Cleaning is easier—just rinse and go—but they do collect gunk pretty fast, especially if you cook with a lot of oil.
I hear you on the silicone covers being a mixed bag. I’ve seen a lot of folks swap to them after getting fed up with rusted mesh, but they’re not perfect. That bit about them shifting when you pour a bunch of water? Spot on. I’ve had clients complain about chasing the thing around the sink every time they rinse out a big pot.
Still, I’d take a little sliding over rust flakes in my drain any day. One trick I’ve suggested is to look for the ones with a bit of weight or suction on the bottom—they stay put better, even if you’re dumping out pasta water. As for the gunk, yeah, it builds up fast, especially if you’re cooking greasy stuff. Quick rinse right after you’re done usually does the trick, though.
At the end of the day, nothing’s totally maintenance-free, but these silicone ones are a step up from the old mesh style. Just gotta pick your battles, I guess.
I get the appeal of silicone, but honestly, I’m still not totally sold. The sliding drives me nuts, even with the weighted ones. Maybe my sink’s just weird, but I always end up nudging it back into place. At least the mesh ones stayed put, even if they did rust out after a while.
That said, I can’t argue with how much easier they are to clean. The mesh strainers were a pain—always getting food bits stuck in the wires, and then you’re poking at them with a fork just to get them clean. With silicone, it’s a quick rinse and done, unless you let stuff sit too long.
I guess it’s just one of those “pick your poison” situations. I’d rather deal with a little rust than constantly chasing a strainer around, but I get why people switch. Maybe someone will invent a version that actually stays put and doesn’t get gross in a week... until then, it’s just about what annoys you less.
Honestly, I get the frustration with silicone strainers sliding around, but I’ve had the opposite problem with mesh ones—once they start rusting, it’s only a matter of time before bits of metal end up in the drain or worse, in the compost. I switched to a stainless steel strainer with a silicone rim, and it’s been a decent compromise. It doesn’t budge much, and I haven’t seen any rust yet. Not perfect, but at least I’m not tossing out rusty mesh every few months. Maybe worth a try if you’re looking for something that lasts a bit longer and doesn’t drive you nuts.
That’s actually a pretty solid workaround. I’ve tried a bunch of those mesh strainers over the years in my rentals, and you’re right—they just don’t last. Tenants never clean them out properly, they rust, and then you’re dealing with a mess or worse, a call about a clogged sink. I started using those stainless ones with the silicone edge too, and honestly, they hold up better than anything else I’ve tried. They’re not perfect, like you said, but at least they don’t end up looking like scrap metal after a few months.
Funny thing is, I used to think the all-silicone ones would be the answer, but they just slide around and let stuff through. It’s always a tradeoff, but if you find something that doesn’t need replacing every few months, that’s a win in my book. Stick with what works—even if it’s not flawless, it saves a lot of headaches down the line.
