TANSTAAFL

Something for nothing does not exist. Domestic manufactured, US based companies products come at a price. The price that cheap imports with deceitful US type names costs isn’t immediately apparent to your pocketbook. But it too will cost you in the end. China already own a great deal of the US without firing a shot.

Three things.

Thickness of the metal(gauge). Thicker gauge is more solid and more expensive.

Advertising. You pay for advertising.

Name brand. Cars, for instance, have many of the same parts, be it a Cadillac or a Chevrolet. You pay for the label.

Be sure you are comparing equivalents. Same depth, undermount or above mount, holes or none.

There is no sink status symbol. I have an unusually expensive sink and I assure you no one knows or cares. There is no need to get an OTT expensive sink, but I would absolutely not get one that was particularly cheap because you don't know that you can trust what the label says. You say the sinks all say the same thing about what they are made of- but really- is that possible?

I would only buy from a trusted brand like Blanco or Kohler, Elkay or Franke. I believe Kraus is a cheaper sink people on the forum like, but it's not $200. Check on Kraus and Create Good Sinks reviews here.

Also aside from the stainless steel, there is the sound dampening on these sinks. Your sink is a remarkably important past of your kitchen. You use it a lot. And while you can change out a sink, I don' think it's a cheap process.

For most people there are only two status symbols in a kitchen red Wolf knobs and a Sub Zero refrigerator. The lot of us who here who pay a great deal of money and attention to all the things that go into our kitchens are outliers and really, no one aside form us cares.

Sophie & HandyMac - Thanks. Sophie - I would prefer to buy American, but which ones are they? Looks like most come from China, even when I think they are an American company. HandyMac - Except for the buy American thing - The Cadillac vs. Chevy thing was what I thought, but the pricing was sooo much different I figured I must be missing some important element! I thought "why is this 16 guage 304 sink only $200 when this one that looks exactly like it is $900?"

Rita - You said: "The lot of us who here who pay a great deal of money and attention to all the things that go into our kitchens are outliers and really, no one aside from us cares." Thanks for that, you're probably totally right - I am really stressing about everything that is going into this kitchen! I'm driving my husband crazy. I just don't want to screw it up! It's such a huge investment! This sink issue is only one little thing, but it is a big thing if it starts staining or looking bad in a few years because I saved a couple hundred bucks, so I want to get it right.

Breeze, I understand your position. People who come here are a special breed. We tend to be a bit intense in our care for quality and design and we are very aware of how much money we are spending- and goodness it is a lot of dough. The problem I see with your comparison of the different sinks is that I could not trust that I was indeed comparing apples to apples. When a super cheap sink company tells me their metal is 18 gage and made of a certain type of stainless, can I trust that? This is a place where price is a proxy for truth. And while you most certainly do not need the fanciest Franke sink on the market in order to feel secure that you will not need a do-over, I think you do need a brand that has good reviews here and is trusted. I would opt for something well known. I like Helen's Honda analogy.

Hi Helen - saw your post under another section talking about sinks and you commented about the ledge sink - I love, love, love that idea, and I saw one from Ruvati and another from Create Good Sinks - I am curious about whether or not the counter top can overhang slightly or if this will hinder the placement of items on the ledge.

I don't know anything about Ruvati but from reading threads on this forum, people like Create Good Sinks very much and they seem to be well reviewed.

You could call Create Good Sinks or there is an extremely knowledgeable counter installer/sink guy who posts frequently - Joseph Corlette.

I know how functional the ledge will be as I had gerry rigged something like it with my old sink using a cutting board that had stainless extensions that could fit over the sink. I used it a LOT. My new sink has the cutting board but also has a grid type of accessory which I can use for washing veggies or preparing meat - who wants chicken juice on their counter BLech :-). I will also be able to use it to dry hand washed stuff which I now place on the counter in my old kitchen.

I got a relatively large sink for my kitchen (36") but I really think of it as a more functional extension of my counter.

There is a lot of discussion regarding what kind of reveal people want for their sinks - Flush mount is when the sink and the counter are the same - positive is when a small portion of the sink is revealed and negative is what I think you are describing what a portion of the counter overhangs the sink. You can search for sink reveals or start a new thread to get the most responses.

I believe the reveal might also impact how prone the edge of your counter might be to chipping - although the edge you choose would also impact that.

Given that you appear to be doing a relatively extensive remodel, I would certainly pay the small extra cost for a sink with a ledge because it really is a feature that will improve your kitchen prep - and think of how small the cost is amortized over the years you will use. My friend installed a Franke SS sink when she remodeled 18 years ago and it's still going strong.

I am much more likely to try to save a bit when an item is relatively easy to replace like a faucet. Not that I am actively looking for a bad faucet, but if it doesn't last a long time, it's relatively cheap and easy to replace versus a kitchen sink. I am in the process of remodeling and I splurged on my sink but my designer is recommending a well reviewed $200 faucet versus a $1000 faucet - not quite as beautiful but still aesthetically pleasing and fits in with the style of my kitchen remodel :-(

I wanted to add that the overhang probably would not impact functionality of the ledge because the ledge is in ADDITION to the part that mounts - i.e. it's a bit below the counter.

“I would only buy from a trusted brand like Blanco or Kohler, Elkay or Franke”

People may not be aware, but those brands mentioned above source many of their stainless steel sinks from China - except maybe Elkay, they were one of the holdouts, but may have done same by now. You can tell which are the Chinese-made sinks, despite the Blanco/Kohler/Franke badge on the sink - just look at the price. The e.g. Franke sink selling for $300-400 is made in Asia; the Franke sink selling for $1200 is made in Switzerland.

There are many happy Kraus sink owners on this forum. It’s hard to find a complaint about them. The Kraus sinks are 16 gauge and include a grid. By comparison, a Blanco import is 18 gauge (thinner) and the grid is $80-120 additional. I see no reason to spend extra just for the Blanco name.

I know those brands make sinks in China. Apple makes phones in China- it's all about the specs and trust. I mentioned Kraus and Create Good Sinks as possibilities too. I think there are enough people here who have those sinks to be able to form a judgment.

@Rita - the OP asked why there are such “drastic differences” in price, so I was responding to that inquiry.

friedajune, I apologize if my comment came off as defensive.

No apology necessary! It didn’t. I was just trying to tie back to the OP original question. There’s no tone of voice online, so this happens sometimes.

Unless you go custom, you're not getting an American made sink. I sell a boatload of Kohlers in stainless; all are made in Mexico.

I've selected a Kohler Strive model for my new build. After reading this thread I wanted to see where it is manufactured. I can't sem to find that information online. Any ideas?

Berlinrl. See comment:

PRO

Joseph Corlett, LLC

"Unless you go custom, you're not getting an American made sink. I sell a boatload of Kohlers in stainless; all are made in Mexico"

Yep, that's what I assumed.

I am a fabricator and an engineer. SS sinks are made to a specific engineering specification for the metal with respect to the alloy so the material is a wash. Thickness varies as does the presence and effectiveness of coatings on the outside of the bowls that dampen noise.

I have sinks side by side in my showroom and it's a rare individual that can immediately spot the difference between a $300 and $800 sink. The more expensive sinks usually have a much finer finish on the exposed metal. An inexpensive sink will have a polish where the grain of the metal is still easily perceptible.