Silgranit sink - appropriate with young kids?

13 years ago

I'm trying to decide between a large (30") single bowl Silgranit sink in Anthracite or a quality stainless steel sink. All the Silgranit sink owners -- do you find that the granite is so hard and unforgiving that your dishes and glasses get chips much easier? I have 2 young boys and while they don't put their dishes in the sink themselves, they may drop their hard plastic cups in there and I wonder if that would be a problem? And since they'll still only be teenagers in 10 years, which type of sink would be appropriate for a house with growing boys? We use the dishwasher primarily but use the sink for washing pots/pans and large casserole dishes, and for holding soaking dishes.

Thanks!

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (10)

wear_your_baby
13 years ago
My KD warned me that if the kids toss dishes into the sink they will break. I don't know. I'm leaning toward the SS.
vpierce
13 years ago
We have had the silgranit 1-3/4 bowl sink in anthracite for about a month now. My twin 10-year-old boys are responsible for rinsing dishes and loading the dishwasher and, so far, I haven't noticed any increase in dish breakage over the old stainless sink we used to have.
Related Discussions
Instant hot water dispensers -- too dangerous for kids?
Q
Comments (17)
Teaching kids about safety is a much better solution than only relying on a technical feature that inevitably will fail at the most inopportune time. My kids have been learning about dangerous everyday household equipment ever since they started to crawl. And when they started elementary school, we taught them how to safely use kitchen knives and basic power tools. It's an ongoing process, but most people give kids too little credit. They can learn a healthy respect for dangerous tools, and best practices how to use them safely. And as parents, we owe them to learn these fundamental life skills. Having said that, there is equipment that is unsafe by design; and there is equipment that isn't age appropriate. The former should simply be avoided altogether, and the latter requires house rules about who gets to touch it. I don't have an opinion on the safety of instant water heaters. Our house came with one, but we were never particularly happy with its operation. It was quickly removed and we went back to using an electric water kettle. But I understand that every household has different preferences.
...See More
Resenting husband for enabling disrespectful step kids
Q
Comments (29)
I am dealing with a 13 year old stepson that has pushed me to the point that I absolutely DESPISE HIM!!! I feel so guilty for feeling like this!!! He is spoiled and entitled and he goes out of his way to disrespect me and speaks to me like I am just a pest living in HIS house. He keeps arguments going constantly between his father and I. He comes in our bedroom and goes through my dresser drawers and takes my socks, clothes, anything that he feels like that he wants and he says that everything in this house belongs to him because it is HIS house. His dad told him that this is his house one day when he grows up. By him saying that at some point, the kid assumes that this is his house! Nevermind that I pay the Bill's and cook, clean, buy the food that he eats etc!! When I say anything to his dad about it, he defends the kid and says that I am always on the kid about something. In fact his father encourages and laughs about his son treating me like garbage. He says "hes just joking with you" and "that's just how he picks and plays". The kid knows what he is doing and he is so disrespectful and continues because he has no consequences for anything that he does wrong. He stole my bank card a few months ago and spent $140 on his xbox game. When I discovered it, I told his daddy. Within an hour the kid was playing on the xbox. His daddy said "it's ok, he will pay it back". No consequences!! The kid busts up in the bedroom when he feels like it when I am asleep. I swear I have said that I am gonna start sleeping naked, that will maybe teach him. He is always saying things about his mother and how his dad will never get over his mom and will always love her etc etc!!! He is always involving his daddy in his mother's business!! I swear I have tried and tried and tried to have a positive relationship with this kid but it's impossible. It is making me despise him and his daddy for being so enabling and letting the kid treat me like he does and talk to me the way that he does!!! It is on the verge of my packing and leaving!! A person can't take but so much!!!
...See More
Sink Decision (stainless or Silgranit)
Q
Comments (40)
Hello, I'm not trying to stir things up here, but this idea "I like my sink to look clean and pretty" (from inkycrab) is something I can't relate to. Of course I would like mine to look pretty: like the pictures posted above, but with 2 young toddlers, is that even a possibility? Like right now, I can't even see the bottom of the sink. (sink grid is another thing I don't understand.) This goes to my reasoning for getting a Stainless steel sink, I don't understand how/why I would need to keep my sink shiny and water-marks-free. I'm getting a SS sink because I can solder it to my stainless steel countertop, so I can hose everything (including my crazy/messy kids) down. So if I can learn to empty out my sink at night, after I do the dishes, clean it, wipe it down. Who would see it at night? Then what happens the next morning: breakfast bowls, coffe cups, sippy cups, etc. Then snack time, lunch, snack, dinner. So the only time the sink is clean is at night when everyone is asleep? I'm also learning about how to use 2 sinks: main and prep sinks. Thanks for enlightening me. Amanda
...See More
Floor plan help for young family new build
Q
Comments (86)
While I'm not a fan of WIC in the bathroom, I realize many people like them. That's a personal decision. However like was explained many of the things in this house don't work because they are just not good design. Here's the changes I made to the first floor to give you better flow and to put the things needed where they will work the best. 1. Since you don't use a bath, get rid of it! If you want a bath on the first floor, put it in bedroom 2. 2. Your master closet is actually now larger. However I was able to pull in the wall so it now matches the wall of the dining room. 3. Now you have a straight shot from the master suite to the bathroom to the closet. And then as an added bonus if you don't want to wake your spouse in the morning, you can now leave through the laundry closet! 4. Instead of the powder room by the master suite, I moved your laundry room there. Think of how easy it will now be to do your laundry. 5. I pulled the closet across to meet the study. Even though it makes the house a bit larger, it will actually save money because you won't have the extra bump outs. 6. Your study is the same size but by moving it down, you now have an actual hallway that creates a "spine" for the house, so you're not making a jog through your great room to get to the master suite. 7. By moving the powder room to where the laundry was, it freed up space so you now have a good sized entry from the mudroom door and the garage. No more trying to shove one another out of the way. Plus there's now more room to store all those kids things. 8. The powder room is now near the side where the kids will enter and it's convenient still to guests. 9. I moved around your layout for your kitchen too. It didn't work. Lots of space but not well used. I moved your cleanup sink to under the window with the dishwasher next to it. Lots of storage space in drawers now to the left. I moved your fridge so it's now in the work "triangle". So now you take food out of the fridge, move it to the prep sink on the island to wash, then prep to the left of the prep sink, and then carry it to the cooktop to cook. 10. In the master bath, if you're planning on a glass shower enclosure, I would probably flip the toilet closet and the shower so the toilet isn't against the master bedroom wall.
...See More
shannonplus2
13 years ago
I don't have a Silgranit sink, I have a stainless sink. But I want silgranit. My stainless sink only looks sparkling immediately after I clean it, but becomes spotted and dingy very quickly. I have been on this forum for years, and have seen so many threads on Silgranit sinks. While not everyone may want one, this is the first I've heard that dishes are more likely to break in a Silgranit sink. I am wondering if Wear_your_baby's KD is confused and is thinking of another material, perhaps fireclay? Of course, if you TOSS your dishes in ANY sink, they're likely to break. Really? your kids toss their dishes in the sink? I am trying to picture this....

