Replacing faucets

[Mikro]

I just wanted to ask how to replace a bathroom faucet.
What type of tools do I need?
Is it very hard to work in that small space behind the bowl of the sink?
It is a one piece hard surface counter with the bowl all in one piece.

Thank you,

Mikro

[HayZee518]

bathroom lavatory faucet

if you have a one lever delta faucet and spout, everything goes through the center hole and the two side holes mount the faucet to the bowl with nuts. for ease of installation get a "basin wrench" and possibly a ratchet wrench with a one foot extension and appropriately sized sockets. the feed lines accept a 3/8" flexible line(s) from your angle or straight stops under the sink - [shut offs for the water]
if you have two faucets, separate cold and hot spigots, then each valve installs in its own hole with a 1/2" pipe sized nut that holds the faucet in the hole. Again you'll need a flexible feed line with a 1/2" NPT nut on one end and a 3/8" compression fitting on the other.

[Nestor]

Micro:

It woulda been easier to answer your question 20 years ago when pretty well all bathroom faucets were two handle faucets. Nowadays things have changed, and you pretty well need to take a look under the faucet to see how it's plumbed to know how to remove it.

But, if it's a standard two handle faucet, you need a tool called a basin wrench, shown below:


The jaw at the end of the basin wrench flips over so that you can turn nuts in that tight space behind the basin in either direction:




Now, this can be a pretty dirty job, and you could even end up having to cut the faucet off with a reciprocating saw to get it out. That's because the threaded water inlets on the brass body of the faucet can get a lot of "stuff" (I hesitate to say "corrosion") on it, and that stuff can prevent your being able to unscrew the nuts holding the faucet on. If push comes to shove, you may have to buy a piece of sheet metal to protect your vanity top, and cut the old faucet off with a reciprocating saw fitted with a metal cutting blade.

Also, older bathroom faucets will often have a steel "rosette" that acts very much like a flat washer holding them to the counter top:

And these things rust out, making them a royal pain the the butt. When you're removing the nuts that hold the faucet to the counter top, you may have rust falling into your face, eyes and hair from these steel rosette nuts. (I have tried to locate a source of brass rosette nuts, but was unable to do so.)

If your new faucet has two threaded water inlet ports spaced exactly 4 inches apart, then paint the threads with old engine oil (or even WD40) before installing the faucet (to keep corrosion from forming on the brass threads) and use a plastic lock nut, like this:

to install the faucet.

Ideally, it would be best to use any oil or grease that formed a film over the brass to prevent corrosion products from forming on it. I generally use new or used engine oil, but any kind of petroleum based oil should be fine. Don't use a drying oil like linseed oil, (or any plant based oil, like cooking oil) tho.

Really, this is a DIY project, but it's fraught with potential problems that a rank newbie may not be able to deal with. If you do go ahead with this, maybe get a digital camera and post pictures in here if you run into problems. Also, it may be a good idea to have a friend with more DIY experience help you on this one. It's a relatively easy and straight forward job when things go well, but there are places where things might not go well (or at all) in this project.

[HayZee518]

pre 1950 parts

Nestor - check out RENOVATOR'S SUPPLY in Millers Falls MA. They stock, make old fixtures, lights etc.

[Mikro]

This is a view from under the sink. You may also notice that there are no stops,the faucet is soldered all the way to the faucet. I was told when the house was built (1995) the code allowed that. Now I am rethinking tackling this job...

[HayZee518]

bath faucet

since you show copper coming out of the wall, I would suggest you install angle stops under the sink and the flex lines to feed the new faucet. just because they said that stops weren't necessary way back when, does it make sense to install them now? I mean you don't have to shut off water to the whole house just to service a bathroom sink faucet. use the angle stop. if soldering isn't your forte then use "shark-bite" connectors for copper pipe.

[Nestor]

Yes, the problem here is that those narrow copper tubes are what supply water to the faucet, and they are soldered directly into your house's copper supply piping. So, you need to shut the water off to your house WHILE you do this job. This is a good example of why you can never have too many water shut off valves.

I expect that you probably haven't learned to solder yet, but now you have a real good reason to learn. I have a long post that I wrote up for another Q&A forum I used to post on that explains the process of soldering for newbies. When I was a newbie, I was scared of learning to solder because of the flame and high temperatures involved. But, once I understood the process, that is, knowing what was actually happening, and how I could maintain control over the situation when I didn't know if things were going right or not cuz the solder wasn't melting or wasn't being drawn into the joint, I felt much more comfortable with soldering.

If you want, I can copy and paste that post it in here.