My 20-year old ceramic (porcelain?) kitchen sink tends to grow mildew if
left alone for a few days. The mildew prefers to grow in the scratch marks
at the bottom of the sink.

Also, the bottom of my sink is flat, so some water tend to remain there for
a long time.

Would a new sink be more immune to mildew? What about metal sink? Are there
kitchen sinks made with a gentle slope at the bottom such that water would
roll off but dishes can stay put?

"peter" wrote in news:z9ANg.3448$xh3.342@trnddc01:

My 20-year old ceramic (porcelain?) kitchen sink tends to grow mildew
if left alone for a few days. The mildew prefers to grow in the
scratch marks at the bottom of the sink.

Also, the bottom of my sink is flat, so some water tend to remain
there for a long time.

Would a new sink be more immune to mildew? What about metal sink? Are
there kitchen sinks made with a gentle slope at the bottom such that
water would roll off but dishes can stay put?





You could replace your old procelain sink with a new stainless steel
sink.Very durable.

--
Jim Yanik
jyanik
at
kua.net

"peter" wrote in message
news:z9ANg.3448$xh3.342@trnddc01...
My 20-year old ceramic (porcelain?) kitchen sink tends to grow mildew if
left alone for a few days. The mildew prefers to grow in the scratch marks
at the bottom of the sink.

Also, the bottom of my sink is flat, so some water tend to remain there
for a long time.

Would a new sink be more immune to mildew? What about metal sink? Are
there kitchen sinks made with a gentle slope at the bottom such that water
would roll off but dishes can stay put?

Stainless steel is what you want, and a good one, not a $59 piece of crap.
All decent sinks are sloped a bit. If you find a sink that is not sloped,
then it's not a good sink and you don't buy it. It's as simple as that.
There are other quality criteria, which you'll learn when you visit a local
plumbing supply store (not a Home Depot or Lowe's). Even with a perfect
sink, it's still possible to grow mildew under certain conditions, but all
those conditions are obvious, and within your control to eliminate.

On 12 Sep 2006 15:18:29 GMT, Jim Yanik wrote:

"peter" wrote in news:z9ANg.3448$xh3.342@trnddc01:

My 20-year old ceramic (porcelain?) kitchen sink tends to grow mildew
if left alone for a few days. The mildew prefers to grow in the
scratch marks at the bottom of the sink.

Also, the bottom of my sink is flat, so some water tend to remain
there for a long time.

Would a new sink be more immune to mildew? What about metal sink? Are
there kitchen sinks made with a gentle slope at the bottom such that
water would roll off but dishes can stay put?





You could replace your old procelain sink with a new stainless steel
sink.Very durable.


It will still grow mildew, though, unless he can get it mounted
to completely drain. The cheapest fix is to get a squeegee
for the sink.

"Goedjn" wrote in message
...
On 12 Sep 2006 15:18:29 GMT, Jim Yanik wrote:

"peter" wrote in news:z9ANg.3448$xh3.342@trnddc01:

My 20-year old ceramic (porcelain?) kitchen sink tends to grow mildew
if left alone for a few days. The mildew prefers to grow in the
scratch marks at the bottom of the sink.

Also, the bottom of my sink is flat, so some water tend to remain
there for a long time.

Would a new sink be more immune to mildew? What about metal sink? Are
there kitchen sinks made with a gentle slope at the bottom such that
water would roll off but dishes can stay put?





You could replace your old procelain sink with a new stainless steel
sink.Very durable.


It will still grow mildew, though, unless he can get it mounted
to completely drain. The cheapest fix is to get a squeegee
for the sink.

If my stainless sink is empty of dishes or other paraphernalia, it drains
completely, and is dry within an hour. How hard is it to pick out a sink
with enough slope in the design, and then install it level? There are these
new tools I've heard about - sort of a ruler with tubes of liquid in them.
You center the bubble.....

