Jump to content

Sink reveals: positive, negative or zero reveal and the risk of mould?


Adsibob

Recommended Posts

We have a 700mm nook in our kitchen which we are making into a hot drinks station. The cupboards above and below the worktop will house mugs, boxes of tea and coffee beans, and on the worktop itself about half of it will be occupied by a coffee machine and the other half of it will be occupied by a small round 300mm diameter undermount sink and a boiling water tap.

I would have ideally preferred a 200mm sink so as to give more space to the coffee machine, but we haven't been able to find one that works with our colour scheme, so 300mm it is.

I came across this article which discusses the pros and cons of different reveal styles and it made me think I could have a negative reveal so that I lose less than a 300mm diameter from my worktop. The only disadvantage quoted in the article of a negative reveal is said to be

 

"The countertop ledge can easily chip, and its exposed underside may attract mold.

Though these risks depend on your countertop material, a durable stone countertop might cancel out those concerns."

 

We are fitting 30mm thick caesarstone so I'm assuming this counts as "durable stone" and that chips are not a risk factor. Given the only thing splashing down that sink will be hot water, tea, coffee and the odd bit of unused milk, should I be worried about mould? Could I have a 25mm negative reveal all the way around so that my sink hole ends up being just 250mm in diameter or is this asking for trouble in terms of mould? 

 

We are having MVHR in case that makes any difference.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well this would have been ideal, but when i looked at Zip the price was ££££. 

We've already purchased our boiling water tap and tank, and now just need the receptacle to catch the water drips and drain away, ideally something in matt black or brass. 

Edited by Adsibob
Link to comment
Share on other sites

We went without the chiller, and paid around £680 all in. It did seem a good deal compared to other outlets, and our Kitchen supplier didn't normally sell Zip, their main boiling taps were Qooker.

 

I liked the Zip as it was the only one I tried that didn't "spit".

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 minutes ago, IanR said:

We went without the chiller, and paid around £680 all in. It did seem a good deal compared to other outlets, and our Kitchen supplier didn't normally sell Zip, their main boiling taps were Qooker.

 

I liked the Zip as it was the only one I tried that didn't "spit".

Wow, I wish I'd known they were that price, I would have considered them. I got a quote about a year ago and it was coming in at about £1400.

I've now seen this drip tray from Qooker which is almost ideal, except it's only available in one finish, which doesn't go with our colour scheme.

I'll keep looking. But interested to know what people think of my negative 25mm reveal idea. Another constraint is the worktop is being templated this Monday so i need to hurry!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 minutes ago, Adsibob said:

 I got a quote about a year ago and it was coming in at about £1400.

 

They were cheaper than that with Chilled and Boiling in 2017. Ambient and Boiling were around £900 when I was looking, but as I said, my Kitchen place came up with a good price.

 

My concern about your 25mm overhang is whether you'd be able to get the tap close enough. You'd need a "full size" tap to reach, I would think, rather than a typical boiling tap with a short spout.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

14 hours ago, Adsibob said:

We are fitting 30mm thick caesarstone so I'm assuming this counts as "durable stone" and that chips are not a risk factor.

Chips are always a risk. Some materials are more prone to chipping than others...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, Mike said:

Chips are always a risk. Some materials are more prone to chipping than others...

But where does the risk from chipping come from? Is it that if you have a heavy pan, and as you lift it out of the sink there is a risk you catch the edge of the worktop because of the negative reveal or hit the edge of the worktop with it? Because if that is really the only source of chips in this situation, then I'm not too concerned because the sink is nowhere near big enough to have anything larger in it than a tea mug or two, and in a contest between a tea mug and 30mm caesarstone, I'm hoping caesarstone wins.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Adsibob said:

in a contest between a tea mug and 30mm caesarstone, I'm hoping caesarstone wins.

 

Even on an edge? I wouldn't be so sure. Bevels can help but with rounded edges looking rather dated these days a straight-angled bevel still has quite a vulnerable corner to it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

19 hours ago, Adsibob said:

"The countertop ledge can easily chip, and its exposed underside may attract mold.

Though these risks depend on your countertop material, a durable stone countertop might cancel out those concerns."

 

We have an undermount sink and granite work tops. Terrible problem with the sealer going mouldy. Needs replacing really but that would be a lot of work I think.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Temp said:

 

We have an undermount sink and granite work tops. Terrible problem with the sealer going mouldy. Needs replacing really but that would be a lot of work I think.  

Can’t you just scrape the sealant off with a Stanley knife (or more sophisticated scraping tool) and then re-seal?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, MJNewton said:

 

Even on an edge? I wouldn't be so sure. Bevels can help but with rounded edges looking rather dated these days a straight-angled bevel still has quite a vulnerable corner to it.

We are having rounded edges, I think they are called pencil. Call me old fashioned, but I’ve always hated sharp angles in interiors and always will.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Old fashioned wasn't the best choice of words, or at least I didn't mean the negative connotations of the term. I meant less common but if you're having them then they'll be a lot stronger without that sharp edge. I think I'd still be mindful of potential damage from a fast moving mug taking just the right trajectory... 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 hours ago, Adsibob said:

Can’t you just scrape the sealant off with a Stanley knife (or more sophisticated scraping tool) and then re-seal?

 

 It might be possible to dig it out of there with a knife but not sure how I would replace it. A regular sealer gun wouldn't fit in the sink. Would need something like a right angle nozzle ?

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 hours ago, Temp said:

A regular sealer gun wouldn't fit in the sink.

 

You can get silicone sealant in 'squeeze tubes' (large toothpaste tubes) which I expect would work... or at least that was my mitigation plan when I opted for an overhang on our sink! 

Edited by MJNewton
Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 hours ago, Temp said:

Would need something like a right angle nozzle


Cramer make rotating nozzles and they are very good - makes it easy to get into this sort of area. Not cheap but if you rotate back to “straight” you can pull any set sealant out when it’s dried. 
 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07L4S6QD6/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_i_432TKJ82GH02BD50DMD8

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...