How to refinish a porcelain sink. Trisodium phosphate should be used to clean the sink. Making the supply of ventilation proper is useful.
Wire grate and mates can be added after finishing the cleaning. Strong abrasive material that can damage the sink should be avoided. Professional refinishers can be hired.
My porcelain sink had been there for more than 10 years, and the sink looked like it was a century old. The cost of the new porcelain sink after 10 years had certainly increased.
My budget for the porcelain sink was low, and I couldn’t afford a new sink before my pay, but the sink was too bad not to change.
Seeing my stress, a worker at the plumbing store, gave me the idea of refinishing the sink.
I thought refinishing would certainly make the sink new and asked the worker about it. I was instructed about refinishing, and I refinished my sink thanks to him.
How to refinish a porcelain sink
A porcelain sink makes a decent impact on the bathroom. The porcelain sinks are able to stay intact for a lifetime, but they should have no scratches and rough use.
With rough use and scratches, the porcelain sinks may not even last a month.
The thing about porcelain sinks is that they can be restored to new ones, even with scratches. Refinishing the porcelain sink is a great trick.
Many products for porcelain sinks are available in the market. Recoating the sink and cleaning the porcelain can be done.
Steps to refinish
Refinishing the sink won’t be done without knowing refinishing steps. The sink needs filling and cleaning both at the proper time.
Drain removal is mentioned in the steps too. After steps, the budget is laid for a new and refinished sink. Read the steps below.
Cleaning
Refinishing the sink starts with cleaning the sink. Abrasive cleaners can be useful for cleaning. Washing the sink before the abrasive material is even better.
You’ll need a pad with the abrasive cleaner. Trisodium phosphate is also an abrasive cleaner, so you clean it with trisodium phosphate and use the pad for scrubbing the sink.
Trisodium phosphate is eco-friendly and is not strong to cause damage to the propane.
All accumulated dirt and soap will be removed by using trisodium phosphate. Trisodium phosphate can be bought from a nearby hardware store.
Now rinse the cleaner after you have used it. Clean the sink with water. Towel dry the porcelain sink to move forward.
Towel drying won’t only dry the porcelain sink but also remove the sink’s dirt and soap residue. Make sure the sink becomes spotless after your cleaning, and make it shine.
Taping
Now you need painter’s tape and also get some plastic sheets when you are getting the painter’s tape.
Now put the plastic sheet around the sink area and the painter tape to keep the plastic sheet in place.
The plastic sheet in place and the painter’s tape will also let the surrounding area remain untouched.
Metal drain removal
After cleaning and taping the porcelain sink, you can get to remove the sink drain and move forward. There is a large nut present below the drain on the pipe.
Unscrew that big nut to detach the pipe drain. Gently remove the pipe from the sink by pulling it down without extra force. There is also a big nut keeping the metal drain and the flange in its place.
The nut keeping the flange is below the sink. Turn the big nut in a counterclockwise direction so that it can come off. After removing the large nut, set it aside.
Now push in an upward direction. The pushing can be hard, so a screwdriver is better in that case. A flat screwdriver will help in that case. You can pry around the rim with a screwdriver.
The drain flange, after being prayed around, will get loose. The flange is actually loosened from the plumber’s putty. The putty acts like a seal between the drain flange and the sink.
Now try lifting the metal drain. Place a bucket beneath the drain hole. The bucket will catch the spills from the line and won’t let you worry about the cleaning later.
Removing plumber’s putty
Now to remove the plumber’s putty that is working as a seal and all the caulk around it, you will need a knife. A putty knife will do a decent removing job in caulk removing and putty removal.
Remove the plumber’s putty by using the knife at a 45degree angle. Scrape all the caulk and plumber’s putty.
Then lift the scarped putty by using the knife to support it. Throw the putty in a bin and all the caulk in the bin too.
Now get a hard water deposit remover from the market and apply the remover on the sink. The pad you had above can be used for scrubbing the mineral too.
Rinse the sink to remove the deposit and repeat the mineral removal step again. Continue till all the deposit disappears. Before removing the minerals, use goggles to help and era gloves to avoid starting the skin.
Sandpaper scraping
You need sandpaper of 400- to 600-grit, and it should be wet-dry. Now sand the surface with the paper you got. In small circles, you need to buff the entire surface.
Scratching the sink’s surface with sandpaper is pretty useful. The dishing paint can adhere better to the sink when scratched with sandpaper. After that, clean the sink and rinse it.
Use a tack cloth. The tack cloth will do a decent removing job. Just remove the excess sandpaper using it.
Also, remove the deposits because of the sandpaper. After all the residue and the excess sandpaper have been removed, you can start applying the epoxy finish.
Apply epoxy finish
There are two parts of epoxy finish. The sorts of epoxy finish need to be mixed before applying. Instruction on the epoxy finish pack will help you.
The package tells you the quantity and how the finish is mixed. Pour the mixture of the finish into a tray.
You should be ready to paint the sink when applying the coating. There can be toxic fumes as you apply the finishing, so wear a mask.
Use a bristle brush to apply the coating. Though using an airless spray is better, as it’s faster. Be careful in applying the epoxy, as too much overlapping won’t get you good results.
Wait about 2 hours, so the first layer dries, and then add the second coat. Wait for about three days before you reassemble the sink and use it. Use mineral spirits to clean it.
Conclusion
The budget for refinishing the sink is lower than that of buying a new sink. The expenses are lower to restore your old sink and give it a new look.
You can spend $200-$300 to refinish the sink, while the new sink will cost $1200. Restoring the sink is a better choice, and you can get the sink refinished by a professional if you are not in the mood for DIY. Thanks for reading!
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