Day 154: A Counter-Sink Dilemma

As mentioned on Day 152, we are still (!) up in the air about our sink situation. Once we had decided that the space is too tight to accommodate two sinks and I had convinced Garrett that the practicalities of a utility tub were too good to pass up, I thought we were set.

Then we went to the store and pulled the utility sink we've been considering out of the box. It's huge! We liked this sink because it can be mounted under or over the counter, it's got a nicer not-flimsy-plastic finish (it looks much shinier in this picture than it did in person), and there's a little scrub board integrated on a slope which also rounds out the tub a bit more.

But it still remains that the tub is very large. I got some great input from a friend who said that her sister has a combo laundry/bath with just a utility tub and she always waits to use the other bathroom to brush her teeth. Having gotten close enough to touch the big tub, I can certainly understand how it might be awkward to do small sink tasks over a big tub.

But then the utility of a utility sink (I get it now!) jumps out at us again. Particularly while we're doing work around the house, I think the big tub could prove to be very helpful.

You'll also note from the title of this post that we're also having a countertop debate. Given the placement of the counter (and cabinets underneath) for the sink on the left wall, we're restricted to a depth of ~15" because the door needs to be 32" wide. This isn't deep enough for a sink of any size, so at some point the counter will need to jut out to ~25". We've got two ideas: one where the narrow 15" deep counter continues until it hits the sink and then juts out (so the 15" depth continues for ~50") and the other where the 15" deep counter is only used to allow easy entrance into the room (about 32" from the door). This will all make more sense once I show you the pictures. I also suggested we could do just one rectangular 25" deep counter along only part of the wall without any kinks and have another unit (maybe a tall cabinet?) between the counter and the door. But the whole reason we're doing this piece on the left wall is to have lots of counter space and even 15" of it can be useful, for stacking folded shirts or tossing a laundry basket, for example.

So let's stop this blabbering and get to the options. A few notes about the pictures. The faucet configuration is not what we would go with, both in terms of style and placement - that's just the part that came with the sink model I downloaded. The sinks themselves are also not exactly how they would look in real life but I think the relative size is pretty accurate.

Option #1: The very first plan. A utility sink with 50" long narrow counter that juts out when it hits the sink.

Option #2: A vanity sink with the 50" long narrow counter configuration.

Option #3: A utility sink with 32" long narrow counter, providing more deep (and more useful) counter space.

Option #4: A vanity sink with 32" long narrow counter. I think this sink being off-centre here looks a bit weird.

Option #5: A slightly crazy idea that came when my dear friend explained the awkwardness of tooth brushing over a big sink. What if we built some kind of small bowl (not necessarily a true vanity sink) insert that would sit over the utility sink for regular hand washing, tooth brushing, etc. but then could be removed when you need the bigger tub? Is this totally absurd? I can see many ways this could end terribly. But I also think that, if we could pull it off in style, this could be a really interesting way to get the best of both worlds.
We're definitely leaning towards making the narrow counter the shorter 32" length simply for the additional counter space. The real dilemma, I think, is the sink. Is the additional function of a big tub sink worth the awkward appearance? Which function (laundry/utility or hand/tooth/face washing) would this sink be used for more often? Could a big bucket on the ground serve the same purpose as a utility sink? Do you find your laundry/utility sink essential for certain tasks that you can't really do elsewhere?

Let's hear it folks!