How to Install a Bathroom Sink

Installing a new sink is both an easy and inexpensive way to give a bathroom a new feel. Follow these simple steps to do it on your own in just a few hours.

Choose the right sink for you

This is perhaps the most fun part of the process for true do-it-yourselfers. First, make sure you visit several plumbing or home improvement stores to find the sink that will work best for your bathroom. There are several things to keep in mind while you shop.

First of all, you'll need to consider the style of the bathroom. You want your sink to match the style and color of the toilet and other fixtures, and complement the wall and floor covering colors.

Making sure the sink will fit is an important step. Measure out the width and depth in your bathroom carefully before going to the store to make sure you get the size that's right.

Finally, visiting stores that carry more individual fixtures, like specialty home stores, can turn up some unexpected finds. An especially green way to loom is to go to salvage yards and reuse old or retro fixtures for less money.

Prepare the area

You need a spot to mount the sink, and you'll need hot and cold water supply stubouts, shutoff valves, transition fittings and possibly flexible tubing, depending on your setup and the sink you've chosen. Make sure you're following plumbing code by checking out a book like the Uniform Plumbing Code Book.

This book will tell you things like required distances between sinks and toilets or other fixtures, and can help you understand how the plumbing of your home works behind those walls.

The tough part

The actual plumbing can be tricky, but not if you take your time and follow directions carefully. First, you need to cut the capped copper pipes approximately an inch and a half from the finished wall.

Now assemble the faucet, according to the directions that came with the package.

Attach the escutcheon, coupling nut, compression ring and valve. The valve outlet should come up over the compression ring. Now tighten the coupling nut until it is very tight, and connect the trap to the drain pipe.

Turn it on

Next you'll want to turn the water back on, but before you call it a day, make sure you run the water to check for leaks throughout. Now you've got a new sink that will make your bathroom look like a brand new place.

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