I mentioned a few weeks ago that I picked up a new faucet at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore for a steal - $9. Well, here it is successfully installed in what we lovingly refer to as our Harry Potter bathroom, or the tiny bathroom under the stairs. Before we had the ugly cheap model that could be picked up for about $9 brand new. I think this makes quite an improvement over the old one. I decided last night around 5pm to put this in, really thinking it would take me 30 minutes, tops, to take out the old one and install the new.You'd think I'd know better by now.
Thom and I (admittedly mostly Thom) toiled and strained and swore for several hours at this thing. Taking the old one out: piece of cake; putting the new one back in without a leak: not so much. After many scraped knuckles and enfuriated tempers, we gave it a rest for the night. I think the basic issue was the very tiny space in which we had to maneuver. I did go to HD last night to get a basin wrench but we couldn't even fit that in the tiny hole underneath the tiny sink.
After some rest, some church, and a good bagel, I gave it another whirl. It seems that laying on my back with my foot up in the air and my tongue out made the basin wrench finally fit in there. No leaks! Much improved! We'll put in a new toilet and tile floor perhaps after the New Year and then that bathroom will be more or less complete.
The plan is still to do the full bathroom upstairs during Thanksgiving week (although I am admittedly a little afraid to attempt to do this with our usual savior, Paul, being out of town that week). If nothing else, this little lesson has reminded me to assume the worst and plan for way more time than I generally think I'll need.
4 comments:
Right! The positioning of various mouthparts is totally key (ken was just picking on me for making a probably similar face when fighting with some packaging this weekend). Looks great, though!
That's a really nice faucet. Is there a brand name on it, just in case they still make that style? Thanks.
On further thought, maybe you can answer a question for me about faucets?
In my old house, the faucets were probably at least fifty years old, and they seemed to sit directly in the surface of the sink as yours seem to do.
I had new faucets installed in my current house, and they sit on a black thing which I'm told is a gasket. Only a few months after installation, it looks terrible, like it is disintegrating. (Yes, Home Depot Glacier Bay brand, I am talking about you.)
I emailed Moen and they told me all faucets come with this now. Yes? No? Thanks.
Karen Anne - I've seen all faucets now coming with that black piece too. Shouldn't disintegrate though - that's not right! I would get a refund on that one.
I'll check the brand tonight at home.
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