Dish drainers and sink caddies: how to choose

First, decide where it will go

Each spot calls for a different product:

• On the worktop: dish drainers and tidies for sponges and brushes. They are quick to set up, but they take up working space.
• Over the sink: racks that rest on the edges of the bowl. They free up the worktop, but depend on the width and rim of your sink.
• Inside the sink bowl: suction-cup holders for the sponge and dishcloth, which leave less room for washing large pans.
• In the under-sink cupboard: wheeled caddies for bottles and cleaning products.

What to measure before you buy

• The clear depth of the worktop to the wall or upstand, and the width you can give up beside the sink.
• The clear height under wall cupboards: add the height of your tallest plate standing upright to the height of the drainer.
• The tap's swing, spout height and handles, which must stay free to use.
• The width and rim of the sink bowl, if anything is going in it or over it.
• Drainage: a tray you empty yourself, or a spout or slope that returns water to the bowl.
• Under the sink: clear internal width, depth and height, allowing for the trap, pipes and hinges.

Dish drainers for the worktop

A fixed drainer stays out all the time; an expandable one only takes up its full area when you need it. Check how the water leaves too: into a tray that needs emptying, or through a spout into the bowl.

The Joseph Joseph Extend Steel 85153 is an expandable dish drainer. Closed, it measures 353 mm wide, 310 mm deep and 167 mm high; expanded, the depth grows to 515 mm. Its spout has 3 positions and must sit over the bowl, which decides which side of the sink it can go on. It comes with a movable cutlery drainer with knife slots, dismantles for cleaning and should be washed and dried by hand, according to the manufacturer. Plates add to the actual height, so check it against your wall cupboards.

• Joseph Joseph Extend Steel 85153 · grey expandable dish drainer

Sink tidies for sponges, brushes and cloths

• Brabantia SinkSide 117503, for the worktop: 190 mm wide, 85 mm long and 115 mm high. Water collects in a removable silicone tray that needs emptying; the manufacturer permits dishwasher cleaning.
• Joseph Joseph Surface 85112, for the worktop: 180 × 128 × 125 mm (width × depth × height), with compartments for bottles and brushes and a support for sponges. Its sloping base is not a drain connected to the sink.
• Brabantia SinkSide 302466, inside the bowl: 171 mm long, 127 mm wide and 106 mm high, with a suction cup and an open base. The suction cup may not hold on coated, textured or sloping surfaces, or a raised rim.

These heights are for the empty tidy; brushes and bottles stick up above them.

• Brabantia SinkSide 117503 · dark grey worktop organiser
• Joseph Joseph Surface 85112 · large stainless-steel sink tidy
• Brabantia SinkSide 302466 · dark grey in-sink organiser

Wheeled caddies for the under-sink cupboard

The Joseph Joseph wheeled caddies group cleaning products and pull out towards the door (width × depth × height):

• 8500022, narrow Stone caddy: 168 × 462 × 112 mm.
• 8500002, large Stone caddy: 305 × 465 × 110 mm, with a divider and a front compartment for sponges and cloths.
• 8500001, Stone caddy with 2 tiers, needs assembling: 200 × 470 × 335 mm.
• CupboardStore 85197: only the height of the empty caddy, 112 mm, is given.

For the three Stone models, neither a maximum load nor the height with bottles loaded is given.

• Joseph Joseph 8500022 · narrow Stone wheeled cleaning caddy
• Joseph Joseph 8500002 · large Stone wheeled cleaning caddy
• Joseph Joseph 8500001 · two-tier Stone wheeled storage caddy
• Joseph Joseph CupboardStore 85197 · wheeled cleaning caddy

How to choose the right size

Manufacturers give external dimensions, not a number of plates. After the biggest washing-up of a normal day, lay everything that needs to dry at the same time on a tea towel, plates upright, and measure the area it covers. Compare it with the footprint of each model, leaving room for pans. If the amount varies a lot, an expandable drainer keeps the worktop clear the rest of the time. For tidies and caddies, measure your washing-up liquid bottle, your brush and your tallest bottles.

Common buying mistakes

• Forgetting the height with plates under the wall cupboards.
• Mixing up closed and expanded dimensions.
• Not planning where the water goes: a tray needs emptying, and a spout must sit over the bowl.
• Assuming a suction cup will hold in any sink.
• Measuring the under-sink cupboard from the outside.
• Assuming the material prevents rust or is dishwasher safe when the manufacturer does not say so for that variant.
• Thinking the brushes, cloths or bottles in the photos are included.

Quick checklist before you buy

• Location decided: worktop, over or inside the bowl, or under the sink.
• Worktop depth, clear height and tap swing measured.
• Closed and expanded dimensions compared with the space available.
• Drainage sorted: tray, spout into the bowl or open base.
• Under the sink: clear space measured, obstacles noted.
• Care instructions from the manufacturer: hand wash or dishwasher.
• Exact variant: colour, finish and product code.

Sources consulted

• Joseph Joseph Extend Steel 85153, 353 × 310 mm cerrado — Joseph Joseph
• Brabantia SinkSide 117503, 190 × 85 × 115 mm — Brabantia
• Joseph Joseph Surface 85112, 180 × 128 × 125 mm — Joseph Joseph
• Brabantia SinkSide 302466, 171 × 127 × 106 mm — Brabantia
• Joseph Joseph 8500022, 168 × 462 × 112 mm — Joseph Joseph
• Joseph Joseph 8500002, 305 × 465 × 110 mm — Joseph Joseph
• Joseph Joseph 8500001, 200 × 470 × 335 mm — Joseph Joseph
• Joseph Joseph CupboardStore 85197, 112 mm de alto — Joseph Joseph