talk about a roach fest.: ( !

All kidding aside, given the grocery prices, most of the compost is gnawed bones . ......: ) Very few are wasting food.. The rest is rinsed recycle cardboard , glass, bottles etc.

@RoyHobbs, FYI, I don't personally compost, either, because roof (aka black) rats are a persistent problem in our neighborhood, due to people growing fruit, etc.; compost bins are like a free, all-you-can eat buffet for them, and I wish my neighbor would stop trying to do it. (One year I trapped a total of 38 rats, in defense of my fig, orange and lemon trees.) However, our city, and most cities around, collect residential green waste, which includes food scraps and waste, in bins with lids that rats can't access, and haul it away to process it in large, dedicated facilities. The resulting compost is then available for purchase or, sometimes, is given away free, for soil improvement.

If the workstation sinks are popular because, as the second response to this thread implies, one can just push the scraps into the garbage disposal and, voila!, like magic they're gone, then I would say it's not a plus but a minus. There is no free lunch. The extra organic waste dumped into sewer systems via garbage disposals doesn't just disappear and represents a substantial, and expensive, and labor- and technology-intensive issue for sewage treatment plants to deal with as they try to get nitrogen, phosphorous, and other contaminants down to levels that can be safely added back in to aquatic ecosystems. Too much nitrogen and phosphorous, in particular, added to waterways lead to toxic algal blooms and massive die-offs of fish, etc. This is why Europe and Canada don't allow them, and why this consulting ecologist would like to see them gone from the U.S., too.

Having lived in New York City for awhile, it is obvious to me why they have rat problems -- lack of proper containers for trash and leaving bags of trash lying around. You also need people who are conscientious enough to put trash into proper containers. San Jose collects green waste in bins, too, and recycles it and, like our city, provides homeowners with proper containers for trash collection that rodents can't access (as long as the lid can close...) -- but all those backyard fruit trees down there (30 miles south of me) also attract rats -- fact of life here in sunny California.

Admittedly, it was a bit OT, but I would also directly say skip the "workstation" and get a real sink and a real cutting board.

"However, our city, and most cities around, collect residential green waste"

Again, you seem oblivious to conditions that are not the same as in your immediate vicinity. It's good that San Jose "and most cities around" collect residential green waste as you said. That is not the case in the rest of the country. Many parts of the country do not even have recyclables collected.

Do you wash your car? It is certain you do. Whether at a car wash or in your driveway, dirty water containing soap, detergents, residue from exhaust fumes, gasoline, heavy metals from rust, and motor oils wash off cars and flow directly to storm drains and into the nearest creek or stream where it can harm water quality and wildlife.

The sanctimonious holier-than-thou hypocrisy is inappropriate. You are in California. California is the most polluted state overall in the US. Six of the most polluted cities in the U.S. are located in California. Only 36% of California cities met the World Health Organization target for annual PM2.5 exposures, as compared to the average of 82% in the rest of the country. The top five cities in the country with the worst annual PM2.5 levels are all in California, and your San Jose is in that top 5.

California's soil emissions from agricultural soils is a leading contributor of nitrogen oxide to the atmosphere. Its water supply is noted for high levels of arsenic, uranium, and fluoride - they are not coming from kitchen disposals. Then there are the several massive oil spills off the coast of Santa Barbara. But you can feel good about collection of residential green waste in your neighborhood, and happy in your lack of kitchen disposal.

“…our city, and most cities around, collect residential green waste, which includes food scraps and waste”

Yeah, we have that on Long Island, too. It’s called regular ol’ garbage pickup.

I’ve tried composting. However, I was the only one in our household willing to bring the scrap container out to the compost pile I had begun. It became a tiresome chore, especially during the colder months, so I stopped. I did enjoy turning the pile, and seeing all the worms doing their thing.

As for garbage disposals, where I Iive (the North Shore of Nassau County on Long Island), there is just one city, Glen Cove. The city has a sewer system. The rest of us live in small towns and villages, with all homes dependent on cesspools. Garbage disposals are illegal in some incorporated villages, including mine. And, yes, I’m aware there are disposals that are supposed to be cesspool friendly. My MIL had one. After just a month of using it, her cesspool needed to be pumped. She was told by the plumber not to use it. Do you know how expensive it is to have a cesspool pumped? She listened to the plumber.

