Vitreous China Sink – Pros and Cons
Jeff "King of the Castle"
With so many options available, choosing the right sink for your bathroom can often be a daunting task.
Most people want a sink that will be functional and easy to maintain, but still look stylish and add some flair to the bathroom.
One type that almost perfectly suits this description is the vitreous china sink.
These sinks are durable, tough, and feature a wonderful glossy finish. This is ensured by the way these bathroom elements are manufactured.
Vitreous china is, in fact, a technique of adding applying enamel coating to the porcelain or ceramic sanitaryware.
The glazing mixture is made of clay and glass with the addition of quartz and feldspar, which altogether provides unique properties to the finished product.
Below, I’ll explore just how good this type of sanitaryware is and list all vitreous china sink pros and cons.
Hopefully, this will make your decision a bit easier.
Vitreous China Sink – Pros and Cons
Vitreous china sinks are among the most popular and for a good reason, as they bring many benefits to homeowners.
However, if you’re considering installing a vitreous china sink in your bathroom, you should also be aware of some downsides.
Tough and Durable
The whole point of adding enamel glazing to the sink is to make it more resistant and more durable.
Vitreous china, due to its composition and firing at very high temperatures, is more than capable of withstanding the beating of everyday use.
Its toughness is also the main reason why this type of sanitaryware is commonly used in commercial spaces.
These sinks also have anti-corrosive properties, making sure that they will remain in their mint condition for years to come.
Plus, unlike some other materials, vitreous china glazing makes the sink resistant to extreme temperatures, no matter if they’re too hot or too cold.
In addition, the rigid construction of vitreous china sinks will, in most cases, prevent cracking or shattering every time you drop an object in it.
Stylish and Functional Glossy Finish
Adding vitreous china enamel glazing to the porcelain or ceramic adds a beautiful-looking high-gloss finish to the sink.
This sleek and stylish appearance usually works well with the interior design in most modern bathrooms.
Also, the nature of the vitreous china manufacturing process allows a large variety of different designs and sizes, further making sure that the sink is a perfect fit for the rest of the bathroom space.
However, the enamel coating is not only cool and shiny but also very functional.
The smooth vitreous china surface is very dense making sure that moisture and air can’t get into the internal part of the sink.
Due to this non-porousness, the original sink properties are unaffected by the environment.
This also means that any moisture in the sink will evaporate instead of sticking to the surface.
So, there’s no danger of mildew or mold development.
Easy Maintenance
The slick surface of the vitreous china sink also makes your cleaning job much easier.
The non-stick properties of enamel glazing mean that very little grime, soap scum, or other dirt will remain on the surface.
Usually, they’re easily washed away with the normal water pressure.
Plus, the slick finish works better when it comes to resisting germs, hindering bacteria growth, and maintaining a sanitary surface.
The little effort spent on maintenance makes vitreous china sinks perfect for modern times when everyone is usually busy and doesn’t have much time on their hands.
Nevertheless, maintenance, even though it requires little effort, needs to be performed regularly.
A good suggestion is to keep a soft cloth next to the sink and gently wipe the surface off after every use.
For more serious cleaning, that could be performed at least once a week, use mild cleaning detergent and sponges with non-abrasive pads.
Heavy Construction
The sturdy and dense construction of vitreous china sinks is responsible for many useful benefits of these bathroom elements.
However, it also means that the whole thing is rather heavy, particularly compared to sinks made of some other materials.
Because of this, more often than not, the installation will require a helping hand.
Also, the sink, due to its weight, should have plenty of support, no matter if it’s under-mount or drop-in variation.
Heavy Objects Can Cause Damage
Although dropping smaller objects can hardly do any harm to the surface of the sink due to the enamel coating, heavier stuff can cause some damage.
Just leaving a heavy object on the surface may cause staining.
If you happen to drop something heavy, the sink can easily get chipped, ruining the integrity of the vitreous china finish.
Is Vitreous China Better Than Ceramic?
For many people renovating the bathroom, the choice of sink comes down to vitreous china and ceramic.
Knowing all vitreous china sink pros and cons and how they compare to ceramic can make this decision easier.
Vitreous China is essentially a type of ceramic material, used for glazing the surface of the sink.
While both are basically made of fire clay, the process of manufacturing vitreous china involves finer clay that gets heated at higher temperatures, with the addition of glass and metal particles.
This is important as it leads to a harder and less porous finished product.
Vitreous china sinks also have a more uniform and glossier finish, so are more suitable for modern bathrooms.
On the other hand, ceramic provides more possibilities for different shapes and designs.
Ceramic sinks are also generally more affordable than vitreous china, but not by a lot.
Conclusion
The popularity of vitreous china sinks is constantly on the rise. When you look at all the advantages, it’s easy to understand why.
These products check all the boxes when it comes to what you want from a bathroom element.
With its unique manufacturing process and double heating at high temperatures, vitreous china is one of the toughest and most durable materials used in bathrooms.
Still, the hardiness and sturdiness don’t come at the expense of looks.
Although the vitreous china technique has been around for ages, it’s not out of place in today’s world.
Glossy and slick finish make these sinks very appealing and a great fit with modern interior design concepts.
