Cleaning Under the Kitchen Sink

It’s been over three years since we moved to northern Virginia from Capitol Hill. With that comes three years worth of things pretty much staying where they were originally placed. Over the last couple of months we have been rearranging furniture in the den and the bedroom and clearing out cabinets. The addition of a new sideboard in the dining room also disrupted the plant console. Most of the plants needed to find new homes elsewhere in the house, but some were tossed. That left a few places untouched but nevertheless required a look over. So I emptied out the junk from underneath the kitchen sink and started sorting it by the stuff we use all of the time to the stuff we rarely use and could be put somewhere else. Then the protective mats were removed to reveal a bit of dirt and grime that had accumulated under the garbage and recycle baskets. No matter how careful you are something gets dirty - including the inside of the cabinet door. So that was all cleaned up and new protective mats were placed. I always save containers that can be used over for something. We kept two small dish racks that do the trick to keep all the components organized. So what started as a junky place ended up being a bit more clean and neat. After that I went through the rest of the kitchen cabinets that thankfully didn’t require too much work. All I can say is that it feels good once it’s done, but you really need to be motivated to do it. 

Kohler Kitchen Sink Utility Rack and Feet

We have a large Kohler stainless steel kitchen sink. It was recently “repaired” because it was sinking - the brackets and glue weren’t holding it on to the quartz counter top. I’ve also been wanting to replace the ugly white cutting board/colander that sits on top of half the sink. It’s functional, but takes up a lot of room. I found a stainless steel small Kohler sink rack that serves the same purpose. It’s a drying rack for small items and has a cup for utensils to soak. Additionally, the white rubber foot protectors on the kitchen rack that covers the bottom of the sink are very hard to keep clean. So I ordered replacements in black. It all arrived yesterday and I am happy with how it looks. But my husband is not as thrilled. He wants holes to be drilled in the cup so the water drains rather than accumulates. He misses the cutting board but there are two smaller boards readily available. The colander is still available when needed. The countertop just looks a bit neater and cleaner and the rack can be put in the dishwasher. I consulted with him before getting the it - showed him the video, etc. Since he is in charge of the kitchen little changes like this make a big difference. I’m sure by next week he will be very happy with the arrangement. 

Kohler Sink Sinking

It just happened. The other day while we were eating dinner I was looking at the kitchen sink and something didn’t look right. There was at least a 1/2 inch gap between the under mount sink and the quartz countertop on one side. Within the next day or two it got worse. Underneath I could see that the brackets that were holding it in place were getting loose and the grout had given way. Lucky for us we have a wonderful all around handyman and his wife who have done all kinds of work for us. In DC they installed a completely new bathroom, installed a floor, and tons of other things. So when we moved to northern Virginia two years ago they helped install our framed art and an incredibly heavy mirror and a couple of overhead lights and dimmer switches. So we called upon them to help with the sinking Kohler sink. They are always very dependable and came a couple of days later. Some very sticky adhesive was put on and the under mount screws and brackets were fastened. So now the sink is back in position and we can use the sink again without fear of it falling in. The next problem was the faucet. That’s another story.