Ten steps to… improve your kitchen: Replacing a sink

One sure fire way to improve your kitchen on a budget is to install a shiny new sink. Here's how you do it in just ten easy steps.

There are a million different ways to spruce up your kitchen for the summer, but sadly many of these options can be quite expensive. One inexpensive way to make your kitchen look as good as new is by dropping in a new sink by yourself.

---

What you’ll need:

Plumbers putty
Adjustable wrench
Teflon tape
Silicone sealant
Bucket
Stanley knife
New sink… obviously

Step 1: Shut off the water

The first step seems obvious enough but you’ll be surprised at how many people begin DIY plumbing work with the water still turned on. Turn off the water at the shut-off valve and place your bucket under the drainpipe to catch excess water.

Step 2: Remove the drain nuts

You can now loosen and remove the drain nuts that keep your drainpipe connected to the sink. Be careful as the excess water is likely to come rushing out at this point.

Step3: Remove the old sink

Using your Stanley knife run a line around the caulk or adhesive that’s holding the sink down. Be careful not to damage the counter top when you’re doing this. Once it’s loose you can take it out and leave it aside. It might be a good idea to clean off any old caulk that's still lying around.

Step 4: Test fit

Once the old sink is out you can test fit the new one to make sure that the relevant pipes can reach the sink. You may need to make some adjustments to the length of pipe, but this just means buying a small bit of extra pipe. Nothing to worry about.

Test fit the new sink without putting any sealant down just yet

Step 5: Install the food catcher

You can now install the food catcher or ‘Basket Strainer’ as it’s also known. This is simply slotted into the sink's opening but you can secure it with plumper’s putty and the Teflon tape. It'll save you sticking your fingers down the pipe to get old food.

Step 6: Apply sealant and drop in the sink

You can now apply sealant around the hole that currently sits in your counter top. Make sure not to over do it with the sealant otherwise you’ll have a lot of cleaning up to do. Once you have enough sealant you can drop in the new sink.

Step 7: Tighten the mounts

Once the new sink is set in the opening you can begin to tighten the mounting clips. You’re better off doing it now because when you tighten up the drainpipes you may find that they’ve moved slightly. The clips simply attach to the underside of the counter top.

Step 8: Reconnect the drainpipe

You can now reassemble the drainpipe to the sink.

Step 9: Reconnect the water lines

Same as above, you can now reassemble the water lines to the taps. Hot water goes on the left, cold water goes on the right.

Step 10: Quick test

Once everything is nicely tightened up you can give the tap a quick test. Sadly, you’ll have to wait a few hours for the putty and sealant to dry before you start doing the dishes… as if you were going to in the first place.