Can I covert my bathroom sink from two faucets to one?

November 12, 2005 6:45 PM

My bathroom sink has separate faucets for hot and cold. I want it to have one faucet. Can I change this myself, or do I need a plumber?

The sink is configured basically like this except that mine has a round hole between the two faucets that looks like it's where a single faucet would go. I want it to be configured like this. Based on this diagram, it looks like all I'd need to do is shut off the water and replace the taps. Can I do this myself?

posted by kirkaracha to Home & Garden (11 answers total)

You can do anything for yourself but in this case I would suggest a plumber. I'm a veteran of many do-it-yourself plumbing campaigns, the majority ended with me paying more to the plumber to fix what I broke than it would have cost for me to have had them do the whole thing.

I also live in a house where the previous resident did a lot of DIY projects around the place. Many of them continue to cause us a lot of problems, plumbing especially.
posted by Mr T at 6:57 PM on November 12, 2005

(afroblanca, here's a discussion on that issue.)
posted by smackfu at 7:45 PM on November 12, 2005

I never did any plumbing before I purchased my current house and I replaced both bath sinks easily--no drips, no leaks, no plumber needed. It comes down to how the pipes come out of your walls. If your pipes look like the ones in the diagram (where the water is connected by flex lines) you'll probably only need a new sink and fixtures. Installing a new sink and hooking up the faucet is a pretty easy job.
posted by sexymofo at 7:53 PM on November 12, 2005

Yes, you can do this yourself (though if you get to the point where you have to drill holes in the sink, you might want to consider a new sink).

Look around at your local mega-hardware store - they should have options that will fit your sink. Take a photo of the sink with you, and they employees will tell you what you need.
posted by Geektronica at 8:34 PM on November 12, 2005

There's a hole in the middle anyway, where a spout would go. By the way, why would I need a new sink?
posted by kirkaracha at 10:19 PM on November 12, 2005

Yeah, actually installing faucets, with flexible water supply lines, isn't that hard at all. If you have to take the faucet apart for some reason, you could get in trouble. Finding the precise part to fit a given faucet is sometimes a trial-and-error process involving ongoing drips and leaks.

You could try a big box store, but if you have a neighborhood Ace or something, you might find more pertinent advice.
posted by dhartung at 10:47 PM on November 12, 2005

I've done this with a kitchen sink with no prior experience. I needed help getting the part out with a wrench from a more experienced friend but the rest was straightforward. Second the idea of taking a picture of your configuration in and going "Help" at ACE.
posted by onalark at 12:07 AM on November 13, 2005

You could do it -- BUT: check out the supply lines for the sink. If it's flexible hosing, it's a piece of cake to install a new faucet, assuming you get one that fits your sink.

But my plumber will not use flexible hosing -- he actually uses copper tubing that he cuts and bends and solders onto the faucet (he says the copper is more reliable, and since he provides a warranty, that really matters to him).

Undoing that requires a non-reversible bit of work on your part, and it is also harder to reconnect the new faucet. So I'd check that out (you could do the soldering and what not, but it definitely takes more skill, experience, and tools).
posted by teece at 12:27 AM on November 13, 2005

Assuming you are reasonably handy, this should be something you can tackle yourself. Go to your big-box home supply and look for what is called a wide-spread lavatory faucet as shown here. This will accomodate sinks with spacing between the two outermost holes up to 16 inches. Flexible tubing connects the two handles to the center spout as shown here.

You can browse online at the three biggest manufacturers Delta, Moen, and Price Pfister.

The trickiest part of the job will be making the connection from your existing water lines coming out of the wall to the new faucet handles. There are dozens of flexible tubes with different combinations of fittings on each end and different lengths to make the connection between your plumbing and the faucet. You will have to take careful measurements to get the right ones. The people at the store should be able to help you out. Don't be surprised if you end up making more than one trip to get it right.

You will also have to check to see if the diameter of the holes is within spec. To do this you may have to remove the existing faucets first or you might be able to tell by looking from underneath the sink. If the holes are too small (unlikely) then the new faucet won't fit. If the holes are too big, then the new fixtures may not cover them up.
posted by JackFlash at 12:55 AM on November 13, 2005

You can do this. It will be a fun, fulfilling learning experience.

Study this, to get an idea of the process.
posted by fuzzy_wuzzy at 1:13 AM on November 13, 2005

You can do it. I find that most plumbing projects involve 3 trips to the hardware store to get everything; you can simplify a little by simply buying everything you could possibly need and then returning the stuff you don't actually need.

Apart from the aforementioned hoses and faucet, you may need some plumber's putty and a special wrench for reaching up under the basin to tighten the knobs in place from below. And some silicon tape for the pipe threads.
posted by adamrice at 7:10 AM on November 13, 2005