Installation
Tips #3
REPLACING AN EXISTING SINK INTO THE ORIGINAL WORKTOPS
IN AN EXISTING KITCHEN
Unfortunately most installation tips we have read
over the years appear to have been written by persons
who probably have never fitted a sink in their life.
We have given a few tips below based on over thirty
years experience of supply and professional installation
in the kitchen industry.
It has to be assumed that you have chosen the correct
sized sink for your replacement, which may be exactly
the right size, so it's just a case of one out and
one in with no cutting required. You may have had to
buy a sink which is larger, this should not pose a
problem, please read the following:-
You have probably chosen a sink with the same number
of bowls as before, so you will not have to worry about
the positioning of the bowls, this will be decided
for you.
Again assuming the new sink is as near to the size
as the old one, you may have to cut approx 10 - 20mm
or more out of the worktop. (we obviously can't go
into every scenario) To prepare the worktop for the
new sink, position some 50mm wide masking tape on the
worktop around the original aperture, check the cut
out size of the new sink and compare that to the cut
out size of the old sink, take one away from the other,
the balance is what you need to remove. At this stage
you must make a decision whether to remove the worktop
by an even amount front and back and left to right.
It may be easier to take it all out of the back or
all out of the front or all left or all right. One
drawback to removing some or all of the material from
the back of the aperture is the sole plate and body
of your jigsaw may be touching the back wall not allowing
you to cut along the line, by the same measure if you
remove all of the material from the front you run the
risk of making a cut further forward than the front
of the top rail.
When you have decided where you are going to make
your cut, mark out the cut out on the masking taped
worktop.
DO NOT, despite advice given elsewhere, turn the sink
upside down, place it on the worktop, draw around it
and then draw inside by 10mm, the reasons are as follows
1 - you can have too many lines drawn which may be
confusing, 2 - every time you handle the sink you run
the risk of damaging the machined edges which give
the clean lines when fitted, 3 - you may scratch the
worktop especially if using High gloss worktops. Only
use this method as a last resort. Leave the sink in
the box until you need it.
When marking out make sure the bowls will sit within
the width of the sink base unit. Assuming you are fitting
a rectangular sink you should now have a pencilled
rectangle with square corners. Depending on the radius
of the corners of the sink you will need to cut at
least 15mm radius corners (not a square cut in to the
corner).
Before actually cutting out
the aperture for the sink, remember the old sayings
used in the Building Industry
- "give the job at least two coats of looking
at" and "measure three times and cut once",
you certainly wouldn't be the first to cut the aperture
wrong.
CUTTING THE WORKTOP
Providing you have marked out correctly and checked
your measurements against the manufacturers recommended
cut-out sizes you can't go wrong.
Start by drilling a minimum 15mm hole (check with
manufacturers recommendations) in each corner keeping
within the lines. Using a jigsaw with a new sharp blade
cut along the length and depth of the cut-out connecting
the holes. On the last segment make sure you support
the piece of worktop that is to be removed as this
may well fall and damage the base unit.
When you're happy that the cut-out is as neat as you
can get it, try the sink in on a dry run (no sealant).
The sink should be sitting flat on to the worktop all
the way round, if the sink is slightly bowed, push
down gently to see if it will seat down when the clips
are applied later. If the sink is unable to seat properly
due to the cut-out not being big enough, then remove
more of the material and try the sink again until you
are confident it will seat down perfectly.
Remove the sink now and place safely out of the way.
The raw edge of the cut-out must be sealed at this
stage; we would advise a PVA type water based waterproof
glue for this purpose. In order to allow the glue to
absorb into the chipboard core, water down the first
coat and liberally coat around the cut-out, allow this
coat to dry and then coat with a neat coat of PVA.
Make sure the cut-out is completely sealed, giving
another coat if necessary.
FIXING THE SINK
When you're ready to permanently fix down the sink,
it is easier to fix the tap on to the sink before
putting it into the worktop also the wastes and overflow
can be fixed to the sink at this stage. When preparing
the sink, check that all the clips are in place,
and that the under edge is free from dust or grease.
Sinks are usually provided with fixing clips sometimes
they are already attached to the sink, if not fit
them now. Most clips used today are suitable for
worktops of between 28mm and 42mm. In the case of
worktops outside this thickness range, the underside
of the worktop should be either rebated or thickened
with blocks of wood or similar.
Apply a good bead of clear silicone sealant to the
worktop at this stage in a continuous run around the
top edge. Next gently lower the sink into the aperture
and ensure that you can see silicone being squeezed
out as the sink is pushed down. If there is a gap where
no silicone has been squeezed out then carefully ease
up the sink and insert some more sealant in to fill
the gap.
We can not stress too much,
how important the sealing down of the sink is, if
you are to avoid costly repairs
later on. Some sinks come with a foam or similar seal
attached to the underside of the sink, this would probably
be sufficient to seal the sink, but as a belt and braces
approach we would still advise to use silicone. Next
lightly tighten the fixing clips, but do not over tighten
and make sure you follow the manufacturer’s instructions
as to the procedure.
If for some reason you find your sink has no clips
with it but you want to complete the installation,
don't be alarmed, providing the sink is sitting down
well all the way round the aperture, the silicone will
not only seal the sink but will also hold it in place.
You would be advised though to put some weights on
top of the sink until the silicone has cured, possibly
overnight.
Removing the surplus silicone from
around the fitted sink.
We have found if you use a blunt knife around the edge
of the sink to make a cut between the sink and the
surplus silicone and then wait approximately half an
hour, you will be able to pull off the surplus in one
piece. A word of warning though - if you leave it too
long you will be picking and rubbing at the silicone
for hours. Don't be tempted to use a scraper to remove
the silicone you risk taking the surface off the worktop.
MANUFACTURERS WARRANTY
Remember that damage caused by improper handling or
installation of your sink will not be covered by
the Manufacturers warranty.
DISCLAIMER
All advice given in the previous paragraphs is on a
totally independent basis and not necessarily the
recommendations of the manufacturers of your sink.
We cannot be held responsible for any problems that
may arise resulting from the use of this advice.
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