We put a charcoal gray (anthracite) Blanco Silgranit sink into our last home (about 12 years ago) and after a few years of use, we were less than pleased with its performance, especially for the price tag. At first, it was amazing and we loved how it looked! Over the years, we used it for everything - normal kitchen/dish washing use but also occasionally to wash out paint brushes, soaking clothes, even washing show chickens in it. (No utility room sink, so the kitchen sink was the go to spot.) We kept it clean and well cared for. We believed all the hype back then that Blanco sinks were impervious to just about everything and I guess we should have been more careful. It basically started looking blotchy and losing its color on the bottom. It then started pitting on the bottom and was no longer a smooth surface, especially around the drain. And the blotchiness wasn't really stains but rather "burns", according to what we had read online. By the time we were ready to sell the house, it was pretty unsightly and we had to replace it. (Due to the less than helpful Blanco customer service folks who refused to honor any sort of warranty, we went with a Kraus sink.) But we only had the Kraus sink for a few months before moving, so not sure how that one will hold up. So now I'm trying to decide what to do with our new (but 15 year old home). I like how durable stainless sinks are and how cost effective they are but since spots and smudges on the stainless steel appliances drive me crazy and I'm CONTSTANTLY wiping them off, adding one more stainless item to care for in this kitchen doesn't seem like a wise decision. Anyway, thought I would add my 2 cents. I still can't decide if I want to do another composite sink (but do a more reasonably priced manufacturer like Kraus) or go with something else. If I do composite again, I will definitely go with a darker color and be super diligent about ONLY soap and water going into the sink.

We rebuilt our existing pantry to include a space for our microwave. It's just a shallow closet (about 18-inches deep), not walk-in. We pulled out the old pantry and drywall above to create a space that went nearly to the 9-foot ceiling. We replaced the original door (a standard 36-inch-wide, 7-foot-tall door) with three sets of double doors. Below the second set of doors -- just slightly lower than counter height -- we have an open shelf: that's where the micrrowave is. It's a bit out of the main traffic path of the kitchen but only a few steps away from the main activity zones. We debated putting the MW behind some kind of doors (either swing up or down) but decided we use it often enough -- probably 3-4 times a day, mostly for reheating -- that having to open doors each time would be irritating. So far I'm loving not having the MW on the counter (where it was before). And access and usability have not been a problem.

Such a personal preference question I think. But I'll tell you why I am getting the instahot. I currently have a hot water dispenser on my counter which I have used tonnes. I got one from my MIL who was downsizing, thought I'd bring it out when she came to visit and put it away in between. Then I found it super useful so when the one she gave me broke I went out and bought another. I guess we use a fair bit of hot water in my house! So the instahot will get one more bulky appliance off my counters. Regarding some of the other responses - my instahot will be filtered before it is heated. I thought that was pretty standard? I guess it depends on how much filtration you need/want. Might not be able to get the best of filtration but it's good enough for me and our water. And the hot water from the instahot is very near boiling. But not boiling, just almost boiling. So if you need it really boiling then a kettle is still the way to go. A downside might be the potential for scalding ... so I'm having a valve installed by the plumber so I can switch it off when my kids are playing at the sink. A bit of a pain until they're old enough to be trusted at the sink but worth it for my peace of mind. It might not be an issue for you, but you wanted both pros and cons right?! I pondered the soap dispenser and never MT. I think they're great, but I decided I didn't want so many things cluttering my sink since the instahot will be there already. On a day to day basis there will be clutter. My house is lived in and the kitchen gets tonnes of use so on a day to day basis the dish and hand soap will both be out. But I wanted to be able to put those away for a cleaner and less cluttered look when/if I want to. Also, unless you have mostly plastic in the soap dispensing guts there can be corrosion of the metal parts from the added antibacterial agents and perfumes/colours in the soap. I've found that on my countertop soap dispenser in my MB - mostly aesthetically dis-pleasing so I haven't replaced it yet. It probably isn't too much of an issue since tonnes of people use them on the kitchen sinks. So for me I would have probably done the soap dispenser if I wasn't already doing the instahot. I just don't want so much stuff being permanently attached to the back of my sink. In regards to the disposal there are tonnes of interesting and varied opinions in the link you've already been given. I won't bother repeating it all again! HTH!

Look at the Fisher Paykel brand as well. If you do not get water in the door, the RF201ADX5 is $2300. Regardless of the brand, think hard whether you really must have water/ice in the door: that is the first thing--and most often thing--to break. Plus, since the counter-depth fridge is space-constrained, you are using up quite a lot of valuable fridge space on the water dispenser. Also, have you looked at recessing your fridge cabinet space? Depending upon your construction, you may be able to carve out the back for another 3 or 4 or more inches of depth to put in a regular-depth fridge.