How to Replace a Bathroom Sink Plumbing System With Chrome

Remove Existing Bathroom Sink Plumbing

• 1

  Open the sink cabinet doors and take the contents out of the cabinet. Place a bucket under the P-trap to catch the residual water that is in the trap. The P-trap prevents sewer gas from exiting the drain and also catches larger items before they enter the main drain. Water stays in the bottom curve of the P-trap.

• 2

  Loosen the two nuts securing the P-trap to the wall sink drain pipe and the pipe coming from the sink. If the plumbing system is PVC, the nuts turn by hand. It is necessary to use a pair of slip-joint pliers to turn the nuts if you currently have old metal pipes.

• 3

  Pull the top of the P-trap down until the sink drainpipe is out of the P-trap. Pull the P-trap away from the wall pipe, keeping it as level as possible to keep most of the residual water in the P-trap. Place the P-trap in the bucket and move the bucket out of the cabinet.

• 4

  Loosen the nut securing the sink wall pipe to the house drainpipe coming out of the wall. Pull the sink drainpipe out of the wall pipe. Remove any residual plumber's tape or pipe dope from the threads on the end of the house main pipe with a stiff wire brush.

• 5

  Turn the nut securing the drainpipe to the bottom of the sink drain basket counterclockwise and pull the pipe away from the sink. If you have a pop-up drain stopper, remove the pipe below the pop-up linkage. Do not remove the portion that contains the pop-up linkage.

Install Chrome Sink Plumbing Pipe

• 6

  Apply pipe dope to the threads of the house main pipe coming out of the wall with the applicator on the lid of the pipe dope can. Place a nut over the each end of the sink plumbing pipe, with the threads pointing toward the end of the pipe, and place the compression washer over the each end of the pipe.

• 7

  Insert the sink plumbing pipe into the house wall drainpipe. Do not thread the nut onto the house pipe at this time. Apply pipe dope to the threads on the end of the P-trap that connects to the sink wall pipe. Insert the P-trap over the end of the sink wall pipe and thread the nut over the threads on the P-trap until it is hand tight.

• 8

  Position the opposite end of the P-trap below the sink drain. Tighten the nut securing the sink wall pipe to the house pipe until it is hand tight. Hold the new chrome sink tailpipe beside the sink P-trap and the pop-up drain assembly pipe. Make a mark on the end of the tailpipe so it is 1-inch longer where it meets the P-trap.

• 9

  Cut the end of the tailpipe with a pipe cutter. Apply pipe dope to the threads on the end of the tailpipe. The tailpipe has threads only on the end that connects to the pop-up drain assembly pipe. Slide a compression nut over the opposite end of the tailpipe.

• 10

  Swivel the P-trap as necessary and insert the unthreaded end of the tailpipe into the P-trap. Realign the pipe under the sink drain and thread the tailpipe into the pop-up assembly pipe. Tighten the tailpipe and all securing nuts another two-thirds turn with slip-joint pliers.