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How to Replace A Kitchen Sink Basket And Old Metal Trap

Remove leaky chrome kitchen waste line and replace it with plastic PVC waste line and trap. Use a rubber coupling to attach the plastic to the old drainpipe.

By Gary Wentz

From The Family Handyman

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About This Project

• Overview and Preparation

• Step-by-Step Instructions and Pictures of How to Replace A Kitchen Sink Basket And Old Metal Trap

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Before you can stop a leak, you have to find its source. That can be tricky. Water that escapesyour pipes can travel a long way before it drops onto your cabinet’s floor.

Here’s how a drip detective tracks the source of a leak: Fill both bowls of the sink with lukewarm water, not cold. (Cold water can cause beads of condensation to form on the pipes, making it impossible to find the leak.) Then get under the sink with a trouble light. Dry off all the pipes and examine the seals around the basket strainers. If you don’t see any droplets forming, remove both sink stoppers and watch for telltale dribbles. Joints are the most likely source of leaks, but old metal pipes can develop pinhole leaks anywhere, especially in the trap. If you can’t find any leaks in the drain system, check the water supply lines that serve the faucet. Finally, check for “splash leaks,” spots where water seeps under the sink rim or faucet base. To find these leaks, use a rag to dribble water around the faucet and sink rim, then get underneath and look for drips.

1. Straighten pipes and tighten nuts
The washers that seal pipe joints won’t hold water unless one section runs straight into the other. The “ground” joint on the trap has no washer, but it too will leak if it’s misaligned. Eyeball the leaking joint to check its alignment. If it’s crooked, simply loosen the nut, straighten the pipe and retighten. Since the whole assembly is interconnected, you might misalign one joint while straightening another. Don’t be surprised if you end up loosening and tightening several joints to straighten just one.

If a joint is aligned but leaks anyway, tighten the slip nut. Use two slip-joint pliers on metal pipes: one to hold the pipe, the other to tighten the nut. If you have old metal pipe, you might find that it has worn thin and collapses when you put a pliers on it. With plastic pipe, hand-tighten first. If that doesn’t stop the leak, use a pliers. But be gentle; plastic threads are easy to strip.

• • Weekend Projects
• • Plumbing Projects
• • Kitchens

• Step-by-Step Instructions and Pictures of How to Replace A Kitchen Sink Basket And Old Metal Trap
• Remove leaky chrome kitchen waste line and replace it with plastic PVC waste line and trap. Use a rubber coupling to attach the plastic to the old drainpipe. Read an overview on how to replace a kitchen sink basket and old metal trap.
• 
• How to Replace A Kitchen Sink Basket Strainer
• How to fix a leaking seal around a sink drain
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• How to Fix a leaking sink sprayer
• Sink sprayers can develop leaks at the spray head, the hose or the faucet stem. Fixing the leaks can involve tightening a nut, replacing the head or replacing the hose.
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• Repair an erratic sink sprayer by replacing the diverter
• Poor water flow or uneven, pulsing water spray from a sink sprayer can mean that the diverter needs to be cleaned or replaced.
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