Does it really cost half a grand to change a kitchen faucet? [Update - did it today!]

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highland145

Lifer
Oct 12, 2009
43,934
6,309
136
I did mine two years ago, studs out, for about $8k. But I did everything myself; demo, cabinets, floors, electrical, you name it. It's a small kitchen - basically just a 12' wall of cabinets, no corner stuff, no island.

There were a couple fit and finish things I needed to fix - I'm an amateur, after all - but I've gotten around to fixing most of them and it looks pretty good. Way nicer than what I had.
I could have but every morning when I went in, I'd see something that I didn't get right. A lot of $ but I'm satisfied.
 
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Zeze

Lifer
Mar 4, 2011
11,395
1,180
126
I'm pleased to announce that I have successfully installed the faucet. The unit was $180~ and that's it. Saved about $300-400 I bet.

The steps weren't complex but very annoying. The most of the gripe came from removing the calcified & rusted nut to get rid of the existing faucet in the cramped space. I definitely swore a lot though.

All in all, learned a lot. Those valve shut offs make me so damn nervous. Why are they all so flimsy across different homes? Water coming out of the screw and all. It's good now though.
 
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Zeze

Lifer
Mar 4, 2011
11,395
1,180
126
as a trades person, we pretty much don't do anything but reset a GFI or swap out a Breaker for less than 250 bucks labor. call it an hour job. you have an hour into transport also, time to make the invoice, time to do the book keeping, time you are not at a larger job, time stocking the truck and going to the supply house, 4 different kinds of insurance, licensing, continuing education hours, trade organization.....

If we pay a guy 30 an hour (which is low) he costs us around 90. plus the van, gas, car insurance, etc. Really you are paying about 125 an hour.

I have installed 3 or 4 kraus faucets, 2 sinks, a soap thing and a few other odds and ends and have been super happy with them.
Hey I bought your Kraus faucet, thanks to you.

It's good. It has some plastic parts though (the sprout head). And the flow is definitely weaker. But it's good and looks very nice.

KP-1674
09-kraus-kpf-1674sfs-kitchen-faucet-l-midrange1_b5cdwvpqhwgicvdk.jpg
 
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Feb 4, 2009
35,245
16,715
136
I'm pleased to announce that I have successfully installed the faucet. The unit was $180~ and that's it. Saved about $300-400 I bet.

The steps weren't complex but very annoying. The most of the gripe came from removing the calcified & rusted nut to get rid of the existing faucet in the cramped space. I definitely swore a lot though.

All in all, learned a lot. Those valve shut offs make me so damn nervous. Why are they all so flimsy across different homes? Water coming out of the screw and all. It's good now though.
Good work faucet replacement is a fairly easy process. The crawling under the cabinet SUCKS!
 

[DHT]Osiris

Lifer
Dec 15, 2015
15,275
13,580
146
I'm pleased to announce that I have successfully installed the faucet. The unit was $180~ and that's it. Saved about $300-400 I bet.

The steps weren't complex but very annoying. The most of the gripe came from removing the calcified & rusted nut to get rid of the existing faucet in the cramped space. I definitely swore a lot though.

All in all, learned a lot. Those valve shut offs make me so damn nervous. Why are they all so flimsy across different homes? Water coming out of the screw and all. It's good now though.
I swear I've never encountered a water shut off valve I was comfortable with. Every single one feels like it's made of paper clips and is about to just twist out of shape every time I use it, and that's assuming it isn't either leaking or rusted shut.
 

Zeze

Lifer
Mar 4, 2011
11,395
1,180
126
I swear I've never encountered a water shut off valve I was comfortable with. Every single one feels like it's made of paper clips and is about to just twist out of shape every time I use it, and that's assuming it isn't either leaking or rusted shut.
They're all crap across 4 homes.
 

