Cracks in kitchen sink

[ltoews]

We recently noticed several small, approximately 1/2" long cracks in the bottom of our kitchen sink. Hopefully, the cracks will not develop into a leak. Has anyone else had this happen? And if so, what did you do? We will be attending the Fall Rally in Goshen and will have Keystone take a look at them. Thank you for your replies.
Larry

[Wayne and Carolyn Mathews]

Our double sink had cracks in the same place, along with cracks around the upper edges. We also found a couple of small cracks in the section of the counter where the sink was. At the time, the rig was less than a year old, and the kitchen counter/sink section was replaced free of charge.

Carolyn

[Carl n Susan]

There are three of us here who all bought new rigs in the 20122/2012 era and all of us have had cracked sinks. Montana replaced all of the sinks under warranty. Seems to be a common problem.

[Petmoose]

We had a cracked sink and itnwas replaced under warranty. Looked like the trap was tighted too much when it was installed in the sink.

[Art-n-Marge]

What are your sinks made of? Our 2006 sink is Corian just like the countertops, and has no cracks. I can't imagine replacing this type of counter/sink combination, so I'm guessing the sinks in question are drop-in types.

Sounds like someone forgot to train the installer not to torque things down so much if this is such a prevalent problem. It's not supposed to take too much, just enough to seal the putty around the drain or keep the sink edges fastened against the counter. Then if it's too tight and you're traveling around, this could be an issue as the sink doesn't take the stress. I'm glad to hear all of these were taken care of during the warranty period.

ltoews - Keep us posted if you get your sink fixed for free. You might want to call them quick just to make sure.

[ltoews]

I am assuming the sink is made of fiberglass. It looks like the cabinet base, sink and Corian countertop is built from the bottom up. To replace the sink appears to be a major job. I don't think the reason for the cracks is from torqueing the drain too tight.

As stated in my original post, we hope the sink will hold water until we get to the rally. I will let you know what happens after Keystone takes a look. Again, thank you for the replies.

Larry

[WeBeFulltime]

quote:Originally posted by Art-n-Marge

What are your sinks made of? Our 2006 sink is Corian just like the countertops, and has no cracks.

It does not take much to confuse me, and this is one of those moments. When did Montana start using Corian countertops? Our 2008 3400RL which we purchased new did not have Corian, but our 2012 3585SA does. What am I missing here?

[daily double]

Our 09 3075RL does have Corian.

[Art-n-Marge]

I wonder if it was an option and the floor model Montana we bought happened to have Corian.

In our unit the whole countertop and sink are of the same material from the range surround to under the cabinets, to the sink to the other end of the countertop. I'll look again because their might be seams where several pieces might be glued together, but I believe it's all Corian.

Does Corian crack, too? Were any of the sinks that are reported above that cracked, made of Corian? Better yet, can anyone report what material was used for those sinks that cracked?

[Carl n Susan]

quote:Originally posted by Art-n-Marge

I wonder if it was an option and the floor model Montana we bought happened to have Corian.

In our unit the whole countertop and sink are of the same material from the range surround to under the cabinets, to the sink to the other end of the countertop. I'll look again because their might be seams where several pieces might be glued together, but I believe it's all Corian.

Does Corian crack, too? Were any of the sinks that are reported above that cracked, made of Corian? Better yet, can anyone report what material was used for those sinks that cracked?

I bet if you look close at the underside of your sink and counters, you will see they are a fiberglass like product. Montana used that material in the RVs from 2001 until 2009 (or so). They then started using Corian counters with fiberglass sinks. The sinks are white in color (the counter tops are brown-ish) and are underslung (mounted to the bottom side of the Corian counter). The counters have a Corian emblem in some years (2011/2012 for sure) and not in other years. But it is easy to tell if it is Corian, just look at the underside. It will have a smooth surface unlike the rough fiberglass used in older rigs.

[washley1]

quote:Originally posted by Carl n Susan

I bet if you look close at the underside of your sink and counters, you will see they are a fiberglass like product. Montana used that material in the RVs from 2001 until 2009 (or so). They then started using Corian counters with fiberglass sinks. The sinks are white in color (the counter tops are brown-ish) and are underslung (mounted to the bottom side of the Corian counter). The counters have a Corian emblem in some years (2011/2012 for sure) and not in other years. But it is easy to tell if it is Corian, just look at the underside. It will have a smooth surface unlike the rough fiberglass used in older rigs.

I'll take another look tomorrow, but our Corian counter top/sink is just like the one in our stick house; all one piece. Has the corian emblem as proof. Not an underslung. It's an 09 Big Sky, so maybe Corian was std on that series.

[exav8tr]

I had the "Corian" looking sinks and counter top also, BUT, as Carl points out they were fiberglass. Rough underneath. Mine developed cracks on the top surface of the counter and Keystone replaced the entire counter since it was one piece. They did not have any in stock so they had one made around the corner. Mine was a 2006 3400.

[Art-n-Marge]

Well, y'all made me look. I wandered over to the Monty, looked at the countertop AND the sinks and the underside and it is all the same molded piece of brown colored and speckled FIBREGLASS throughout! Underneath is the same color as the top, but the top has been buffed to its finish. Maybe this IS Corian (molded fiberglass to look like stone). Since it appears the same finish throughout this might explain that Corian can be sanded and rebuffed and still look the same (but not too deep or the surface is deepened) since it is the same. I did not see ANY seams anywhere.

The reason I have been asking is I wondered if my Corian countertop would be prone to cracking. Based on the posts it could be but only with severe misuse. The fact, it hasn't cracked might be because it wasn't torqued too much at the factory like what has happened for some early on. If it has not cracked recently and for me this is 7 years, then torquing is not an issue. If mine cracked now, it would probably be from severe misuse caused by someone using the sink.

This is what I was trying to find out. This Corian stuff seems to be quite durable and if torqued correctly, then rough use or rough roads could cause a crack but it would have to be pretty severe. Being out of warranty if this happens, it would be my dime to fix. I'm not sure what I would do. I'm guessing replacing the countertop and sinks would probably cost more than what the rig is worth.

Thanks for this post. Learning things about the rig, good or bad sure helps with ownership.

[Exnavydiver]

We got our 08 Big Sky in Oct of 07, 4 weeks later they came out with the 10th Anniversary Edition, which among other things had Corian counter tops, Kitchen, desk and vanity. that year the sinks were also molded in Corian, however the small sink was tiny (like a garbage disposal sink in a stick house) the large sink was about the size of our small fiberglass sink. That situation has been changed since. The newer rigs have Corian counter tops but I have seen what looks like an attached sink which makes more sense since you can replace it without having to ripe everything out. The labor to replace out sink and counter top (cracked fiberglass) was 24 hrs. They had to remove the overhead cabinet and then the wall cabinet to even get to the counter (340 RLQ same as 3400) I have also seen a couple of stainless sinks which I would love. So I think they started with the Corain in late 07 (on 08 10th anniversary editions) and stayed with them since..