Wednesday, January 18, 2006

Upgrading the Kitchen Sink - Easier than Expected

I asked Mindy from the Our Fixer Upper to review the Whitehaus WH512 Large Double-Bowl Farmer Fireclay Kitchen Sink for the Daily Tubber.
In the spirit of full disclosure: We offered her a substantial discount on the sink if she would provide us with a truthful review. I told her to share the good, bad and the ugly. Her comments appear below exactly as she wrote them.

About a year ago, my husband and I bought our first home - a Victorian fixer-upper. We've been renovating the kitchen for months, and we are finally getting to the fun stuff. Our countertops, sink, and faucet had all seen better days. Keeping the old porcelain sink looking clean meant bleaching and scrubbing it daily. I'd been dreaming about an old-fashioned farmhouse sink since the day we moved in, so I was thrilled to finally pick one out.

We decided on a Whitehaus Double Bowl Farmer Sink because it incorporates the classic look we love with the convenience of two bowls. For the new countertop, we chose wood. The new faucet fixture is double-handled with a high spout and a brushed nickel finish.

Replacing an old sink seems daunting, but it turned out to be very easy. Our sink arrived on Monday afternoon, and my husband had it installed and usable before bed that night. Beforehand, we prepped by removing the old countertop and unhooking the old sink. Both got hauled out to the junk pile where they belong. We then cut the wood countertop to the appropriate length and made sure it fit snug against the wall.

After the sink arrived, our first step was to site the opening for the sink and fixtures. We set the sink onto the wood countertop and carefully traced around it, leaving 3 inches on the back edge for the faucet. 


Farmhouse Sink

Using a scroll saw, my husband cut along the lines to create the opening. Since the sink sits under the counter, it was important to keep this cut as clean as possible. We sanded the new edges down for good measure.

Kitchen Sink Installation

After cutting out the opening, he added framing for the undermount kit used to hold the sink in place. The cupboard sides we attached the bars to weren't very sturdy, so the additional framing was mostly for peace of mind.

Kitchen Sink Installation


Kitchen Sink Installation


Once the undermount flanges were screwed in and the bars were in place, we set the sink on top and laid the countertop over it. Then we stood back to take a long, proud look!

Farmhouse Sink


Because our old sink only had one drain, we did a bit of additional plumbing work to get both drains hooked up, but all in all it was a surprisingly painless DIY project with a BIG aesthetic payoff. I wish all our projects were this easy!

If you'd like to read more about our adventures in DIY home repair, you can visit our house blog: http://www.ourfixerupper.com.

4 comments:

  1. Anonymous2:59 PM

    Can thie sink be mounted on top of the countertop as well as underneath. We are installing corian .

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous4:38 PM

    Nice review.
    I also am considering such a sink, but worry about dropping a pot on it and chipping the fireclay.

    Love to see a followup in a year to let us know how it holds up!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous6:38 AM

    thanks for this article. it has rally helped me.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Anonymous1:16 PM

    Very nice! However, an annoying problem that I see is that there is no lip around the counter top to contain the water when using the sink. I don't know how one would be added without ruining the aesthetic value.

    ReplyDelete