How to Install a Vessel Sink



Posted: Sunday, July 12, 2009

by Julia Ritzenthaler
JLR Enterprise

One of the hottest bathroom decor items on the market today is the vessel sink. Vessel sinks are raised from the surface of the countertop and come in just about every style imaginable. There are thousands of styles and designs to choose from: glass, natural stone, copper, marble, travertine, even wood. Whatever you decide on for the theme of your bathroom, there's a vessel sink to complement it.

The type of vessel sink you choose depends on the kind of vanity you have in your bathroom: some are designed to accommodate partially raised vessel sinks, while others are more suited to completely raised sinks. You may also choose to purchase a vessel sink vanity which includes the sink, countertop, and cabinet. When planning the installation of your vessel sink, you need to decide where the bathroom the vanity is going to be placed. It's just a good idea to determine the layout out of the room first. Be sure to closely read the manufacturer's instruction included with the bathroom vanity or sink first; you are sure to find helpful point in there to make the vessel sink installation a bit easier.

Once the vanity is in place and you've read the instructions, give a good once-over to check for any pre-drilled holes for the faucet. You need to decide where you want to place the faucet--wall mount or counter mount. If you're confident enough to start marking directly on the vanity, go ahead and indicate where you'd like to drill. If not, draw up a template and use it as a reference for the real thing. Remember the old saying, measure twice, cut once. You may also choose to mount your vessel faucet to the wall instead of the counter.

Use a jigsaw or a hole saw to make the cuts into the top of the vanity. You'll want a tool that offers flexibility as you cut, a jigsaw is a good option. Pre-drilling the screw holes will make it easier to attach the faucet to the vanity. Once the cuts have are complete, carefully arrange the vessel sink and the faucet on the vanity surface to check that everything is lined up correctly. If it's not exactly right, feel free to tweak and scrape until everything lines up just right.

If your vanity didn't come with the mounting equipment and hardware for the vessel sink and faucet, you can find what you need at any hardware store. Your vanity might have specific instructions about how to fit a vessel sink and faucet. If so, be sure to stick to every word. Take the instructions to the hardware store with you so that you don't forget anything. Simply put, attach the mounting ring; place the sink; and bolt the whole thing down. If your vessel sink is a particularly fragile material, such as glass, you might have to place some cushioning between the vanity surface and the sink. Silicone or rubber works well.

Once it's all in place and looks nice, move onto getting everything to work properly, like the water flow. Once the vessel sink and the faucet have been securely fixed onto the vanity, attach the water supply pipes to the vessel sink drain and the faucet or faucets. Before you test the water and functionality, be sure to check that the pipes and fittings are all secure. Turn the water on and off. As long as everything checks out, you are good to go.

If you are unsure of any portion of the project, be sure to look into hiring a professional general contractor or a plumber.

Copyright (c) 2009 Julia Ritzenthaler

--------

Julia Ritzenthaler is Owner of boutique online furniture stores, http://www.UniqueVanities.com, http://www.UniqeMirrorsOnline.com, & http://www.UniqueLightFixture.com. For more information about small vessel sink and oval vessel sink ideas, visit us online or email us with your questions at uniquevanities@msn.com.
This Article has been viewed 710 times. (Not updated in real-time.)
No comments yet.
We want your comments! If you can read this, you don't have javascript enabled, so you can't use this comment system. Please enable javascript.