Friday, May 13, 2016

Sinks--why did it have be a sink?



The saga continued through four, yup four, new sinks! 

Makayla Investigating the
New Sink on the Doorstep
The frustration factor achieved a  maximum value.

The sink of our dreams (I am going to call it, new sink #3) was delivered yesterday--it did not fit the hole. That's right, the most beautiful sink in the world (doing my best imitation of a country song title) did not fit. It was too small for the existing hole because of its elegant styling!

Ugh! I was totally despondent when Patrick arrived to help me install the sink because I had already determined that the sink installation was doomed from working with the template. I could tell that the sink and my existing hole were not a good match. We unboxed the sink and confirmed that the tapered corners did not fit my rectangular hole!

Because of the tapered design, the new sink
did not fill the existing hole
Did I mention that the sink weighed 110 pounds? So it is not something to with which to be trifled. Yet, similar to its two predecessors, sink #3 is now residing in its box awaiting the return process. This one should be interesting because it was delivered via common carrier. 

The sink hole remained and the mood of the house was depressed. Queue our friends Fran and Mary who arrived to assist with the installation. I needed a miracle! Further confirmation that the sink would not fit and that there was nothing that could be done to alter either the sink or the hole was quickly made and a three-pronged internet search began for sink #4. 

A glimmer of hope filled the house when a sink, with similar construction and finish was located at Lowe's. The difference, and why I had missed during my extensive internet search, was that I had been searching for a two-hole sink--but I could make a four-hole sink work! The holes are for the faucets and the soap dispenser. We already had a new one-hole faucet and a separate soap dispenser that had been modified to work with our old four-hole sink. 

Initial Fit-up of the Sink
From the available people a sink retrieval team was constituted and departed to secure sink #4. Those remaining behind ordered Chinese for dinner. It was a perfectly planned operation.

The expedition to Lowe's was a success. It turns out that even though the sink was not on display in the store, they had two of them. This had been independently confirmed by the internet and an old fashioned telephone call before the retrieval team departed. The intelligence was confirmed and sink #4 was obtained and brought to the scene of the installation. 

Patrick and Francis Completing the Installation
The box was opened and the sink placed in the "sink hole." Cheers erupted from the assembled crowd because this sink, unlike the three previous versions both fit the hole and was acceptable!

From that point on, the mood of the house was jubilant and what is usually the hardest part of any project, the installation, actually proceeded smoothly and without any show stoppers. 

It was almost anti-climactic. Everything fit, even the new disposal, and all of the other parts worked. Surprisingly, even during the operational testing of the sink no leaks were discovered. 

Newly Installed and Fully-Functional Sink
With the Sticker Still on it
Clearly, this sink was meant to fill the hole in our kitchen! And the hole in our lives. 

During the past week we have discovered how important kitchen sinks are to the functioning of a household.

Although the project is not complete because I still have to return sink #3, I am glad that the sink replacement project is over.

My recommendation is that if you think you want a new sink, think again. Sinks were not meant to be replaced independently but rather to be installed with new construction or during kitchen renovations. 

Oh yeah, Happy Mother's Day Chris--your new sink is finally installed.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

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