I agree with the posters that state your sink has to drain completely
of water to avoid the mildew buildup to begin with. While I cannot
offer a solution to the sink drainage situation, I can give you 2
interim solutions to mildew - if you have a kitchen window above the
sink - open the shades/curtains to let the direct sunlight in. Or, if
you don't mind the temporary smell, put some vinegar in a spray bottle
and spritz the bottom of the sink a few times. The acid in vinegar
kills existing mold & mildew (might need a toothbrush to clean the
crevices) -- and prevents future growth (if applied regularly) without
using any caustic chemicals around food/dishes.

peter wrote:
Would a new sink be more immune to mildew? What about metal sink? Are there
kitchen sinks made with a gentle slope at the bottom such that water would
roll off but dishes can stay put?

peter wrote:

My 20-year old ceramic (porcelain?) kitchen sink tends to grow mildew if
left alone for a few days. The mildew prefers to grow in the scratch marks
at the bottom of the sink.

Also, the bottom of my sink is flat, so some water tend to remain there for
a long time.

Would a new sink be more immune to mildew? What about metal sink? Are there
kitchen sinks made with a gentle slope at the bottom such that water would
roll off but dishes can stay put?



I've had some kitchen sinks in poor shape, but never one that grew
mildew. Clean with bleach once in a while and just wipe out excess
water when finished doing dishes or whatever. Time for a new one )

On Tue, 12 Sep 2006 16:17:32 GMT, "JoeSpareBedroom"
wrote:

"Goedjn" wrote in message
.. .
On 12 Sep 2006 15:18:29 GMT, Jim Yanik wrote:

"peter" wrote in news:z9ANg.3448$xh3.342@trnddc01:

My 20-year old ceramic (porcelain?) kitchen sink tends to grow mildew
if left alone for a few days. The mildew prefers to grow in the
scratch marks at the bottom of the sink.

Also, the bottom of my sink is flat, so some water tend to remain
there for a long time.

Would a new sink be more immune to mildew? What about metal sink? Are
there kitchen sinks made with a gentle slope at the bottom such that
water would roll off but dishes can stay put?





You could replace your old procelain sink with a new stainless steel
sink.Very durable.


It will still grow mildew, though, unless he can get it mounted
to completely drain. The cheapest fix is to get a squeegee
for the sink.

If my stainless sink is empty of dishes or other paraphernalia, it drains
completely, and is dry within an hour. How hard is it to pick out a sink
with enough slope in the design, and then install it level? There are these
new tools I've heard about - sort of a ruler with tubes of liquid in them.
You center the bubble.....


If he does that, he won't have trouble with the ceramic sink, either.

"Goedjn" wrote in message
...
On Tue, 12 Sep 2006 16:17:32 GMT, "JoeSpareBedroom"
wrote:

"Goedjn" wrote in message
. ..
On 12 Sep 2006 15:18:29 GMT, Jim Yanik wrote:

"peter" wrote in news:z9ANg.3448$xh3.342@trnddc01:

My 20-year old ceramic (porcelain?) kitchen sink tends to grow mildew
if left alone for a few days. The mildew prefers to grow in the
scratch marks at the bottom of the sink.

Also, the bottom of my sink is flat, so some water tend to remain
there for a long time.

Would a new sink be more immune to mildew? What about metal sink? Are
there kitchen sinks made with a gentle slope at the bottom such that
water would roll off but dishes can stay put?





You could replace your old procelain sink with a new stainless steel
sink.Very durable.


It will still grow mildew, though, unless he can get it mounted
to completely drain. The cheapest fix is to get a squeegee
for the sink.

If my stainless sink is empty of dishes or other paraphernalia, it drains
completely, and is dry within an hour. How hard is it to pick out a sink
with enough slope in the design, and then install it level? There are
these
new tools I've heard about - sort of a ruler with tubes of liquid in them.
You center the bubble.....


If he does that, he won't have trouble with the ceramic sink, either.


