Irish kitchen sink usability
– posted November 29th, 2006 by Colman Walsh Comments (21)
At iQ Content we champion good design and usable products. We believe they make people happier and their lives easier. Yet society often tolerates bad design even when there is a better alternative. And sometimes people make their lives difficult for no good reason.
A case in point is the Irish habit of putting a plastic basin inside a perfectly functional kitchen sink. The basin merely does the same job as the sink, but less effectively: the capacity is reduced by about one third; the sink’s stopper is made redundant; and draining the water from the basin can be very difficult, especially when it is full. Surely the sink by itself does a better job. Yet this practice is common throughout the country. Why?
The owner of this particular basin couldn’t really explain why she used it, other than to say that her mother used one, and her grandmother before that. And this hand-me-down explanation forms the basis of my own theory.
In essence, the basin is a relic of a by-gone era. Before the days of modern plumbing, people used buckets and tubs to bring water into the house, and they became an essential part of the kitchen, used for washing and cooking. The practice persisted even after the introduction of running water, and has been passed down the generations, long after it ceased to be useful.
No doubt there are deep cultural and cognitive lessons to be learned, but we’re not quite sure what they are. However, if anybody has any other theories about this phenomenon, or can explain the benefits of the plastic basin, please let us know.
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Categories Design
21 comments so far
1. Gwyn on Nov 29th, 2006 - 20:42
It´s a common practice in the UK too. Possible advantages that occur to me as I write:
- Less chance of breakage of glasses, etc due to softer, plastic tub
- Saves water being a smaller volume
- Easy to remove all dishes in one go if you need the sink for something else, washing spuds for example
- Stops small utensils disappearing down the plug hole.
- Very few UK/Irish sinks have the US-style motorised ´garbage disposal´ grinder thing at the bottom, and the tub stops large objects clogging up the sink
- Plastic tubs provide better insulation than stainless steel and keep the heat longer. I think…
- They come in a delightful range of colours…
That´s my tuppence worth anyway. Nice blog, btw. Surfed in via The Community at Large blog http://tcal.net/archives/2006/.....usability/
2. John Donovan on Nov 30th, 2006 - 00:00
My wife insists on using one even though it bugs the hell out of me. The main reasons she gives is that with a large sink it saves on water and also if you have only one sink where do you empty your cold dregs of coffee or tea when the sink is full?
3. Lar on Nov 30th, 2006 - 09:43
Ah sure, tis great for peeling de spuds n’ that to go with de bacon n’ cabbage
4. Colman W on Nov 30th, 2006 - 10:43
Thanks for the comments guys. Never saw a plastic basin in all my years in the UK but I was obviously hanging in the wrong places.
So perhaps the fault is with old skool UK/Irish sinks, and not the basin itself? Indeed, they are not as well designed as their US counterparts, but I still find the sink by itself a lot easier to use than the sink plus basin. I remain to be convinced…
5. John on Nov 30th, 2006 - 10:58
Whatever about the basin, it’s the taps that bug me most. Having two separate taps for hot and cold is the implementation model of plumbing - it’s easier for the plumber. Mixer taps are better. As a wise man once said, the future is here already, it’s just not evenly distributed.
6. Mary Gilmartin on Nov 30th, 2006 - 13:06
Saves water, stops food going down the drain, based on the fact people used to not have running water in the house.
7. Niamh on Dec 4th, 2006 - 15:46
I use one cos I can’t stand the sound of cultery scraping against the steel sink. However, the plastic is very unhygienic unless you scrub the basin inside & out regularly & disinfect it periodically.
8. Niamh on Dec 4th, 2006 - 15:47
Have you noticed that your clock is wrong?
9. Lar on Dec 4th, 2006 - 17:23
Hi Niamh,
Like our flexible attitude to what time we start work in the morning, it looks to be running 15 minutes late.
Thanks for bringing our attention to it, though
10. Wheels of Ire on Dec 4th, 2006 - 18:04
In the 80s I lived in rural Tuscany where marble sinks were cheaper than steel ones.They were usually about 10-14 cm deep. Much more importantly,they were at a comfortable working height. Unfortunately here most kitchen designers place the sink top flush with the worktop,but since the worktop height is already at the theoretical ideal height this means we have to stoop forward to do the washing up,which can lead to backache.
I looked at a trendy Italian kitchen design site http://www.elmarcucine.com/reload.html -(v.slow and annoying flash pages but lovely design) and if you look at the Kila page-honest-you will seethe model washing the leeks is standing up straight,and the shallow sink stands proud of the worktop.
