While a lot of plumbing is moving toward plastic pvc pipes chances are that at some point in your life you will deal with copper pipes and understanding how to solder is essential. To help you get on your way and to work let's run through the basic steps of soldering.
1. Get the Equipment Before you start the project make sure you have a stud finder, a four foot level, a square, a few 2x4s and slab doors (depending on the number of shelves you want), a band or table saw, glue, nails (use a nailgun), chisel, and lag bolts.
2. Disconnect the Drain. Directly beneath the sink you will find a drain pipe that goes down from the sink into a u or s bend pipe called the trap. Slide your bowl underneath the trap and take your adjustable plyers and loosen the bold holding the drain pipe to the trap. Now that the pipe is loose you will be able to move the vanity of the bathroom up off the trap pipe and out away from the wall. Check for any screws that may be holding the vanity to the wall. If your vanity does not move hopefully you can completely remove the trap pipe from the pipe flowing into the wall to give yourself some room to maneuver the old sink upwards. Be aware that some water and probably a good amount of filth will come out of the trap pipe as you remove it.
3. Create Your Shelves An easy way to build your shelves is to purchase an unfinished slab door. Slab doors are made of thin wood strips that are separated by cardboard, however, the majority of the door is mostly empty space. You will take the door and then use a band saw or a table top saw to saw lengthways down the door to the chosen width for your shelf. Each door will make two shelves which you can adjust to the appropriate width.
4. Install the Sink Flip the top of the vanity over (which you should have removed from the rest of the cabinets, etc. below and install the faucet (follow the instructions for the individual faucet you choose to install. Depending on your choice you may need to drill larger wholes through the top of the vanity. After you have placed the faucet you will want to place the drain into the bottom of the sink tightening the bold on the drain located just below the bottom of the sink. Make sure it fits snugly so there is no leaking water. You can reuse your flexible lines if you wish but it may be a good idea to replace them looking for the kind that have wire mesh sewn into them. Attach these hoses to the bottom of the sink/vanity before placing it back onto the vanity. The compression fittings on these hoses do not need Teflon tape. Tighten the fittings all the way down and then a quarter turn more. Make sure not to over tighten these.
5. Solder the Pipe After the pipe is heated up take your solder wire and pull out a good five inches off ream and hold the ream with the solder wire forming a straight line. Take the blowtorch away from the pipe and lay the solder gently against the heated edge of the pipe and the connector. The solder will melt and run along the flux that you laid on the pipe. Make sure the solder creates a seal all the way around the pipe and use your solder wire to smooth any drips or bumps in the seal. You don't need a bunch; just a thin layer along the connection. For heaven sake make sure that you are never soldering directly above your face as the solder will drip down and burn you (personal experience). Also wear protective eyewear. If the pie was not hot enough for the solder to run heat the pipe more and test with the edge of your soldering wire. You will get the hang of it after a few runs.
5. Mount the Shelf Once your cleats are mounted and your shelves glue are dried (you can obviously paint or finish your shelf before this last step) apply glue to your shelf. You want to apply your wood glue to the top of the cleat on the wall and the bottom of the insert on your shelf. Take your shelf and slide it onto the cleat making sure it fits smoothly against the wall. Use a square to make sure that the shelf is ninety degrees to the wall and then use a mount to let the shelf dry straight; you can also nail the end of the shelf down into the cleat if you wish to make sure it stay firm.
On a side note if you are having a plumber or general contractor replace your old copper piping with pvc pipe make sure to keep the copper yourself rather than letting them walk away with it. Copper can sell for a good price at scrapyards or metal works.
1. Get the Equipment Before you start the project make sure you have a stud finder, a four foot level, a square, a few 2x4s and slab doors (depending on the number of shelves you want), a band or table saw, glue, nails (use a nailgun), chisel, and lag bolts.
2. Disconnect the Drain. Directly beneath the sink you will find a drain pipe that goes down from the sink into a u or s bend pipe called the trap. Slide your bowl underneath the trap and take your adjustable plyers and loosen the bold holding the drain pipe to the trap. Now that the pipe is loose you will be able to move the vanity of the bathroom up off the trap pipe and out away from the wall. Check for any screws that may be holding the vanity to the wall. If your vanity does not move hopefully you can completely remove the trap pipe from the pipe flowing into the wall to give yourself some room to maneuver the old sink upwards. Be aware that some water and probably a good amount of filth will come out of the trap pipe as you remove it.
3. Create Your Shelves An easy way to build your shelves is to purchase an unfinished slab door. Slab doors are made of thin wood strips that are separated by cardboard, however, the majority of the door is mostly empty space. You will take the door and then use a band saw or a table top saw to saw lengthways down the door to the chosen width for your shelf. Each door will make two shelves which you can adjust to the appropriate width.
4. Install the Sink Flip the top of the vanity over (which you should have removed from the rest of the cabinets, etc. below and install the faucet (follow the instructions for the individual faucet you choose to install. Depending on your choice you may need to drill larger wholes through the top of the vanity. After you have placed the faucet you will want to place the drain into the bottom of the sink tightening the bold on the drain located just below the bottom of the sink. Make sure it fits snugly so there is no leaking water. You can reuse your flexible lines if you wish but it may be a good idea to replace them looking for the kind that have wire mesh sewn into them. Attach these hoses to the bottom of the sink/vanity before placing it back onto the vanity. The compression fittings on these hoses do not need Teflon tape. Tighten the fittings all the way down and then a quarter turn more. Make sure not to over tighten these.
5. Solder the Pipe After the pipe is heated up take your solder wire and pull out a good five inches off ream and hold the ream with the solder wire forming a straight line. Take the blowtorch away from the pipe and lay the solder gently against the heated edge of the pipe and the connector. The solder will melt and run along the flux that you laid on the pipe. Make sure the solder creates a seal all the way around the pipe and use your solder wire to smooth any drips or bumps in the seal. You don't need a bunch; just a thin layer along the connection. For heaven sake make sure that you are never soldering directly above your face as the solder will drip down and burn you (personal experience). Also wear protective eyewear. If the pie was not hot enough for the solder to run heat the pipe more and test with the edge of your soldering wire. You will get the hang of it after a few runs.
5. Mount the Shelf Once your cleats are mounted and your shelves glue are dried (you can obviously paint or finish your shelf before this last step) apply glue to your shelf. You want to apply your wood glue to the top of the cleat on the wall and the bottom of the insert on your shelf. Take your shelf and slide it onto the cleat making sure it fits smoothly against the wall. Use a square to make sure that the shelf is ninety degrees to the wall and then use a mount to let the shelf dry straight; you can also nail the end of the shelf down into the cleat if you wish to make sure it stay firm.
On a side note if you are having a plumber or general contractor replace your old copper piping with pvc pipe make sure to keep the copper yourself rather than letting them walk away with it. Copper can sell for a good price at scrapyards or metal works.
About the Author:
MBA Construction is a general contractor in Billings Montana. We specialize in design-build, build-to-print and commercial construction in the energy, industrial & medical industries.
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