Fitting a kitchen sink
This project is presented by Top quality, top service. Fit my kitchen
Summary: How to fit and plumb in a kitchen sink.
Fitting and plumbing in a kitchen sink are not the easiest of DIY jobs and many people find them very scary, but with a little understanding of why you do things rather than just how you do them, the whole job is a lot easier. Kitchen sink units, as with other base units, come with an open top ready for the sinks or hobs to be inserted. This can be seen in the first image. When the base unit is in place (see our related projects on how to fit base units) it is much easier, at this stage, to sit the sink on top of the unit just to see where the taps and waste will go. This allows you to do the plumbing in a more open space and to be able to reach down from the top before you fit the worktop. Many people fit the worktop & sink first then struggle underneath it in a really confined space. Our projects on fitting taps and fitting sink wastes will help with the plumbing.
When the worktop is fitted and all the pipes are roughly in place in the base unit, lay the sink on the worktop. Most sink perimeters will be 25mm larger than the opening they are intended to sit in and many sinks come with a paper template which makes this part of the job a lot easier. Mark round the sink with a pencil. Measure in from the pencil mark 25mm (or whatever measurement is recommended by the manufacturer) and use masking tape to tape out the area that needs to be removed. We always use masking tape because following a pencil line when there is a lot of sawdust flying about is not always easy and with this kind of operation you only get one chance!
Drill a 25mm hole in the worktop, inside the taped off area, and push the blade of your jigsaw through the hole. You can drill more than one hole if it makes it easier for
you to cut round the inside of the tapes. Keep firm pressure on the jigsaw but do not try to force it to cut faster. Follow the taped lines all the way round and don't forget to support the cut out as you work your way round.
It is very important that the joint between the underside of the sink and the top of the worktop is kept waterproof. This is achieved by sealing putty and most sinks are sullied with this. It either comes in a self adhesive roll or a small tub. When the sink is placed in the hole it should sit on the seal all the way round. Sink clips, fitted before you put the sink in the cut out, then clamp the sink firmly into place. The excess seal is cut off.
You can see from the image above that, with some careful planning, it is possible to work out the position of the sink waste, taps etc before you site the sink.
Take a look at our video sections on "sinks", " plumbing fitting a sink" and "fitting a sink" to watch a variety of films on sink installation.
All project content written and produced by Mike Edwards
Didn't find the answer you were looking for?
Other similar projects related to the information above
