How to drain (and dry) dishes on a flat surface kitchen worktop

Under-mounted sinks without drainers have been increasingly popular for quite a while now, mainly because of their aesthetic appearance with solid surface worktops (like marble, granite, Silestone and Corian to name a few) and they allow for easy cleaning of worktop areas. There is however, a potential issue of how to drain your dishes on a flat surface next to the sink. Whilst you may be able to make good use of your dishwasher (if you have one that is) there will always be a small number of dishes that need washing manually (including those pans you have left to ‘soak’ overnight..) or perhaps you simply prefer to wash up by hand.

Luckily, there are some innovative dish draining accessories available in the market, in a range of materials and colours. Which is best for you will depend on the type of kitchen sink that you have installed as well as the amount of space that is available to you. Always compare the product dimensions against the space on your worktop, consider which colour will fit best with your kitchen colour scheme and read up on product reviews.

1. Rubber Draining Board Mats

Firm, semi-rigid rubber mat with raised edges to prevent water spilling over – by KitchenCraft. Easy to wipe clean and neutral in colour.

2. Soft Silicone Dish-draining Mats 

Brabantia Silicone Dish Draining Mat, available in Mint, Dark Grey and Light Grey colours (for those a bit more style conscious) and is made of a soft, non-skid silicone, allowing the water to run off into the sink – dishwasher safe too.

Joseph Joseph Flume Folding Draining Mat, in Grey, Green and Blue, collects the water within ribs and holds it there until you are finished, then simply fold slightly and pour away the excess with ease.

3. Soft Microfibre and Polyester Dish-drying Mats

Highly absorbent and quick drying - from Brabantia, Lakeland or InterDesign, can even be cleaned in your washing machine. Some of them, like the one from Ikea, can be also folded, which is great if you are short of space!

 4. Combination of Dish-Drainers & Mats

U-Dry plastic dish rack and quick drying micro-fibre mat from Umbra. Brilliant design and rolls up stylishly after use.

5. Rollmats or Foldmats

Roll-mats allow for drying directly above your sink bowl, which may be your preferred method, however, you can also position them on the worktop next to the sink. Or even use in combination with microfibre mat from option 3 above. 

Our Quadron workstations include roll-mats as standard accessory. They are also available in gold, copper and gunmetal finish for Quadron PVD Nano sinks or Quadron Granite Mix & Match sinks with gold/copper wastes.

6. Drying Grids and Dish Holders

The ultimate solution are the Artinox grids and dish holders that sit neatly above the sink bowl. Artinox workstations are hand-crafted near Venice in Italy and are known for one of the best choice of accessories. If you are a fan of kitchen workstation, look no further.

We trust you find our post useful, your own experience as well as opinions and comments would be warmly welcomed.

Please note that the above information has been collated from a number of sources online with exception of the Quadron and Artinox product which we sell in our web shop.