Add Value to your Home with
3 Inexpensive Bathroom Renovations - Part II
It often does not take much work and money to spruce up the look of your bathroom and add value to your home in the process.
Adding a pedestal sink where a wall sink once hung will hide unsightly plumbing and add a bit of class to any bathroom. A medicine cabinet enhances the appearance of the bathroom and serves well as a convenient storage area. Finally, a faucet with a pop-up sink drain is commonplace in most homes and is invaluable when one wants to hand wash or dye delicate clothing.
Installing a Pedestal Sink
1. Turn off water supply valves.
2. Place bucket under P-trap (U-shaped pipe), to catch water, loosen locknuts from sink drain and drainpipe, remove P-trap.
3. Remove any caulking where sink meets wall, remove bolts to bracket or wall, and lift off sink (if there is a bracket, unscrew and remove it).
4. Place new sink against wall in desired position.
TIP: Cut a 2”x 4” piece of timber to proper length and place under front of sink to help hold it in place.
5. If the pedestal sink comes with bracket, pencil mark a line across the top back of sink on wall, if non-bracket, mark holes on wall where the lag bolts or anchors will hold sink to the wall, if sink has holes at base for bolts, mark also.
6. Remove 2”x 4” timber and put the sink aside.
7a. Bracket-mounting sink, follow manufacturer’s instructions, mark the bracket holes, remove bracket, drill marked holes, install anchors, replace bracket and screw/bolt it down, if sink base has mount holes, drill for lag bolts.
7b. Non-bracket sink, drill holes for anchors (or if old sink had studs where sink bolt holes are, drill pilot holes for lag bolts) into wall, and if necessary, drill holes for bolts that mount base to floor.
8a. Bracket-set sink, set the sink on the bracket and secure with anchor bolts.
8b. Non-bracket-set sink, attach sink to wall using anchor bolts and install lag bolts if pedestal sink has base-mount holes. Tip: do not over tighten base mount lag bolts as this could crack and break sink base.
9. Using a caulk gun, draw a bead around the base of the pedestal sink, start on one side and run finger around the base, creating an inside radius, let dry and remove excess. Do this where the sink meets the wall also.
10. Reinstall P-trap to sink drain and drainpipe and hand tighten locknuts. Turn on water supply.
Installing a Pop-Up Drain
1. Purchase a bathroom sink faucet with a pop-up drain feature and install faucet according to manufacturer’s instructions.
2. Apply a 1/8 inch bead of plumbers putty under drain flange, push drain body up through drain hole in sink and attach flange.
3. Secure drain body to sink by tightening lock nut, the threaded outlet should face the pop-up linkage.
4. Drop the plunger lifter part into hole between the water knobs and attach to the lever-strap (strip of metal with holes).
5. Put drain plunger (stopper) into sink drain, take the ball end (of ball/rod part) and insert into threaded opening in drain body, take nut, slide over bar and tighten the ball into drain body.
TIP: Wrap a couple passes of teflon tape around the threads before installing nut.
6. Push drain plunger down into sink drain, raise plunger lifter up, slide the rod into hole on lever strap that is parallel to rod extending from the drain body and clip into place.
7. Check the operation of the pop-up plunger.
Installing a Medicine Cabinet
1. Determine where you would like to install the medicine cabinet. Most all medicine cabinets are about 14 inches in width, and made to fit in between 2 studs that are 16 inches apart on center.
2. Locate studs in this area (the cabinet will go in between these two studs), and lightly pencil vertical lines to represent where the inside of each stud ends. Tip: there are inexpensive stud finders you can purchase at home improvement centers, which make this step quite easy.
3. Remove the door from the new medicine cabinet.
4. Place cabinet against the wall at approximate height desired (between the two stud lines), pencil a short line under the cabinet, put aside the cabinet.
5. Put a level to the short line and draw a level line long enough to reach each stud, take a 2”x 3” stud (brace) about 20 inches long, place even with line and temporarily attach to the studs through the sheetrock with screws.
6. Rest the cabinet on the 2”x 3” brace and place one side of the cabinet against a stud line, it can be either one, try both and check the position of the cabinet to see which looks better, then pencil trace around the top and the other side of the cabinet.
7. Remove the 2”x 3” brace and using a sheetrock saw, cut out the line traced around the cabinet, not the stud line you did not follow.
8. Test fit the cabinet, it should fit snug, remove.
9. Measure in between the studs, which should be about 14 ½ inches.
10. Take a 2”x 4” stud and saw/cut 2 pieces to the length determined in step 9.
11. Place one piece between the studs at the bottom of cut out, level it and toenail in place, this will be the base for the cabinet, take the other cut 2”x4” and toenail it in at the top, this will complete the box for your cabinet.
TIP: If the cabinet is not the width of the studs, build one of the studs up with strip(s) of plywood, any type that fits will work.
The new medicine cabinet should have predrilled screw holes, and often comes with the necessary screws.
13. Use a ready-mixed spackling compound to fill any gaps (and screw holes) around the cabinet, let dry, sand with 100-grit sandpaper and touch up with paint. Reinstall cabinet door.
Sink vessels are one of the most important fixtures in the bathroom. There are a number of materials that can be used to create a vessel. Choosing a material to suit your needs does not have to be difficult.