Cast iron sinks aren't bulletproof although your results may vary.

If you go with a cast iron apron front, please disregard the manufacturer's installation instructions to use wood blocking to mount the sink as it makes removing the sink much more difficult. Insist on a Pete's Sink Mount Kit please. Now your sink will change in less than two hours.

Consider your other appliances regarding the look of the stainless apron please. Lots of my customers have a rectangular stainless steel knob plate at the range. The sink and plate compliment each other in my eyes.

Approaching 4 years and good as new. You must get the grates for the sink bottoms and use non abrasive cleaners. Other than those things I exercise little to no caution.

What is your preferred non abrasive cleaner? I would consider BKF pretty abrasive. How often do you clean it?
Also, have things like coffee or spaghetti sauce been left in there? We’re they hard to get out?
Thanks!

Thanks for the tip on install kit! As far as other appliances... we have a bit of a hodge-podge right now. Refrigerator is stainless, but dishwasher/oven/stove are all black. My husband is very practical and doesn’t want to get rid of those until they break, which I get and am ok with since they are all high quality. We will slowly replace those as needed with stainless versions.

I have the Kohler Whitehaven (cast iron) in a vacation rental property I own. It rents by the week, so there are lots of different people staying there. I’ve learned the hard way that renters just don’t take good care of things. And yet my sink is still in awesome shape after four years of full occupancy. No cops, cracks, or stains. Once I went to the house five hours after the renters left and found spaghetti sauce all over the sink - almost had a heart attack, but it cleaned up beautifully. I totally agree that you do need the grates, and I also use the Kohler brand sink cleaner. I love this sink so much that I’m now putting it in my own home.

Lol “chips” not “cops”

I have a 15 year old Kohler double sink. No stains, chips, or any other damage. I use BKF maybe once a week, no issues.

Thanks lwfromny! That gave me a good perspective. I’m sure if it can stand up to renters it can stand up to us!

One note on the grates - the rubber feet on them get kind of gross, but you can buy just the feet on Amazon.

@loubird77 wondering what you decided on the sink and how it is holding up. I have the same dilema and need to decide quickly…but I am not a fan of using grates in sinks.

I have two whitehavens. We installed the short apron one when we did a retrofit when we moved in to our house and when we did a full reno a year ago we got the tall apron and moved the short one to the laundry room. We have the Kohler grates in each one and the sinks look perfect. The Kohler grates are not cross-hatched so they work great as a dish rack if I want to wash a plate that I don’t feel like putting in the dishwasher. Turn them over once a week and brush the underside or put on dishwasher. I would never go without the grates. They protect the sink and are very useful.

@nycbluedevil_gw do you have a single or double bowls? If double interested in how the divide holds up to scuffing/chipping if you lay pan handles, cookie sheets, etc against it. Interesting idea about using the grates for drying. good option. I do have concerns about heavier cookware, All Clad specifically, on the bottom surface without the grate. thanks

I have 36” singles in my house and a 30” undermount stainless single in my city apartment. I would never have a double—when we moved in to our house, we had a double which I couldn’t get rid of fast enough. My husband, who cares not at all about anything kitchen-related (I make every decision—yay) loathed that double sink. That’s why we had the short apron—it replaced the double bowl undermount the previous owners had installed. All my cookware is either All Clad or Le Creuset. I don’t think AC is particularly heavy. But hitting pan handles on the divide in a double bowl is a recipe for those gray marks, which may or may not come out.

I had a Kohler Whitehaven in my previous home. The new home I am in now came with a stainless steel kitchen sink. The stainless steel sink is I think the sink where you never have a concern about caring for it other than cleaning it as usual. You can't damage it as far as I can tell. Nevertheless, I loved my Whitehaven sink. It was so pretty, it was a cheerful white. I did use the grate for the Whitehaven, it's a must with enameled cast iron, though I am finding I like not using a grate with my current SS sink. If I ever re-do this kitchen (it is a definite future project), I will struggle with whether to get a SS sink or another Whitehaven. You can't go wrong with either, as long as you are careful to get good quality SS sink cause there are a lot of crappy SS sinks out there. My current home has a good one. Still, when I renovate, I think I might end up with the Whitehaven again.

I would not have a double bowl sink. Both the sinks I am talking about are single bowl sinks. Just thinking about the divider mentioned in the above comment takes me back to my low-rent college apartment with a double bowl sink, no no no!

"but I am not a fan of using grates in sinks."

@susanrhill34 - I am sorry, but I think a Kohler Whitehaven cast iron sink must use a grate. I know you have been going back and forth on the sink decision between cast iron, stainless steel, and Silgranit, but perhaps the grate thing makes the decision easier for you by taking out one of those choices.

Thanks, All! I took the plunge and ordered a whitehaven, short apron, ice grey, single bowl! Surprised myself..but will be ordering the grates too. I learned today that the grates are in 2 pieces and dishwashable, so that really helped in my decision, along with the great input from everyone on Houzz!with the remodel, was time for a complete change..I am old enought that the sink will likely outlive me:) again, thanks to, All!

You are going to love it. Congratulations! I completely forgot to mention how much I love the fact that the grate is a two-part grate. My Julien in my city apartment has a single, cross-hatched grate and it is much less convenient. Having the two-part means that you can clean under one side at a time, in addition to being a size that you can fit in the dishwasher.