DaaQ

Golden Member
Dec 8, 2018
1,443
1,041
136
Shark bite shut off valves are very stout, expensive but its push in and removable, works on pex, copper, and PVC. Shark bite stuff in general is very high quality. I would really like a manifold with each water circuit on it with shut of valves.
For now I have just finished putting in 2 on my tub/shower, only PVC left is kitchen sink area, it is pex either right below floor or inside cabinet.

House was all original PVC and kept busting in winter, so would repair with pex and shark bites, then that spring I replaced as much PVC as I could reach with PEX. It may freeze, but it won't break.
 
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Greenman

Lifer
Oct 15, 1999
20,936
5,560
136
I swear I've never encountered a water shut off valve I was comfortable with. Every single one feels like it's made of paper clips and is about to just twist out of shape every time I use it, and that's assuming it isn't either leaking or rusted shut.
I always installed good quality quarter turn stops that were properly anchored. Solid as a rock.
 

[DHT]Osiris

Lifer
Dec 15, 2015
15,275
13,580
146
I always installed good quality quarter turn stops that were properly anchored. Solid as a rock.
You're the only one. Most just suspend them on the pipe like some kind of Avatar tree sleeper, to bend and break at the whims of whatever foot, child, or animal decides to hit them at speed.
 

Greenman

Lifer
Oct 15, 1999
20,936
5,560
136
You're the only one. Most just suspend them on the pipe like some kind of Avatar tree sleeper, to bend and break at the whims of whatever foot, child, or animal decides to hit them at speed.
I always hated lose stops, so I always put them in correctly.
 

Lanyap

Elite Member
Dec 23, 2000
8,185
2,232
136
The first thing I learned about DIY plumbing is make sure you know where the water main shutoff is, that you have the tool to turn it off and test it to make sure it works before you start your work.

Stay away from Koehler. They always design their plumbing products to be very difficult to replace/repair. I had to repair/replace bath faucet aerators and when I took them apart they had like 9 parts.
 
Feb 25, 2011
16,905
1,551
126
The first thing I learned about DIY plumbing is make sure you know where the water main shutoff is, that you have the tool to turn it off and test it to make sure it works before you start your work.

Stay away from Koehler. They always design their plumbing products to be very difficult to replace/repair. I had to repair/replace bath faucet aerators and when I took them apart they had like 9 parts.
You need a special wrench doohickey to replace aerators in Moen faucets as well.

They come with one. Don’t lose it.
 
Mar 11, 2004
23,279
5,720
146
That's going in my collection of 'famous last words.'

For reasons that shall never be known, the guy that built this place decided that the bathroom faucet needed to mortared in place.

Unfortunately, I had no clue about this and couldn't figure out what was holding it in place. I finally had resort to brute force and bust it off.

I did NOT use mortar for the replacement.

Ah, but now you can say how the builder is your mortar enemy!

I'm pleased to announce that I have successfully installed the faucet. The unit was $180~ and that's it. Saved about $300-400 I bet.

The steps weren't complex but very annoying. The most of the gripe came from removing the calcified & rusted nut to get rid of the existing faucet in the cramped space. I definitely swore a lot though.

All in all, learned a lot. Those valve shut offs make me so damn nervous. Why are they all so flimsy across different homes? Water coming out of the screw and all. It's good now though.

Oh to hear your dulcet tones as you belted 'I swear"! This is what you meant by that, right?

 
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Muse

Lifer
Jul 11, 2001
38,403
8,694
136
$250 parts (directly at mfg website) + $250/hr = $500

How do people manage it?
My kitchen faucet replacement (the part) was cheap enough at Ace Hardware close by. Installing it was a nightmare. Old house (1910 or so), had to remove a fitting that went horizontal into the wall, needed a gizmo to torque it out. The one I bought didn't work. I called a plumber friend who had just retired and he couldn't remove it either with his internal pipe wrench either. Meantime I had no hot water. Called a well rated local plumbing company. The guy had me over a barrel because he was 1/2 way through the job before I got a quote. Not $500 but maybe 1/2 that.