Plastic kitchen bin vs stainless steel kitchen bin

[David3418]

One guest suggested I should have a stainless steel kitchen bin instead of a plastic one because it would look better. I used to have a stainless steel one but it rusted. He said I should still get one and replace it when it rusts. But I think it is wasteful to do this. Should I stick with plastic or get stainless steel kitchen bin? He also said it would be better for hygiene to have a bin with a foot pedal instead of the one I have now that opens by pressing a button at the top.

[Trevor243]

If you change something just because one guest makes a suggestion, you can bet another guest will suggest the opposite .... go with what you think is right ....

I find stainless are difficult to keep shiney and clean, plastic ones get scratched, and ultimately we can't win .... but we can replace easily enough ....

[Rowena29]

@David3418 

IMO it's of course important to listen to what feedback guests have to offer you. But you don't have to act on it, especially if to you, it seems counter intuitive.

You will go mad if you take on board every trivial little thing  and i believe this was incredibly trivial - he/she sounds like a frustrated interior designer who has been watching far too many home makeover programmes. I'd be saying, "thank you so much for offering me that advice. I really appreciate your thoughts" and then doing precisely nothing.  Unless they were staying for 2 - 3 weeks or something - then I might get them another cheap bin.

If they said something like - did you realise your cutting knife was really blunt or did you realise that bedside lamp isn't really at a great angle for reading - that's different - that's something functional. The bin thing is nitpicking.  Have they left a review yet? they sound like the awful sort of guest that might mark you down on stars for something as ridiculous as that.

Just my opinion

[Robin129]

It is your place, set it up the way it works for you. If you get frequent comments on things you could provide then think about it, but one-off comments deserve a simple, "Thanks. I will think about that."

I had a guest suggest I put a mini-refrigerator and microwave in the guest room so guests could cook. When I said I don't want guests cooking in the room he suggested diabetics need a place to store insulin. Well, okay, that might be true, but if/when that becomes an issue we'll look at options.

Don't fret over a trash bin. 

[Dawn81]

@David3418  Your guest sounds like a nut!  Keep whatever trash can you like and works according to your own preference. I did look at your picts and IMHO for your photos you could tidy up make the beds look a little more organized and orderly. You'd get more bookings and make more. This is just my own personal opinion and I prefer to see a stay that looks neater. However your reviews sound like your guests are quite satisfied. I don't know the exchange rate but your prices look very low. 

[Lisa723]

@David3418 @Dawn81 @Robin129 @Rowena29 @Trevor243 

The whole point of stainless steel is that it does not rust.

[Tommy150]

Unfortunately, many forms of stainless steel do in fact rust.

It depends on the grade of stainless steel used.  When it comes to restaurant equipment and appliances, they are typically made from higher grades of SS that have higher chromium content which is the principal element that keeps SS from rusting.  Pickling and passivation (treatment after forging) also helps.

The problem is that most household goods (even a lot of appliances) are made from lower grades of stainless steel that do not have a high enough chromium content.  They are absolutely stainless steel.. but they also can be prone to rust.  

[Melodie-And-John0]

@David3418 , the guests opinion matters most when they are correct about a defect not just because they have an opinion and in this case they are correct about the strainer, rust is a no-go, cant have rust contacting dishes that folks eat from.  The other 2 thoughts  (plastic vs SS and garbage cans with foot activated openers) are opinions which certainly are your choice, probably not really big deals either of them but everyone has an opinion.  good luck, John

[Sarah977]

@Melodie-And-John0  There is nothing unhealthy about ingesting rust. It's just iron oxide, not harmful at all. 

[Melodie-And-John0]

That is true @Sarah977 to be sure but I think most guests and hosts would agree, "Rustic" is a look that doesn't really accentuate certain things that were made to be shiny like "Stainless Dish Drainers" or forks, knives and spoons,  I would also try to avoid exposing guests to things that might cause them to need a tetanus shot if I could help it.  At Bearpath Lodging, we have significant lime in our spring fed well water which is actually completely harmless but it causes things that shouldn't dull to do so and even build up calcification and rust deposits, its a task to keep them as they should be but can be done with a little CLR and consistent attention to those detail.  I actually had the same exact issue as @David3418 a couple years ago after paying way too much for a heavy duty Stainless Drainer that started to build up rust, I was a bit upset, I soaked it in a sink full of a diluted CLR bath then  scrubbed it with a scotchbrite pad and it was as good as new, 3 years later were still using the same one and it looks great.  Just my Rusty 2 cents for what thats worth, safe travels all!  JR  

[Sarah977]

@Melodie-And-John0  Oh yes, I wasn't suggesting that it's okay to leave rusty-looking things around, it's tacky, just pointing out that rust isn't actually harmful to ingest.

And there is a lot of misunderstanding about tetanus. It's a bacteria that primarily lives in the soil- it has nothing whatsoever to do with rust- that rusty nail thing developed because a nail that's rusty might have been laying around in the dirt for a long time, and a nail wound is a puncture wound, which closes up immediately, trapping any bacteria inside the body. 

Also, this business abut having a tetanus booster every 10 years or if you step on something rusty or get a dog bite is bogus- there was a long-running study that proved that there has never been a case of tetanus in anyone who received one tetanus shot in their chidhood, and never another.

[Branka-and-Silvia0]

@David3418 

to get an STR license in Croatia we have to satisfy the "Technical minimum list" .

Among many other things, we are obligated to have stainless steel bins in the bathroom and in the kitchen. There is no explanation of why it should be metal and not plastic but I think the main reasons are

a) prevention of fire hazard

b) they are more hygienic, antibacterial or whatever (I'm not an expert)

c) more durable

[Sandra126]

Those pedal bins tend to have plastic parts with the pedal, which are prone to breaking. I have a powdercoated metal attractive bin without  pedal. Manual lift of lid. Nothing to break. Have whatever bin you prefer. 

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

@David3418 

Stainless steel is great until it stains. They all do. Aluminium might be a better choice?

Even new stainless steel can be hard work, normally the bare steel is marked by oily substances and leaves difficult marks to get rid of. Special stainless steel cleaner or baby oil needed! I don't even like Stainless steel lids. They degrade too quickly and any marks cannot be removed.

Stick to powder coated/painted and  foot operated IMO