babyboomer1001: 100% silicone is perfect caulk between a sink flange and the bottom of stone. Polyseamseal and other Latex caulks are not; they do not have the adhesive stickiness or flexibility of silicone. It's best if you can pull your sink, clean the sink flange and stone bottom, recaulk with silicone and reinstall the sink. If this isn't reasonably possible, use a stiff plastic shim or plastic laminate to gouge the caulk out, clean the gap with acetone, and recaulk with silicone. Ignoring a leaking sink flange can have catastrophic consequences if your top has been "rodded" or reinforced with steel. If the fabricator used the wrong rod and/or the wrong bedding the rod can rust and blow up your top. I've fixed about 8 of these so far and it runs around $1,000.00-$1,600.00.

I have a stainless drop in. I don't understand all the talk of crud catching in the lip, I don't find that to be the case. Regular cleaning around the sink area every day makes that a non issue for me.Having never had an undermount sink I can't say, but it would seem to me that more crud would catch in that area than in a top mount. I've never dented a stainless sink, I would guess you'd have to drop something pretty heavy in it to dent it. I guess it depends on how thick your steel is? But I do hate the water spotting on the stainless. Everything has its trade offs I guess. For the most part I find the drop in stainless pretty tough and easy to care for.

Could you unfasten the sink cabinet and pull it forward a few inches so that it's deep enough to accommodate a standard sink? It would require reworking the cabinet, matching the existing finish and having an offset in the counter top. There's another problem; the 30 inch width probably means a double bowl sink won't fit. Beyond that, it doesn't sound like a dishwasher will fit in these shallow cabinets. If I were you, I'd replace the lower cabinets!

Amanda: You want the sink to be as far forward as possible and still allow drawer tip-outs to function if you have them; around 4" with a 1 1/2" overhang. 3" if you don't have tip-outs. Mount the sink with a Hercules Universal Sink Harness (Braxton Bragg) or a Sink Strap or two from Regent Stone Products, please. Disregard the manufacturer supplied clips.