I'll link an old thread about Silgranit vs. stainless. It doesn't really answer the OP's question about young kids, but it gives an idea of what people think of the Silgranit sinks. And since the thread, Blanco has replaced Silgranit with Silgranit II, which is supposed to be even better.

Here is a link that might be useful: Thread about Stainless or Silgranit
jsweenc
13 years ago
I have two in Antrhacite, and two 11 yos and a 17 mo. So far we've not broken anything in the sink, though it's only been a couple of months. The older two clear the table and put dishes in the sink (will train them to load the DW as soon as I've figured out the best system). I've not had a stainless sink but my mom has previously and now has Silgranit. She's not had any problems with it, and the Silgranit is much easier to keep looking clean than the SS.

Here are my suggestions (it's not too early to start any of these):
1. Train them NOT to clear their dishes and put them in the sink but to leave them on the table. But if they can learn that, they can learn the next two:
2. Train them to clear their dishes and put them in the sink carefully. OR
3. Train them to put breakable things beside the sink.

In addition, keep a dishpan of soapy water on one side instead of in the sink itself. That will free up some space in the sink and provide a little cushion, as long as they are not literally tossing a glass in on top of another glass.
berryfarm
13 years ago
Same thing as jsweenc said: have the kids place their dishes on the counter when they are finished with them. I also have two young boys, and they put their plates, bowls, cups on the counter beside the sink. I do not like stuff in the sink anyway, and I like to load the dishwasher my way.

If you want to Silgranit sink, get it! I had a Moenstone (unfortunately discontinued) sink in my previous house and had no problems with it. It did not spot like SS and I could use bleach on it. We are just about to remodel this kitchen and I will be getting another granite composite sink (either Silgranit or Elkay).
chanay
Original Author
13 years ago
Thanks for the ideas, everyone. Barryfarm and others: can I use bleach on a Silgranit sink? After rinsing raw chicken in the sink, I usually like to spray the Clorox kitchen spray with bleach in the sink, then immediately rinse. Would I have to change the way I clean it if I got the black silgranit?
canyonhome
13 years ago
The instructions that came with my new SS Elkay sink say do NOT use Clorox/bleach in it, as it will damage the treatment/stainless material - is that true?

We're renting now, and the place has a SS sink, and my new wife uses bleach in the sink after anytime she does raw chicken (I always just used dish soap to clean the sink in all my years of working with raw chicken), and I don't see any damage caused...
jsweenc
13 years ago
Very strange. I know I posted another reply but it didn't show up.

If you go to Blanco's site and look under About Blanco, then click on FAQ, it will have a link to "How do I clean my Silgranit sink?" There it says for stubborn stains you can use a 50% bleach solution but it doesn't say anything about the Clorox spray. It is odd that they don't address that, since it is a common thing to prepare raw meat in sinks. Good question to ask them directly.
wear_your_baby
13 years ago
Shannonplus2, it's easy for me to imagine kids "tossing" dishes into a sink b/c my boys are 6 and 2. They're not tall enough, so they stand on tiptoes and drop their dishes in. Maybe my KD was commenting on the age of my boys in particular?
berryfarm
13 years ago
I used Clorox Clean Up on the Moenstone, which I believe is the same material as the Silgranit and Elkay composite sinks. BUT--check with the Blanco instructions before you use any bleach products. Moen stated that diluted bleach could be used.

Silgranit sink - appropriate with young kids?

Comments (10)

wear_your_baby

vpierce

Related Discussions

shannonplus2

jsweenc

berryfarm

chanay
Original Author

canyonhome

jsweenc

wear_your_baby

berryfarm

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

Silgranit sink - appropriate with young kids?

Comments (10)

Related Discussions

chanayOriginal Author

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

chanay
Original Author