Ticor supplies sink strainers with their sinks (when bought through Galaxy Tool anyway). Sink strainers are not something I ever gave a special thought to. The two strainers were supplied free with our Ticor 1-3/4 SS sink but we used only one of them as we have a waste disposer in one bowl. The strainer is working just fine. All of the parts that show topside of the sink are polished stainless steel and match the polished stainless steel flange of the Insinkerator disposer in the other bowl. The removable strainer basket assembly holds back water just fine by pushing the strainer basket down and pulls up to release. The strainer part (called the waste bowl) underneath the sink that attaches to our (black PVC) drain piping is made of very heavy gray PVC material. Our very thorough plumber had no complaints when installing the strainer and made no negative quality comments about the piece. I am perfectly satified with the looks and function of the strainer and don't anticipate any problems with the piece. I'm even more pleased we didn't have to spend one nickel extra for the strainer(s).

Hi everyone -- I'm so sorry, I let this thread get away from me after asking for a clarification! I really appreciate all the pictures of your granite sinks. I am still strongly leaning toward warmfridge's anthracite cascade sink. I don't really know why I'm so taken with the sink but it seems to be some weird emotional thing... I can just tell that's the sink I will end up buying though I can't really justify it at all; it just seems like what a sink should be to me. It's a darn good thing those who have it seem to like it, though I doubt I'd like it so much if I'd been reading negative reports. Thanks for the context-pictures.

If your looking for the savings on your water bill you are looking in the wrong place, the real savings is on your tax bill. In the early 1900's toilets consumed 5gpf however in those days water was plentiful and the sewage was simply discharged into a local river or estuary. In the late 40's or early 50's they began mandating sewage treatment and as the population expanded there was a big concern that many of the sewage treatment plants could not keep pace with demand. On average every man, woman and child will flush a toilet 6 times a day. At 5gpf that equated to 30gal/day per person or on the big picture, 30,000gal of waste to the treatment plant per day for every 1,000 people in your community. With the rate of population increase by the mid 60's the local sewage treatment plants were being overwhelmed until someone came up with the idea that if they cut the flush rate from 5gpf to 3.5gpf they could reduce the waste load generated by toilets by approximately 30%. The alternative was to build additional treatment plants and replace miles of sewer pipes with larger lines at a substantial cost to the taxpayers. By the mid 80's the population had expanded to the point where not only were the sewage treatment plants overwhelmed, the municipal water supply and treatment facilities were also running at peak demand. In some areas such as where I live water is plentiful so we could build additional water & sewer treatment plants at a cost of millions of dollars to the taxpayers, while in some arid regions such as California or the Southwest, they simply do not have the water even if they were to build additional treatment plants. When we consider that toilets account for approximately 50 of the total water and sewer demand the quick solution was to reduce the toilet water and sewer consumption rate to 1.6gpf, thus reducing the load generated by toilets by approximately 50%. Now in regards to why you cannot see the savings on your water bill? As Kudzu pointed out, the national average cost for water is $6.50 per 1,000gal or $0.0065 per gallon, however, water supply is not measured in gallons but rather in cubic feet. One cubic foot of water is slightly less than 8 gallons (7.92gal/cu.ft) therefore on the national average water costs $0.051/gal, however for billing purposes most communities charge a flat monthly service rate that includes the first 5,000cu.ft, then they charge a surcharge for each additional 500cu.ft. Sewer tax is then computed at 2 or 3 times the water rate. On the individual household, in most cases changing from 3.5gpf to 1.6gpf will not change your consumption enough to show a substantial savings on your water bill, on the other hand, if the community as a whole does not make the change, they will have no alternative but to replace the sewer lines and build additional water and sewer treatment plants so in conclusion, if your looking for the savings on your water bill you looking in the wrong place. The real savings is on your tax bill.

That is great judydel that you found a new home for the old cabinets which is definitely Eco Friendly. I know many years ago when I decided to convert my apartment into a home office (before buying the home I am living in now that I bought 12 years ago), I found that my new neighbors lived underneath me with two children and themselves in a one bedroom apartment with no furniture but a TV in their living room/family room combined room. I needed to find a home for my living room furniture that I bought new but no longer had room for. I first thought I should sell it but then I remembered my neighbors. I knocked on their door and gave them my sofa bed for free and some other furniture that I had to make room for my new office furniture. They were so grateful. It is so great when someone can make use of something we do not want any longer but is a treasure to someone else either getting it for free or getting a good deal on it. Thanks for sharing.