Do you wash your car? It is certain you do. Well, actually @RoyHobbs, your assumption is wrong, and I don't, ever! Absolute truth: philosophically, as a 6th-generation northern Californian (if you are from California, the distinction matters), I don't waste water washing a car -- that's what the rainy season is for. And, having grown up on a ranch, I tend to regard vehicles as tools, not implements for displaying vanity. Have never been to a car wash in my life... One of the projects taken on by our local Boy Scouts is painting reminders on curbs by street sewer drains: "Drains to Bay", to increase awareness that whatever goes down that drain, including car-washing suds, eventually ends up in San Francisco Bay, to its further detriment, with the hope people WILL think twice about what they are doing when doing it. Are the Boy Scouts being sanctimonious or trying to help?

You don't need to describe to me California's environmental woes. As a consulting ecologist, my daily job has been looking at a vast succession of landscapes broken and damaged by dumb stuff done in the past (because we didn't know or care to do better) and trying to figure out how to mitigate the damage as best as possible. (Though true repair is virtually impossible -- it's kind of a depressing job.) As you point out, California has its share of problems related to agricultural production, transportation, and various accidents of climate, geology, and topography that have made all of these effects, and others, worse, especially in the agricultural heartland of the Central Valley, where air quality is truly the worst. Doesn't mean we shouldn't try to do better at avoiding further damage, right? Which starts with figuring out how we went wrong.

If Europe and Canada can figure out how to survive without garbage disposals, surely the U.S. can, or what, in heaven's name, is wrong with us? And, with this, I'll cease to divert the topic further. Will note that the stainless Blanco sink we had in the old kitchen worked great for more than 20 years....

Hey darbuka, I didn't realize that we are neighbors, although I'm on the south shore of LI, in Rockville Centre, an incorporated village that does have a sewer system (dating from 1929). I'm not sure if garbage disposals are allowed here, but I've never felt the need for one. Our village also has awesome garbage pickup and we recycle everything--plastic, cardboard, paper, metal and glass.

But back to the question at hand--I love Franke sinks. I have 2 in my kitchen and they are very high quality, with great finishes and a sound deadening feature. Very easy clean-up and look like new after 9 years. I had a Blanco and it was just okay. The finish wasn't as bright as the Franke, but YMMV.

@Diana Bier Interiors, LLC, Rockville Centre, about 30/40 mins from my home in Roslyn Harbor…depending on traffic. Yes, the towns and villages on the South Shore, are hooked up to sewers.

Back in the day, when the Robber Barons (Vanderbilt, Whitney and their ilk), had vast estates on the North Shore, they used their power and influence to keep sewers out of the villages. Why? Because sewers meant apartment buildings could be built, and apartments/multi family housing would bring in the ”type” of people they didn’t want near them. Many years later, when the topic of installing a sewer system was put up for public discussion, the cost was prohibitive…and folks didn’t want the increase in taxes that would result.

I, too, have a Franke sink in my kitchen. Been terrific for almost 8 years since installation. Very quiet.

You could not even drive an auto safely without car washing here in the snow and salt northeast winter, let alone brush up against it in clothing! Within a week, you'd be unable to get a clear window view with gallons of window wash. You'd find the same in summer from the road construction.......

Aside from that? It's just plain ugly, the cost of cars is high and we'd be loading rusted piles into a landfill. Thank heaven for the car wash.

I don’t have a garbage disposal, and no general composting where I live. But trash pickup twice a week. Regular garbage twice, recyclables once. I now never leave food waste sitting out inside my place in a bag or can. I put it all in a baggie, and it stays in fridge and/or freezer until it goes out. I am a vegan, so there is never meat or dairy waste, etc. - but if there were, I would keep that stuff in the freezer. I find this to be a very helpful practice. It is something I learned to do during a very hot July in NYC. The walkway was being redone where I live, and the steps were all torn up, too. I couldn’t get out with garbage for several days; and there was no way I could leave food garbage sitting out in my place in that heat. So I put it in the refrigerator! I had to! And I found that I really liked the idea of keeping it in the fridge/freezer until it goes out, and so I just continued to do this for the rest of that summer, and all year round. It just makes a lot of sense to me. I’ve been doing this for years, now. I did not have any issues with bugs/pests, before. And I still never have issues with attracting pests, etc. - and I think especially so now, since there is never any food garbage sitting out inside my place.

