The faucet in the bathroom sink off the bedroom has been dripping. I have cleaned and/or replaced the valves on it before, so I started there. The first thing I learned was that the shut-off valve on the cold water side (the side that was dripping) was stuck and the handle was spinning on the shaft.
At that point, I decided to replace the entire faucet and the bad valve. I went to Lowes and bought replacements.
Before shutting the water off to the entire house, I decided to try turning the stuck valve with my channel-locks. It worked. Now I have a replacement valve on hand if it ever happens again.
Changing out the faucet requires a basin wrench like this one..
I own one, but it is probably older than I am, and it hadn't been used for maybe 20 years, so the first thing I had to do was lubricate the head so it would swivel. That took a few minutes, but I got it to work.
Normally, you only use the wrench to loosen the fittings, then turn them the rest of the way by hand. I'm not sure if normal ever actually happens, but Murphy's law required that I use the wrench to unscrew the fitting on one side (the hardest to get to) all the way.
Once I got the old faucet removed, installation of the new one went like clockwork.
Of course, all of this had to be done while lying on my back halfway inside the bathroom cabinet. This morning, my right shoulder blade feels like one huge bruise.
I also bought a new faucet for the kitchen sink, and planned to replace it today. Sore as I am this morning, it may have to wait.
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