replacing a sink

[Hayden_Horn]

So the wife decided we need a new ******* sink. I bought on and a new faucet to fit. Anything specific i need to make sure i do or don't do? you can probably leave out the obvious things like "turn the water off" - but any specifics about the undercarriage and pipe fitting, etc?

 

[NickDanger]

They all have their own clips. It's pretty obvious. If you have a good seal, you might need to slide a knife around the edges. Plumber's putty is cheap. Use a bunch and squeeze it out and put it back in the container when setting the drain flange.

Don't overtighten compression fittings.

 

[Hayden_Horn]

see, you're using words i don't understand. what are compression fittings? i assume they are the doohickeys that form the joints around the pipes?

 

[NickDanger]

With the exception of the nuts that hold the faucet base down onto the sink and the drain flange into the sink drain, they are all compression fittings. That means that the water seal is not made good by tightening threads. It is made good by a ring inside the fitting being compressed. Push on a v-shaped ring (push< ) and it will spread out and compress itself to make a seal. If the old fittings for the supply lines are copper, they are already compressed and will almost surely need to be replaced. If they are silver chain-mail looking flexible hoses with white or silver connections that look like miniature versions of what you have on your garden hose, then they can usually be tightened and loosened again and again.

Your drain will either be chrom or white PVC. You will most likely be able to loosen it by hand. Maybe a quarter turn with some channel lock pliers. You will see some cleat plastic v-shaped rings inside. They are flexible and will compress and decompress. Copper won't do that as you might imagine.

Take off the drain and you will see what I mean. When reassembling it, you can hand tighten it and it will probably not leak. If it does, give it a little snug with the channel locks (slip joint pliers, to some).

It will be obvious how to remove the drain flange. there will be a nut below. When reinstalling it make a rope out of plumber's putty and ring the bottom of the sink and "seat" the drain flange in the putty. As you tighten it back down, the putty will ooze out and you just scrape it up and roll it into a ball much like a good booger.

The supply lines will come off in obvious manner by turning off the water and disconnecting from the bottom of the faucet. You know, I already typed this part on another thread today. It's around somewhere.

Unclip the sink and remove. Put some more silicone down, set the sink in and maybe give it a little swivel action. Reclip it from below and reconnect the lines.

 

[Woland]

Nick, between the cooking and the plumbing, you should have your own show on cable TV.

 

[Hayden_Horn]

awesome. my sink is good and working. thanks for the advice nick. had to replace the copper hot water pipe with the metal looking hose you spoke of, but i kept the flexible cool water hose. also, the disposal was a ***** to get off. but it's off and back on.

 

[NickDanger]

Glad it worked out. If I had known it was a kitchen sink, I would have told you to remove the disposal by putting a screwdrivr in the locking ring to loosen it and maybe tapping it with a hammer.

There really isn't much to it is there? Cleaning all the crap from under the sink is the big project.

 

[Hayden_Horn]

In reply to:

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[NickDanger]

$350? Did that include the sink or just the labor?

Here, take my law license, I want that job.

 

[Hayden_Horn]

nope. labor of removing crappy original sink, disposing of said sink, and putting in nice new sink. WAAAY too much.