removing a bathroom vanity & installing a pedestal sink

Replacing a bathroom sink is actually a lot easier than most people probably think and could be a simple, fairly inexpensive update for your bathroom. If you’re just joining, here’s the bathroom we started with.

How to Remove a Bathroom Vanity: 

Supplies Needed:

bucket
screwdriver
utility knife
pry bar
adjustable wrench

1. You’re going to start by shutting the water off under the sink. You’ll notice two water lines, a hot and a cold. Shut both off by turning the shut off valves. Turn the faucet on to drain out any water.
   a
2. Go ahead and disconnect the water lines using your wrench. Toss a bucket under the water lines as there will be some water that leaks out.
3. Now you’re going to remove the larger pipe, the P trap. You should be able to unscrew this by hand, but if you can’t use a wrench. Again, prepare with the bucket. You should now have a small pipe sticking out of the wall.
   a
4. Go ahead and remove the faucet. Unscrew the water lines and then it’ll pop right off of the sink.
   
5. Using your knife slice around the vanity where there is any caulk. Don’t damage the wall and don’t rush. It’ll take some time depending how well it’s adhered to the wall. Ours damaged the wall, as seen below.a
6. Go ahead and lift up on the sink. It should lift right out from the vanity. The vanity is likely attached with screws. Remove the screws and pry the cabinet away from the wall if needed.
   
7. If in good condition, throw it on Craigslist and make a few bucks. We sold ours (and it wasn’t actually in that good of condition) for $25. Better than ending up in a landfill and a few bucks to put back into the bathroom!

Once we had the vanity removed we fixed up the wall (there were indents from the vanity on the wall) painted and installed the floor. We also painted the trim since all of those things are easier to do without a sink in the way.

We decided to go with a pedestal sink, as shared in this post, and the installation was pretty straightforward. Ours is the Kohler Devonshire line, except for that we didn’t pay $331.80 (what an odd price). We paid $50 at the Habitat for Humanity Restore. That’s right. The set (sink & toilet) were basically brand new. The store had just received them in as a donation. They were marked at $65 each, but I mean, obviously I asked for a deal for taking them both, so we got them each for $50.

I looked up installation instructions for that specific sink online and really it was just a matter of placing the pedestal in position on the floor and leveling the sink on top. We reconnected the P trap prior to placing the sink on the pedestal. Once the sink was level we secured it to the wall with large hanger bolts. I have zero photos of this process because it took two people and was pretty quick.

We installed the faucet, connected the water lines and turned the water on to test it out. It worked perfectly and is so much prettier! The faucet we chose was this one from Home Depot. I cannot believe the cost of plumbing fixtures. It cost more than we paid for the damn sink! We got it on sale for $79, so saved a few bucks, but still and outrageous price. I guess the savings on the sink makes up for it?

So, there you have it, removing a sink vanity and replacing it with a pedestal sink!