A kitchen sink strainer is basically a drain cover. Sink strainers, in case you didn’t know, are great for keeping food and any related debris from going into your sink drain. It allows water and liquid to go through but holds the other items.
Owning a kitchen sink strainer is extremely important because stray items that end up in your sink drain can clog or even damage it.
Why would you put yourself in that situation, when you can easily solve this problem?
A sink strainer is a perfect – and simple – solution to keep any pricy plumber’s bills out of your life. You will have a clog-free sink drain and a clean sink with no food rotting down in the drain, no bacteria or odor.
What are the best kitchen sink strainers? The best kitchen sink strainers are well-constructed from durable, rust-proof materials, as they do get wet often. Your strainer should be easy to clean and an appropriate size to fit your kitchen sink drain diameter.
A kitchen sink strainer is a small investment that brings a lot of benefits and saves you from expenses and headaches.
Invest in a high-quality kitchen sink strainer and don’t try and save a couple of bucks on an item that is one of the crucial items for a fully functioning kitchen.
If you are not sure how to choose the right kitchen sink strainer because there are a lot of them on the market, keep on reading and we will help you with that.
We researched and found the 5 best kitchen sink strainers on the market. We will explain what you should pay attention to, what are the best kitchen sink strainers on the market, and what are their main functions and advantages.
How to Choose the Best Kitchen Sink Strainer?
So, when you are buying a kitchen sink strainer, what should you pay attention to? You should find yourself a functional, durable, rust-proof, easy to clean, and easy to maintain kitchen sink strainer.
Additionally, although this is not really important, you might as well look for a kitchen sink strainer that looks nice and brings a bit of decoration to your sink.
Function is key here, but if you find yourself with multiple good options, especially if your sink drain is the common 3.5″ diameter in size, there’s no reason not to get the one you like to look at best.
Also, keep in mind that there are sinks with two or more drain holes and if you own that kind of sink, you might need more than one kitchen sink strainer.
Here are some important things to consider:
Material
The first thing you should consider is, of course, the material. It is important to find the kitchen sink strainer made of quality material that will last long and won’t rust.
When it comes to kitchen sink strainers, you basically have three options:
Stainless steel: This is probably the best choice for a kitchen sink strainer. It will constantly be exposed to running water so you need a material like stainless steel that isn’t prone to rust and corrosion.
Brass (an alloy of zinc and copper): Brass is a great choice; to us it’s the next best thing after stainless steel. It may be a little less durable, but we don’t anticipate that becoming a problem in your sink.
Plastic: Finally, there are also plastic kitchen sink strainers. They might be the cheapest option, but they are also the least durable option. On the one hand, the chance of rust is completely eliminated. However, you may have to replace it very often – which could cost you more in the end. If you choose a plastic option, we recommend opting for BPA-free silicone.
Basket
If you ever searched for a kitchen sink strainer before, you have probably seen that they have various baskets.
There are basically two options:
Holes – Baskets with bigger holes in various patterns are easier to clean, and may be more appealing.
Mesh – On the other hand, some people prefer mesh baskets that will hold the items more effectively than the basket with bigger holes. However, mesh baskets are a bit more difficult to clean.
Stopper
The stopper is a useful feature of the kitchen sink strainer because it allows you to control how much water goes through the strainer.
Some people like the water to go throughly slowly or to stop it completely and fill the sink with water.
It is a personal preference, whether you find it useful when doing the dishes. If having a stopper is something that is really important to you, be sure your strainer model has the capability.
Diameter Size
You also need to consider your sink drain size. Before you purchase a sink strainer, measure the diameter (width across) of your kitchen sink’s drain.
A diameter of 3.5 inches seems to be pretty common in the U.S., but as you can probably expect, it’s best to check your sink fits the mold.
If you have a 2.5 inch wide sink and a strainer with an inner diameter of 3.5 inches, that probably won’t work unless it’s a specially designed adjustable model.
Installation
Most sink strainers you can buy are easy to install. In fact, most can simply be placed in the sink – nothing more!
However, there are occasionally sink strainers which involve a little more finagling, so check to be sure yours is easy to install.
Cleaning
And last, but not least comes cleaning. The whole point of the kitchen sink strainer is to hold the food and other items from going into your kitchen sink drain.
You will use it often; therefore, you will to clean it often.
For that reason, it is extremely important to have a kitchen sink strainer that is easily removed and cleaned.
Some people like to wash their kitchen sink strainer in the dishwasher. So, if this feature is important to you as well, you can look if the strainer is dishwasher safe.
5 Best Kitchen Sink Strainers
If you set your mind to find the very best possible kitchen sink strainer, you are in the right place! Here we will present you with the top five kitchen sink strainers that the market has to offer.
1. Good Grips Sink Strainer Stopper
This kitchen sink strainer is one of the best ones on the market. It has the two handy functions you need in a strainer: it keeps food and other items from going down the kitchen sink drain and it works as a stopper.
As usual for OXO, this strainer-stopper is very easy to use. It takes just one twist to engage the stopper and another twist to let the liquid drain.
It is made from stainless steel on the top and silicone on the bottom to prevent scratches on the sink. The basket, made from silicone, is easy to flip inside out and clean. Additionally, it is stain-resistant and dishwasher safe.
2. Fengbao Kitchen Sink Strainer
The Fengbao kitchen sink strainer pack contains two strainers, which comes in handy if you have a large sink with two drain holes. It has a wide 4.5 inches rim and it is made of sturdy stainless steel. It is easy to install and remove.
Cleaning is also easy since all you have to do is empty the strainer into the trash and, if needed, rinse with a little bit of soapy water or pop it into the dishwasher.
This strainer has small 2mm holes that will prevent any food from going into sink drains. And most importantly, it will stay put when you pour a lot of water into the sink, so it won’t float.
3. Kitchen SinkShroom Sink Strainer
This sink strainer from Kitchen SinkShroom is a beautiful, stainless steel strainer that fits standard sized kitchen drains.
It is durable and easy to use. Just place it on the drain hole and wash away your cares – or your food stains, anyway. To clean it, all you need to do is flip it and empty it into the garbage.
What is great about this kitchen sink drainer is that even when the basket is full of food scraps, the water will still go into the drain.
4. KONE Kitchen Sink Drain
It is made for sink drains that measure 3.23 to 4.45 inches, which means that it will fit most standard sink drainers.
The stainless steel strainer comes with a large basket that can hold a larger amount of food and a lid that can stop the water from draining.
The basket is easily removable and can be cleaned quickly. It is easy to use and install, and the package includes the installation instructions, so you won’t need to call a plumber.
5. Plumb Pak Kitchen Sink Strainer
This strainer from Plumb Pak is built with durable stainless steel material and it fits a standard 3.5 inch kitchen sink drain hole.
It has a fixed post basket made from stainless steel with rolled edges and a stopper. The body is made from solid brass.
The strainer also has a sophisticated black finish that may not make it any more functional, but does make it a beautiful addition to your kitchen.
It is easy to use and install since it comes with all the necessary nuts.
Helpful Tip – Avoid Clogged Drains
Even though the kitchen sink strainers catch the food and the other items, they don’t catch liquids.
For that reason, it is important to know what kind of liquid you should not pour down your kitchen sink drain because it might cause clogging and damage.
It all comes down to fats, oils, and grease.
When fats, oils, and grease are warm, you can easily pour them down the kitchen drain. But when they cool down, they will solidify and can clog the drain.
Therefore, avoid pouring anything greasy down the drain, including oil, gravy, lard, butter, bacon grease, shortening, mayonnaise, margarine, creams, and even salad dressings and sauces because they can be really greasy, as well.