There *are* crappy sinks with little or no slope. And, if the ceramic
surface is worn, the water won't roll off as completely as with a smooth
surface. That's probably his problem at the moment.

On Tue, 12 Sep 2006 15:14:39 GMT, "peter" wrote:

My 20-year old ceramic (porcelain?) kitchen sink tends to grow mildew if
left alone for a few days. The mildew prefers to grow in the scratch marks
at the bottom of the sink.

Also, the bottom of my sink is flat, so some water tend to remain there for
a long time.

Would a new sink be more immune to mildew? What about metal sink? Are there
kitchen sinks made with a gentle slope at the bottom such that water would
roll off but dishes can stay put?


Mildew grows where there is constant moisture. If you can increase
the air circulation or even a small fan will stop the growth. If
there is mildew in your sink it may be growing in other places. Bleach
will kill it and wiping the sink with a weak solution of (20 Mule
Team) Borax will help prevent mildew. Make sure your faucet is not
dripping and dry your sink at the end of the day.

There are these
new tools I've heard about - sort of a ruler with tubes of liquid in them.
You center the bubble.....

Those are called Levels. I have been thinking of getting me one.

Phisherman wrote in
:

On Tue, 12 Sep 2006 15:14:39 GMT, "peter" wrote:

My 20-year old ceramic (porcelain?) kitchen sink tends to grow mildew
if left alone for a few days. The mildew prefers to grow in the
scratch marks at the bottom of the sink.

Also, the bottom of my sink is flat, so some water tend to remain
there for a long time.

Would a new sink be more immune to mildew? What about metal sink? Are
there kitchen sinks made with a gentle slope at the bottom such that
water would roll off but dishes can stay put?


Mildew grows where there is constant moisture. If you can increase
the air circulation or even a small fan will stop the growth. If
there is mildew in your sink it may be growing in other places. Bleach
will kill it and wiping the sink with a weak solution of (20 Mule
Team) Borax will help prevent mildew. Make sure your faucet is not
dripping and dry your sink at the end of the day.


Since there's scratches in the porcelain,the sink is due for replacement
anyways.
I doubt tub/tile "refinishing" paint would hold up with silverware,dishes
and pans being banged around in the sink.

--
Jim Yanik
jyanik
at
kua.net

On Tue, 12 Sep 2006 15:14:39 GMT, "peter" wrote:

My 20-year old ceramic (porcelain?) kitchen sink tends to grow mildew if
left alone for a few days. The mildew prefers to grow in the scratch marks
at the bottom of the sink.

Also, the bottom of my sink is flat, so some water tend to remain there for
a long time.

Would a new sink be more immune to mildew? What about metal sink? Are there
kitchen sinks made with a gentle slope at the bottom such that water would
roll off but dishes can stay put?



If it were mine, I'd use bleach at first to rid the sink of mildew,
then after it's dry, I'd wax it (so the water beads better) and then
every couple of days I'd spray vinegar on the sink to keep the mildew
away. You may have to apply the wax every month or two tho.

On Wed, 13 Sep 2006 15:05:30 -0500, rob wrote:

On Tue, 12 Sep 2006 15:14:39 GMT, "peter" wrote:

My 20-year old ceramic (porcelain?) kitchen sink tends to grow mildew if
left alone for a few days. The mildew prefers to grow in the scratch marks
at the bottom of the sink.

Also, the bottom of my sink is flat, so some water tend to remain there for
a long time.

Would a new sink be more immune to mildew? What about metal sink? Are there
kitchen sinks made with a gentle slope at the bottom such that water would
roll off but dishes can stay put?



If it were mine, I'd use bleach at first to rid the sink of mildew,
then after it's dry, I'd wax it (so the water beads better) and then
every couple of days I'd spray vinegar on the sink to keep the mildew
away. You may have to apply the wax every month or two tho.

I think he needs to re-level the countertop. The house
is sinking. That's why the sink doesn't drain dry.