“I have a stainless steel sink I can’t clean. Can you help? “said the heavily accented female voice on the phone in response to my hello.
“Who is this?” was all I could say.
It was an acquaintance of mine who ran a house cleaning business. I knew she had a number of employees who cleaned homes in the area but did not know anything more about her business. She explained that she had a customer who was very unhappy about the stainless steel sink in her granite countertop. The cleaning lady was afraid she was losing the account because the customer’s kitchen sink was dull and gray and worse, “It’s just not as bright and shiny as the one next door,” she quoted her customer as saying.
My friend had tried a number of cleaners to bring out the shine but had not been successful. I recommended a number of cleaners. A few weeks later after she tried the cleaners without success I agreed to go look at the installation but I already suspected I knew the problem. We had heard the story many times from cleaning companies in our area and second hand from our offices in California and North Carolina about the no name inexpensive sinks that could not be cleaned.
When we arrived at the customer’s house the customer hovered around us and was eager to hear what I had to say. The sink was dull and gray and looked very old. There was no logo on the sinks and no name or other information stamped on the multiple pads that were applied to the bottom and sides of the sink to make it quieter.
“How long have you had this sink?” I asked.
“Less than two years,” she replied.
“Where did you get the sink?”
“From the guy who made my countertop. He did such a good job on my neighbors countertop I trusted him with the whole job.” The home owner’s counter top was indeed very nice. It was not only a terrific slab but the fabrication and installation was top quality. “He had a promotion so the sink was free.”
(…Read on tomorrow for Part 2 of this scary, but all too true tale!)