Kitchen Sink Plumbing – How to Install a Kitchen Sink

Installing a new kitchen sink is usually a time consuming kitchen sink plumbing project. Fortunately, even for the do-it-yourselfer, it's not that difficult if you take your time.

The first thing you want to do is disconnect everything from the existing sink. The only exception would be the faucet, depending on whether or not you plan to re-use it.

Obviously, you'll need to shut off the water supply to the sink before you can disconnect anything. Depending on your kitchen sink plumbing setup, you'll either do this under the sink or at the main supply to the house.

If you have a garbage disposal, you'll want to shut off the circuit breaker to the unit. Simply turning off the power switch is not enough.

There will still be some water laying in the pipes, so you'll want to get a bucket and a few towels to catch it as you disconnect things.

You can now begin disconnecting everything that is attached to the sink, including all hoses, pipes, and wires. If you have a dishwasher or garbage disposal, you'll want to disconnect them as well.

There are several different ways that your sink may be attached to the cabinets. Some are secured by a couple of mounting clips. There will also be some plumber's putty holding the sink in place as well. This will sometimes make it difficult to remove the sink, even after everything is removed during kitchen sink plumbing installation.

You can try to loosen the sink by using a utility knife in the line between the sink and the cabinet. This will be easier if you work from above, but you need to be careful that you do not damage the cabinet in the process. After the sink is out, there is still a bit of preparation work to be done.

You'll need to take the time to clean and remove any excess caulking that is left over from the old sink. Before installing the new sink, you need to make sure the surface on the cabinet is as clean as possible. You can remove the old caulking and smooth the surface with the use of a putty knife and some sandpaper.

If your strainer is separate from the sink unit, you'll want to install it before placing the sink in the cabinet. In some cases, the strainer is already a part of the sink unit.

Before you proceed with the new kitchen sink plumbing installation, spread a ¼ inch bead of plumber's putty on the surface that the sink will set on. When the sink is in position, scrape away any excess putty from around the sink before it dries. After this, anything that is left can be wiped away with a damp cloth. You can then use caulking to seal up any other areas where water might leak down inside the cabinet.

Give the sink a couple of hours to set before doing anything else. Mounting clips can be attached during this time since the sealant is somewhat flexible.

This is also a good time to inspect all of your hoses and pipes and measure any new ones you will be adding.

At this point, you have largely finish your new kitchen sink plumbing installation, you can hook up the garbage disposal unit and re-attach all of the other connections. Make sure you use Teflon plumber's tape when hooking up new connections. After everything is hooked up, slowly turn the water back on and check for leaks.