Nobody likes to attend to the dishes. It is one of the most tiring, dreadful, and detestable kitchen tasks for many. And if you have to clean them with hands, it can feel even more burdensome. Simultaneously, hand washing the dishes is not suitable for the environment as it consumes a lot more water. Then, you also lose your precious time in this process. But dishwashers are expensive items. Many homeowners cannot afford them. Hence, they have to continue to clean their dishes themselves. Like everything else, there is an upside to this activity, though. Studies say that this can be good for your mental health.?Of course, you don’t need to leave your mindfulness sessions for this. But you can make this daily chore a bit easy by equipping your sink area with a few efficient products. Let’s explore them so that you, too, can lead a peaceful life even without a dishwashing machine.
Things to consider for an efficient sink area
Natural dish wash liquid
You have to pick high-quality dishwashing gel or liquid for cleaning. It should be tough on grease and tender on your skin; your hands should not get dry. Opt for a sulfate-free solution. It would create enough foam and help with a quick cleaning. Nowadays, you get lovely scented dishwashing liquids. Anything containing green tea and lime flavor can be pleasant. So you can scour the departmental stores for such items.
Touch-free soap dispenser
The soap bottle in your sink area can be teeming with bacteria and germs. If it sounds surprising, think of every time you make raw chicken and wash your hands after working on it to remove salmonella. You access the soap dispenser with dirty or greasy hands whenever you need to clean them. In this process, you leave behind many germs on the bottle. To avoid infection, you can select a touchless soap dispenser. While it ensures cleanliness for the bottle, it also saves your time to clean the soap dispenser later.
Commercial-style faucet
Whether you prepare meat, chicken, or any other non-veg dish, your hands will become grimy, and with which, you will touch the soap dispenser and sink faucet too. Like the soap bottle, even the tap can become contaminated due to the transfer of fatty residues. If you don’t wish to deal with this, get an easy-to-operate faucet and avoid all the risks. However, the faucet doesn’t have to be just a superior functional feature. You can choose one with an attractive shape and design also. For example, check out a Kraus matte black faucet. A faucet made with water-saving technology and low-maintenance materials can be a perfect companion in a busy setup.
No matter what you choose, make sure your faucet offers a pulldown spray head with dual water modes, such as aerated stream and powerful spray. While the first one ensures water-saving, another one helps you deal with stubborn stains with ease.
Kitchen sink
You cannot pass over this most critical kitchen plumbing appliance when you discuss the sink area. When you have to wash your dishes manually, you prefer having a deep bowl kitchen that is not too noisy and allows smooth draining. In stores, you get many varieties in this, from stainless steel to composite to fireclay. You can choose anything based on your budget and comfort. Go for something that doesn’t need extra maintenance or develops germ buildups.
Dish rack
Drying just cleaned dishes can be time-consuming. It may not quickly become dry too. In that case, it is better to have a small drying rack handy. Please keep all your dishes in it until water drains out. Once the extra moisture removes, you can quickly wipe them and store them in their appropriate places. Nowadays, kitchen sinks also come with drying racks. However, if there is space, you can consider investing money in this. It will not be too expensive also.
Soft kitchen towels
When you work in the sink area, your hands will get wet, and the dishes will also be so. You would need a soft towel each for both these things. Look for any soft but moisture-absorbing material. Otherwise, the towel can quickly turn stinky, leaving behind a smell on the surface you wiped with it. In stores, you get machine washable materials. You can focus on them.
A few thoughtful points
Usually, when you imagine kitchen upgrades, you think about its d?cor and appliances. You rarely focus on increasing the functionality of a specific section. However, it would help if you put special efforts into a particular spot. For example, the sink area’s performance may highly depend on the selection of sink and faucet. But these are not the only things. If you have to do a dishwashing job smoothly, you would need other accessories and supplies too. Without them, you cannot achieve your task no matter how high-end your plumbing fixtures are.
As for decoration goes, you have multiple options to give your cooking zone the desired touch. Just make sure you don’t crowd this space with lots of embellishments or appliances. A small kitchen can look cramped, and a spacious kitchen may lose some valuable space. Both these scenarios are not fit for a modern kitchen. So, be conscious of your decisions.
A kitchen upgrade can require a small or huge budget, depending on the type of requirement. If you focus only on improving a sink area’s functionality while organizing its look, you will not need to spend much. However, the cost can considerably increase the moment you include other parts and sections. If at all a kitchen needs an upgrade, designers say that start with the phase-wise implementation. Not only does it reduce financial pressure, but it also consumes less time. You also get to balance your work and home without much stress.?
So, what is it you would like to change in your kitchen? If you genuinely want to get rid of the tiring dishwashing process, fixing the sink area first can be the best decision.
Varsha