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Faucet Installation for Your Kitchen Sink
Has the time come for your outdated kitchen faucet? In the larger scope of a complete kitchen remodel, changing out your kitchen faucet is one of the more common do-it-yourself tasks, whether it is dripping water or is just old.
Continue reading to discover how to change a kitchen faucet if it has been on your list of tasks for a while and be prepared to overcome any potential roadblocks that may arise.
Things to Consider Before Installing a New Faucet
One of the simpler kitchen renovations that many do-it-yourselfers may complete in an afternoon is replacing a kitchen faucet, but for maximum success, it is crucial to give the job careful planning ahead of time.
When replacing an outdated faucet with a similar model, the project could turn out to be easy. There are extra factors to think about and steps to take when installing a new kind of kitchen faucet.
Select a suitable alternative faucet.
Choosing a new faucet with the same hole arrangement will ensure a seamless installation. It is still possible to upgrade to a chic single-handle faucet that fits through three installation holes instead of just one.
You would need to buy an additional base plate for this, known as an “escutcheon plate,” that matches the new faucet’s finish and is long enough to hide the holes that are not in use.
Turn off the supply of water valves in the kitchen faucets before replacing them.
Turn off the source of water to the current kitchen faucet after assembling the necessary materials and the new one. Most of the time, this is easy to do; all you need to do is twist the On/Off valves beneath the sink, which regulate both the cold and hot water supply pipes that are attached to the underneath of the faucet, to the Off position.
It is common for the valves on your faucet to become stuck or rusty after a few years, making it nearly hard to move them by hand. It is an excellent precaution to turn off your home’s main service valve (often found within a basement or cellar where the drinking water line joins the house) before attempting to release a blocked cutoff valve.
If you are unable to find the main switch, you can shut off the supply of water at the water meter (locate it using pliers behind a little cover that resembles a manhole in your yard). Click here to read more about water meters.
Turn off the water supply and use a hair dryer to heat the valve until it becomes loose enough to shut. Alternatively, grasp the valve with locking pliers and carefully press it into the Off position.
Excessive twisting pressure, however, has the potential to destroy the supply line or the valve. A break will not result in water gushing out and flooding the floor and cabinet if the water supply is turned off.
Set up your work area.
Few tasks are as difficult as trying to fix anything around your house, especially if they need you to bend over and stoop, like painting baseboards or cleaning up gutters that require you to climb and stretch squirm into the little opening beneath a kitchen sink.
Not only must you crawl inside the cabinet to view the location of the faucet’s attachment to the countertop, but you also have to lie on an uneven surface: It is never nice to have to adjust your back to the difference between the kitchen floor and the interior floor of a cabinet, which is often a few inches higher.
Take out the outdated faucet.
The bolts that secure the faucet might corrode or become trapped, just like the cutoff valves. Should you encounter this issue, attempt using a wire brush to remove as much rust as you can. To aid in removing the corrosion from the nuts, spray penetrating oil on them after brushing.
If more holes need to be drilled in the sink
After removing the old faucet, count the holes within the sink again and measure the distance from the leftmost hole’s and the farthest right hole’s centers. This is recognized as measuring “on center” (or “OC”), which is the accepted method used by the industry to gauge the holes in sinks. Click here to read more about the industry standards for plumbing installations.
More holes are required if the new tap also requires altering the existing ones or going from one to two handles. In this instance, you can drill new holes to fit the new faucet in the sink (or the countertop behind, based on how your current faucet is configured).
Mark the exact center of each and every hole before drilling and cover that region with painter’s tape. Next, make a pilot hole. Make the hole by placing the center of a hole cutter drill bit above the pilot hole.
Put the deck (escutcheon) plate in place.
When swapping out a three-hole faucet for a one-hole faucet, now is the appropriate moment to install the plate escutcheon covering the excess holes. To ensure that the plate is waterproof, adhere to the manufacturer’s recommendations.
Before placing the plate on top, you might need to cover the holes with the rubber gasket (https://www.wikimotors.org/what-is-gasket-sealant.htm) that comes with it. A plumber’s putty is frequently required to caulk or seal the plate.
Through the hole, insert the new faucet line.
Feed the water supply line through the hole, then adjust it to sit at the proper position. Attach the tap with the washers as well as nuts under the counter using the provided hardware. After making sure the faucet is positioned correctly from above, tighten the bolts and the provided brackets to secure it.
Attach the water supply.
Some contemporary faucets have flexible tubing (https://inspectapedia.com/electric/Electrical-Conduit-Non-Metallic.php) connected to the supply lines, with “hot” and “cold” labels. You must affix them if yours does not. Before attaching each to both the cold and hot water supply valves underneath the sink, wrap the threads with Teflon tape in a counterclockwise direction.
Look for leaks in the installation and tidy up.
Carefully inspect for leaks as you carefully re-turn the water line supply on. Before testing again, make any necessary changes, such as loosening any connections and inspecting the Teflon tape.
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