Faience sinks: features of choice
In an effort to provide as much comfort as possible to consumers, manufacturers are creating more and more technological devices for the home. The bathroom is no exception. Even the most familiar plumbing is changing, acquiring new functional properties and external features.
The stores offer a huge assortment of goods for every taste and wallet, so it is quite easy to choose the most suitable option for a specific bathroom.
Sink material
The material from which the sink is made largely determines the period of its use, durability and practicality in care. The most common materials are porcelain, earthenware, natural or artificial stone, steel, glass.
Porcelain and faience are ceramics obtained by firing clay using a special technology. To obtain porcelain, clay of the highest grade is used, which is fired at a temperature of 1000-1100 degrees.
In the production of earthenware, the components are used in a different proportion and the firing temperature is lower - 950-1000 degrees. As a result, earthenware is more porous, more susceptible to moisture and dirt.
To eliminate these problems during firing, the faience is covered with a layer of glaze.
Advantages of faience sinks
The main advantage of earthenware products is that the material does not lose its properties over several years of operation. This also applies to the appearance of the product.
It is resistant to the effects of cosmetic and household chemicals, to sudden temperature changes and prolonged exposure to cold or heat. The material has a high degree of electrical insulation, which is important for rooms with high humidity.
Disadvantages of earthenware sinks
Faience does not have any very prominent flaws.
Unlike earthenware, porcelain is a highly porous structure. Therefore, with mechanical (even the smallest and imperceptible) damage to the surface, dirt, moisture and microbes get into the pores. This can result in stains and unpleasant odors. Therefore, porcelain products need more careful care and cleaning.
If there is no desire or opportunity to carry out frequent cleaning of the bathroom, it is better to choose faience. On it, spots in microcracks of the surface can also appear, but due to the glazed coating, this happens extremely rarely.
Also, many are afraid of the fragility of such products. However, in ordinary life, situations are unlikely in which you can crack or break a faience shell (unless during transportation or installation).
Features of the repair of faience sinks
Despite the fact that the probability of damage to the faience sink is extremely small, it is still there. For example, you can drop something heavy into it, a mirror or a shelf can fall on it, etc.
In this case, you can buy a new sink and replace the broken one. If there is no free money to buy a new product, you can repair the old one.
Repair of faience products is made only with glue. The adhesive composition can be diluted with the color of the desired shade to make the seam as invisible as possible.
Drilling holes in faience
When installing sinks, it is sometimes necessary to drill a hole.Usually, they try to trust experienced craftsmen, because they are afraid of cracks in the material. If everything is done strictly according to the rules, then there will be no side effects during drilling.
Drilling is recommended either with a jigsaw (preferably using a diamond or tungsten wire), or with a tubular diamond drill. In both versions, the tool acts on the material without any special harmful effects, which has a positive effect on the appearance of the faience after the repair.
Features of faience kitchen sinks
Faience is also suitable for a kitchen sink: mechanical damage is practically invisible on it, it is practical to use and easy to clean. This sink will support the weight of kitchen utensils made of cast iron, copper and steel.
As a rule, earthenware sinks are chosen for country-style kitchens (rustic style). The sink can be of any shape: square, round, rectangular, oval or asymmetric. Usually it is cut into kitchen furniture, it can be recessed or protrude with bumpers above the countertop. The built-in sink is more stable and the kitchen worktop supports the product by compensating for its weight.
Earthenware sinks are also chosen for the kitchen by those who care about the environmental friendliness of the environment in the house. European manufacturers have completely abandoned the use of lead in the production of sanitary ware, focusing on the environmental friendliness of their products. Russian manufacturers are gradually picking up this trend.
With frequent use, it is recommended to polish the earthenware: after wiping the sink, rub its surface with wax about once a week. Then let the wax dry for half an hour. This way the sink will last much longer and retain its outer shine.
Custom washbasins
The use of earthenware in the manufacture of models of sinks designed to perform several functions at the same time is also gaining popularity.
The 60 cm sanitary ware model is a sink that is combined with a toilet bowl. It is designed for small spaces, allowing you to significantly reduce the used space. In addition, it will appeal to those who seek to save the consumption of natural resources. It is not at all difficult to glue it, if necessary.
It is not difficult to choose a suitable sink for the sanitary ware washbasin. Today, faience is in no way inferior to porcelain, and in some ways even surpasses it. It has excellent technical characteristics, and its restoration does not require much effort. The material with the picture has mostly positive reviews. All that remains is to choose the shape and color of the product you need.
How to repair a sink if a chip has formed, see below.
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