Hanging the Sink

The last major task before the plumbers and electricians come in to put in the fixtures is to get the sink and tub into place. The sink is only 20” wide, but it’s a vintage Trenton Pottery Works sink that weighs a ton. We’ve mapped out where the blocking and the studs are in the wall so we need to just make sure we get the sink bracket into those pieces of solid wood while also making sure the sink is level.

Before we get working on the sink, I need to finish stripping the brackets I bought for the sink from a salvage shop. Most of the paint I stripped earlier in the week but now I’m going to apply some rust remover to take off any remaining rust.

Removing rust.

Continuing to strip the rust.

After I get the rust stripped, I apply some black dye and then a few clear coats to protect the finish. A weird problem occurs when I apply the clear coat is that it reflows the dye which I didn’t notice happening the last time I tried the dye and clear coat combo.

Before we hang the sink we hit Home Depot to get some fasteners. I go for lag screws since from what I read these will provide a stronger hold than a standard wood screw. I think it’s because the heads are bolts without screwdriver slots. My guess is that the metal is strong because it’s not threaded or thinner from the screwdriver head.

Lag screws

Before we get going with installation I get a surprise visit from my friend Mark all of the way from Toledo, Ohio. I didn’t realize he was paying me a visit but it’s a welcome surprise because he’s far more knowledgeable about building than Karen and I. Karen gives him an overview of the interior of the wall and Mark goes to work leveling and measuring out the placement of the bracket. He pre-drills the holes and then installs the lag screws with an impact driver. He lets me do the last screw and I immediately strip the threads. I learn that I’m not supposed to force the screw into the wood and over turn it. Mark says to let the tool do the work instead of pushing the screw in.

Mark leveling out the sink.

After we get the main bracket and the sink hung. We then add the 2 side brackets. Since these aren’t going into the blocking, they are more decorative. After the sink is hung we move the clawfoot tub into place and put the porcelain casters under it. The tub is a little off balance because I think 1 of the legs is bent from it being detacted for so long. I end up shimming it a little bit with some vinyl to get most of the wobble out.

Hanging sink

Sink and tub in place.