I made my own marble sink and placed it at a height we were both comfortable with.And yes,the plastic bowl was to be found in almost all rural kitchens,but usually was stashed on a shelf below the sink,usually curtained-off by a bright check cotton curtain.
We spend so much time at our sinks;surely it is not too much to ask designers to remember function and ergonomics?
Another cool idea from the Italian kitchen is having the plate rack attached to the wall immediately above the Ssink,in a press which has no bottom,allowing the plates to drip dry.Simple and elegant,as well as labour-saving.
11. Colm on Dec 5th, 2006 - 09:55
Clock is now on time :0)
12. David Moore on Dec 7th, 2006 - 22:44
John’s dead right about the lack of mixer taps - more often seen in bathrooms than kichens, I think. My wife - an American, and an architect to boot - was driven mad by the 2 separate taps in the bathroom when we lived in Dublin.
The only way to get water at a temp you’d like is to put the plug in and fill the sink - using way more water than you need. Crazy.
13. Your Mother Damian on Dec 9th, 2006 - 14:04
Ok Ok son so you dont want me to buy you a platic basin for your new sink…. I get the message…Love you loads even though we disagree on some matters. xxx
14. Lar on Dec 11th, 2006 - 10:24
We’ve provided Colman’s interview on Newstalk on our latest blog post…
http://www.iqcontent.com/blog/.....r-download
15. Sheri on Dec 11th, 2006 - 11:32
I am moving from the US to England, and one of my primary arguments to my future husband is that the plastic tub in the sink is not only pointless, but needs to be remedied immediately. He does not understand the benefits of a non-binned sink, nor why a garbage disposal alleviates complications and makes things much more pleasant in the dish washing area of life. I was mortified upon my first visit there some years ago to find I had to hand pick every little particle of debris from the plastic tub before emptying it into the sink due to plumbing and lack of disposal, much less having to hoist a full tub out of the tiny sink area and then emptying it three times a day. Not sure why they accept this sort of habit in their lifestyle there, but found it is common practice. His argument is that Americans are lazy and such technology is unnecessary. Well, maybe it is unnecessary, but we don’t need to live like medieval peasants, and he is not the one who will be stuck doing the damned dishes anyway. Discovering this article just now did earn a chuckle from me, because I can only relate too well to someone’s reaction to the silly plastic tub in the sink.
16. Tom Joyce on Dec 19th, 2006 - 09:40
Can anybody tell me where I could find a stainless steel, double bowl, double drainer sink?……or failing that a double bowl with single drainer on the left hand side?……before Christmas!!
17. Lar on Dec 19th, 2006 - 10:50
Hi Tom,
try http://www.fearondevelopments.ie.
They’re based in just north of Dundalk. Ask for Dave and tell him I sent you (he’s my brother-in-law).
Laurence
18. CharM on Jan 17th, 2007 - 20:49
I absolutely LOVE using a small plastic basin inside the sink. Everything Gwyn said is true! AND basins help save the planet by reducing the amount of hot water required to clean up small quantities of items that can’t go in the dishwasher, and help save water as well. Saving on hot water, and keeping it warmer longer, means less energy usage for heating water, and that means less carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere. My basin was cracked, and for several months I held it together with duct tape … it took that long to find out where to BUY such a basin (here in the US) in a small enough size to fit in my oddly-shaped sink! As for picking things out before dumping the water … somebody needs a good-sized sieve! CharM
19. Siobh on May 21st, 2007 - 20:12
I use a basin, but not in the sink. Standard worktop height is 90cm. Well, I’m 178cm tall, and the bottom of the sink is way too low for me.
Why do kitchen counters all have to be built to that standard height? Why should kitchens even be built-in? Why not modular (common on the continent, I believe)?
I suspect that the height was determined in 1952, when it was assumed that the only people using the sink were women 5′4″ and shorter. I don’t know how people who are 6′+ manage.
I *love* the look of that Kila sink that Wheels of Ire linked to above. And there’s room under the cabinets for your feet too!
20. » Usability featured on Newstalk radio - iQ Blog on Jul 11th, 2008 - 10:40
[...] recent post on kitchen sink usability seemed to have been picked up by NewsTalk, so God knows what they’re going to talk [...]
21. » Colman’s kitchen sink interview available for download - iQ Blog on Jul 11th, 2008 - 11:09
[...] on from Colman’s “treatise” on the usability of the kitchen sink and subsequent feature on Newstalk radio, Colman’s slot on Newstalk is now available. You can [...]