I too freeze all meat and bone scraps!! Out they go on the pick up day!

The reason many cities, including those in Canada, have banned garbage disposals is mostly concerns over plumbing systems and not the water ecosystem.

Food waste can contribute to nutrient overload in water, as can composting and run off from trash disposal. While it has a much bigger impact on nutrient overload (about 2% overall) than composting or trash disposal, it still pales in comparison to fertilizer runoff.

So while it is not as green as composting, it is greener than throwing it in the trash. If you are really worried about the environmental impact of food waste, just waste less food.

Waste less food............agree! The biggest culprits? Groceries. Due to antiquated laws prohibiting donation.

Far better for aquatic ecosystems to put the "bits and bobs" from the cutting board into the compost bin rather than down the drain. Garbage disposals are mostly banned in Canada and Europe for good reason.

I wish I had a disposal. I wouldn't shove actual food down its gullet, but it would excuse me from worrying about the stray macaroni or bits from a plate clogging up my pipes.

I don't think large numbers of people compost -- most wouldn't even know where to start; rather, I think most people scrape leftovers into the trash can.

I've had a Blanco for over twenty years with absolutely zero issues. You'll replace the entire kitchen before almost any decent SS sink becomes any problem whatsoever

Absolutely. My 1970s stainless steel sink is still in perfect condition, and it's nothing special.
If the sink is e.g. 30" wide, I agree with Patricia's comment. That is too small to have the various accessories in there and still have a workable sink.

Disagree. The items can be REMOVED when not in use. I love-love-loved using my niece's workstation sink, and she's unhappy now that she's moved away from that house.

One year I trapped a total of 38 rats

You need a couple outdoor cats. I grew up on a farm, and we never had rats. Instead, we had fat cats.

"You need a couple outdoor cats. I grew up on a farm, and we never had rats. Instead, we had fat cats."

No shortage of outdoor cats around here, including a little feral kitty I took care of for 17 years and who was out there at the time doing her job, and she was good at catching rats. It was an extraordinary year for rats, one of those periodic population explosions that can occur and that exceeded every predator's capability (we also have owls, foxes, and coyotes in the yard who also catch rats -- no shortage of "wildlife" in this suburb, including, sometimes, mountain lions passing through). My usual "take" of rats by trap per year is around 10, even so. These rats are wily.

Back to the original topic! I have bought and used 4 kitchen sinks from Julien/Home Refinements and have been very happy with them. Made in Canada. They offer the sinks in different lengths, widths and heights. You can also choose the drain position and some other options.

Here is my current one, a 30" sink with an 18" integrated drainboard. The depth is 18" and the height is 10". Right rear drain. You can get accessories that will sit on the counter edge.

The highest-rated (by owners) Apron-front workstation sinks on build.com were the Kraus Kore sinks which come in several sizes. They're available with a flat or curved front, include all the accessories, and are reasonably priced.

• Kraus Kore Farmhouse Stainless Steel Sinks at Build
• also: Kraus Kore Farmhouse Stainless Steel Sinks at Home Depot

I have zero complaints with my Kraus sink. KHT410-33 Single bowl, right corner drain, 18 gauge.

IMO, 18 gauge is plenty OK with a welded sink. Probably less so with a stamped sink where the metal will 'thin out' in corners with the stamping process.

https://www.kraususa.com/media/catalog/product/documentation/KHT410-33-Spec-Sheet.pdf

(This is a dual mount sink--top or undermount.) I like a dual mount sink regardless of how you chose to mount it. The stainless faucet deck is where I perch my dish detergent. Have seen many counters, especially in public restrooms, where the counter is discolored/ damaged from the handsoap.

I initially thought that I would not like the grid but ends up that I do like the grid. Right corner drain & small radius corners were must haves.

Didn't want a workstation sink because I wanted maximum bowl size. The integral ledge for accessories reduces the size of the bowl and is also another couple of steps to clean. Also did not want the challenge of where to store the accessories.

When comparing sinks, do compare the actual inside dimensions of the bowl. By no means is there a standard in front to back depths. I found they can vary by over an inch.