S/O why do Israeli countertops have a “gate”

amother

OP ↓

Today at 3:24 am

The window on the bathroom door made me think about the weird things in my Israeli apartment.

This has annoyed me so much in the past decade of living here- why do Israelis put a rim around the countertop? I hate it so much!

My Israeli friends say that it’s to be able to do “sponja” on the counters but I don’t agree that it keeps the countertop cleaner. It can get clean by wiping it down with enough water and soap, it doesn’t need a puddle.

And the rim is IMPOSSIBLE to clean, I need to go in with toothpicks and it’s still yucky. I don’t have an integrated sink so the grout between the sink and countertops is so dirty from all the dirty water that gets swept into the sink…..

And if something crumbly spills, I’m stuck picking up every peice with a tissue.

Does anyone actually CHOOSE to “gate” up their countertops?

(Anon because I complain about this all the time IRL)

amother

Crystal ↓

Today at 3:29 am

What in the world???
We need a picture please!

amother

Magenta

Today at 3:31 am

It's one of the things I love. When there is a spill it stays on the counter and doesn't drip on the floor!

Bnei Berak 10 ↓

Today at 3:35 am

amother Crystal wrote:

What in the world???
We need a picture please!

It's a lip which is a bit higher than the counter.

amother

Coral

Today at 3:40 am

I'm SO with you op. It's the worst!!!

amother

↑ OP ↓

Today at 3:41 am

amother

Mocha

Today at 3:41 am

Most people don't do that anymore. It was a thing twenty years ago to stop things spilling on the floor.

amother

↑ OP ↓

Today at 3:43 am

amother Magenta wrote:

It's one of the things I love. When there is a spill it stays on the counter and doesn't drip on the floor!

When I have spills it’s so dramatic the lip didn’t help. And how often does it happen? Maybe once a year

amother

↑ Crystal

Today at 3:43 am

amother OP wrote:

Thanks for the picture, nice kitchen!

↑ Bnei Berak 10 ↓

Today at 3:43 am

amother OP wrote:

It's an ornamental trim. The basic cheap counter when the country was young were made of stone without that trim and it looked stump and basic.
Alternative explanation: MALE sales staff who want you to spend more to look fancy. Same MALE sales staff don't do counter cleaning nor Pesach cleaning.
Fair just women would never to this to their sisters.

amother

↑ OP ↓

Today at 3:44 am

amother Crystal wrote:

Thanks for the picture, nice kitchen!

It’s not my kitchen, I took it off Airbnb

essie14 ↓

Today at 3:45 am

No one I know does this anymore in new construction.
But I've had it in rentals and I also don't like it.

amother

↑ OP ↓

Today at 3:45 am

Bnei Berak 10 wrote:

Totally!!!!
Yes you remind me of the horrors of covering the counters erev Pesach

amother

Aquamarine ↓

Today at 3:45 am

Just so you know, it is a choice made by apartment owners to put it in, and it costs more than putting in a counter without a lip. Many people like it because they can clean their counters with lots of water all the time and it stays contained.

That being said, I also hate it for the same reasons you do, and when I finally bought my own apartment I did NOT put in a lip, and I love my counters and kitchen.

While we are discussing the differences in Israel, can I say that I LOVE the over sink drying racks? They keep my counters so clutter free and allow me to almost never dry dishes as they drip dry behind closed cabinet doors. I can't understand why America hasn't yet adopted this amazing invention.

amother

↑ OP ↓

Today at 3:46 am

essie14 wrote:

No one I know does this anymore in new construction.
But I've had it in rentals and I also don't like it.

I’ve only lived in new rentals. All of them had it.

↑ essie14 ↓

Today at 3:48 am

amother OP wrote:

I’ve only lived in new rentals. All of them had it.

Maybe the kablan didn't allow the owners to have a say in the kitchen? I've never experienced this. Everyone I know buys on paper and then has ability to choose the kitchen design. But maybe it exists.

amother

↑ Aquamarine

Today at 3:51 am

amother OP wrote:

I’ve only lived in new rentals. All of them had it.

I think they are probably still considered standard in certain communities and when the owner renovated he thought people would want the standard. Just my guess.

amother

↑ OP ↓

Today at 3:54 am

amother Aquamarine wrote:

I think they are probably still considered standard in certain communities and when the owner renovated he thought people would want the standard. Just my guess.

My landlord is very old school and I do live in a very charedi area.
I’m happy to hear it’s not mainstream anymore. My Israeli friends think I’m nuts when I say I plan to NOT have it when we build our own house iyh.

amother

Aster

Today at 3:56 am

essie14 wrote:

It happens. We bought on paper early in construction, before most of the floors' stairwells and mamads had been poured. We had full ability to move walls around, move outlets, move plumbing, because we got in early. A handful of apartments only sold once floors and internal walls were in- they needed to do serious renovation if they wanted to add a sink somewhere. I can't say for sure but someone may have gotten in too late to choose other than the default kitchen.

amother

Papaya ↓

Today at 3:57 am

Yes, it is indeed to keep water from running off the counters onto the floor.

And yes, keeping the area where the rim connects to the counter clean is tough!

It is cultural. Despite being otherwise careful with water, many Israelis believe that counters, floors, etc. cannot get properly cleaned unless copious amounts of water are poured and then "sponja'ed" away.

(This is why floor tiles are used to form a "rim" around the room; so that paint doesn't get splattered.)

Vast amounts of water definitely *does* seem to clean better. I've seen people pour buckets of water onto (Israeli, aluminum) window frames to clean the window track - for it to run down the outside of the building (sometimes splashing on people below). It seems to be the most effective (perhaps only way) to really clean window tracks, if you're willing to put up with the mess of water.

Until relatively recently (~25 years?) almost every home in Israel had identical floors, known as "balatot". These are either 10cm (much older) or 30cm square processed stone, so there's lots of grout between them. Pouring lots of water on the floor helps the dirt/dust between the tiles come up so that it can be sponja-ed/squeegeed away.

Now, very large granite floor tiles have become the norm for new construction and renovated apartments. Israelis have been adapting by using other ways of washing their floors (wrung out floor rag in a bucket of water - much like a mop and bucket).

Likewise - kitchen design has "caught up" too, and you can see rimless counters in newer projects. But - many still believe that counters need a rim so that they can properly "hosed down" so to speak. Israelis always had stone/granite counters, never Formica. Formica wouldn't hold up over time if subjected to so much water. But a length of processed granite can withstand lots of water, so many Israelis are happy to continue requesting new counters with rims - the way they've always seen them.

-----------------------------------

A mystery to me: Why does Israel have so many hi-riser type sofa beds with integrated mattresses? They're ubiquitous here. It's not comfortable to be used as a sofa (too high) OR as a bed (the mattresses are "rounded" near the edges). If it's used occasionally for guests and isn't made/set with linen - I can maybe understand the practicality. But - when these are used as beds regularly, why not a regular bed frame + mattresses? (They have them in triple and quadruple options, though the mattresses are thin foam and good for kids only.)