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Which is better – a single basin or a double basin sink? Of course it comes down to personal preference, but I am here today to tell you the 5 reasons I ADORE my large single basin sink.
*This post is sponsored by BLANCO. All opinions are 100% my own.
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I’ve always been a double basin kind of gal. Mostly because that’s what was in all the houses we’ve owned, and I just grew up that way. You washed in one side, rinsed in the other. If they got filled with dirty dishes, you took them out and proceeded to rinse and wash the dishes. I knew nothing else.
It wasn’t until we remodeled our RV that I actually tried a large single basin sink, this super durable BLANCO Silgranit sink. It made sense to get the biggest sink as we could for this small space, to accommodate as much stashing and washing area as possible.
We even bathed the little one in there!
What I didn’t expect was to discover how much I loved it, and I knew I wanted a large single basin sink for our new pole barn home.
Here are my reasons:
1 – INCREDIBLY BEAUTIFUL
This big beautiful sink is a show stopper! Admittedly, that’s what drew me to this 36” BLANCO Fireclay apron front sink in the first place. I think it is stunning and absolutely beautiful. I love the clean lines, the texture of the polished fireclay and the simple nature of the design.
In truth, as a blogger and designer, this was pretty important to me. It fits with the kitchen so well, and I’m just imagining all the lovely flower filled sink shots I can get, and how perfectly a pretty little towel can drape over the front.
But of course, for something as important as the kitchen sink – we can’t rely on looks alone. Let’s talk about how it functions from day to day.
2 – EASILY HIDE DIRTY DISHES
The second reason I love my large single basin sink is how well it hides and corals dirty dishes. I’m a busy work from home mama of 4 and can’t possibly keep up with dishes all day every day, but I don’t necessarily like to leave them stacked all over the countertop at all times until I get to them. I am sure each family is different, but my husband grew up stacking dirty dishes in the sink. I grew up leaving dirty dishes next to the sink, on the countertop. As you can imagine, we have some disagreements for what is the best method.
My biggest beef with stacking them in the sink is that you then can’t even get to your sink to wash the dishes or fill the basin up with soap until you remove all those dirty dishes you just tossed in there. Or if you need to strain or rinse some produce, you have all these yucky dishes in the way.
But I don’t like them covering the countertop either, so what’s a gal to do?! Well, with the use of this little plastic tub and a large single basin sink, I have found the best of both worlds.
Most of the dirty dishes get corralled inside this tub that sits perfectly to the side of the sink.
I can even conceal them better with this made to fit cutting board when I have it out.
There is plenty of room left in the sink to rinse, strain and use the sink while these dishes sit in there.
If I need more sink space, I simply remove the tub and sit it on the countertop.
But typically, the majority of the dirty dishes sit nice and tidy inside this tub until they are ready to be loaded in the dishwasher or hand washed quickly right inside that tub.
I find this method better than a double basin because I can move it out of the way when needed, can quickly dump or drain water, and it does a much better job at corralling those small dirty dishes.
If I am craving a perfectly clean sink, I tuck that plastic tub underneath the sink but for the most part, it lives right here.
3 – EASILY WASH LARGE POTS AND PANS
Sometimes you find yourself with large sheet pans, stock pots and multiple pots and pans that need to soak and be scrubbed. Having 2 smaller basins makes this task a bit tricky as you have to tip and rotate them. Having a single large basin sink makes this task so much easier!
I can fit multiple dirty pans in there to be scrubbed, lay sheet pans down to be soaked and cleaned, and it’s especially nice when I have my biggest heavy cast iron pan and can lay it down flat to be washed.
This is such a nice perk of a large single basin, I really don’t think I could ever go back.
4 – ROOM FOR MULTITASKING
So what if I have dirty dishes in my tub, large pans that need to soak, and steamed veggies that I need to drain? Guess what? You can do all of that at once!
9 times out of 10, my big single basin is multitasking for me, which is a beautiful thing. It is large enough to handle all the needs of a busy kitchen. I am often soaking heavily coated dishes and handwashing at the same time. I could never do that with my smaller double basins, and I was constantly moving around dirty yucky dishes.
Then there are the added benefits of the sink accessories like being able to use a cutting surface right in the sink –
And drying a few dishes in the sink with this made-to-fit drying rack.
5 – CONSERVE WATER, SOAP and TIME
In truth, I thought a large single basin would actually use way more soap and water. I thought this would be a major downside. If you are used to filling up your sink with soapy water to do any handwashing, like I was, you can imagine the larger amount of water and soap needed to fill this big surface area. When your soapy water gets murky, you would have to drain and fill again.
But I have discovered that I rarely use the sink like that anymore! Once I fill up the dishwasher, then there are the larger dishes that are left to be handwashed. Rather than filling up the sink with water and soap, I simply add a small amount of water to the larger pots and pans, add a dab of soap, give it a quick scrub and rinse it off.
If that soapy water isn’t too soiled, I’ll actually pour it into the next pan and reuse it.
Or, I will add a small amount of water and soap to the plastic tub, handwash as many dishes as I can right inside of there, quick rinse and leave out to dry. If I need fresh water, I quickly dump and add a bit again.
I’ve been amazed to find how this makes dishes go quicker AND I use less water and soap than I ever have before.
I’D LOVE TO HEAR YOUR THOUGHTS!
There you have it! The 5 reasons I love my large single basin sink. Like I mentioned before, this topic is definitely a personal preference kind of thing, and I’d love to hear your thoughts! Did I perhaps open your eyes to the possibility of something you would have never considered? Or maybe I am missing the biggest benefits of a double basin. Either way, I’d love to carry on the conversation with you! Leave comments below.
Feel free to check out the BLANCO sink and faucet we have, and I’ll also direct you to my post and video all about these lovely DIY butcher block countertops we made, with this stone tap.
Finally, I know someone will ask how I keep my large Fireclay single basin sink clean. Now that’s a whole other topic I want to explore with you, so be sure to subscribe and keep an eye out. I’ll be right back to share those details.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this post! I hope it is helpful if you ever find yourself on the market for a new sink. I can’t recommend BLANCO sinks enough. Thank you so much for watching!
