Kitchen Sink Repair or Replace — DIY Guide & When to Call

The kitchen sink takes more abuse than almost any other fixture in the house. Dishes, grease, garbage disposal use, hard water minerals — all of it adds up. After 40 years of plumbing work in Burleson and South DFW, kitchen sinks are probably my second most common service call (right behind toilets).

The good news: a lot of kitchen sink problems are honest DIY territory if you have basic tools and 30 minutes. Here’s how to know what you can fix yourself, what needs a plumber, and when it’s time to stop repairing and just replace.

Common Kitchen Sink Problems

• Dripping faucet — usually a worn cartridge or o-ring
• Sprayer not working — clogged spray head or kinked/split hose
• Low water pressure — clogged aerator or scaled-up supply lines
• Leaks under the sink — angle stops, supply lines, or drain p-trap
• Slow drain — partial clog in the trap or branch line
• Faucet wobbles or feels loose — mounting nut backed off underneath
• Garbage disposal humming or leaking — separate issue, often a full replacement

Some of these are 15-minute DIY fixes. Others need a plumber. Let’s break it down.

DIY Kitchen Sink Sprayer Replacement

This is one of the most common DIY-friendly kitchen sink repairs. If your sprayer won’t spray, leaks at the handle, or the hose has split, here’s how to swap it.

Tools you’ll need:

• Adjustable wrench or basin wrench (basin wrench is easier in tight space)
• Flashlight
• Bucket and towel
• New sprayer hose (~$15 at any hardware store)
• Teflon tape

Steps:

1. Turn off the hot and cold supply at the angle stops under the sink.
2. Open the faucet to relieve pressure.
3. Get under the sink with a flashlight. Find where the sprayer hose connects to the bottom of the faucet body.
4. Unscrew the hose from the faucet bottom. A basin wrench makes this much easier in tight quarters.
5. Pull the old sprayer up through the escutcheon (the hole in the sink). Some sprayers pull through cleanly; some won’t, and you’ll need to remove the escutcheon nut underneath first to free the hose.
6. Feed the new sprayer hose down through the escutcheon. If you removed the escutcheon, reinstall it and tighten the nut from below.
7. Wrap Teflon tape around the threads where the hose connects to the faucet — clockwise, 2–3 wraps.
8. Thread the connector by hand first to avoid cross-threading, then tighten with a wrench. Snug, not over-tight.
9. Turn the water back on, check the connection for leaks, and test the sprayer.

If you see any leak from the threaded connection, tighten a quarter turn at a time. If it still leaks after a full extra turn, take it apart and re-tape.

Other Kitchen Sink Repairs You Can DIY

A few more handy-homeowner-friendly fixes:

• Replace a faucet aerator — unscrews from the spout, clean or replace
• Tighten a wobbly faucet — usually a mounting nut under the sink that’s backed off
• Replace an angle stop if it’s worn — minimal skill required if you can shut off the main water line
• Clear a slow drain — disconnect the p-trap, clean it out, reassemble

When to Call a Plumber

Time to stop and call us if:

• Water is leaking from anywhere you can’t easily access
• Supply lines or angle stops won’t shut off (water keeps flowing even fully closed)
• The leak is at a soldered or threaded pipe joint, not at a flexible fitting
• You see green or blue corrosion at copper joints — that’s electrolysis, the pipe is failing
• You can’t get the old hose or fitting off — sometimes corrosion fuses them shut
• The garbage disposal is leaking from below — usually means full replacement
• You smell sewer gas under the sink — venting or trap issue
• You see water damage in the cabinet under the sink — could be a slow leak in a wall connection

For corroded supply lines, we replace them with stainless steel braided lines. They last decades and don’t fail like the old plastic flexible lines.

Repair vs. Replace the Faucet

Repair the faucet if:

• It’s less than 10 years old
• Parts are still available for that model
• The body itself isn’t corroded

Replace the faucet if:

• It’s more than 15 years old and giving repeated problems
• Parts aren’t available
• The base is corroded or pitted
• You’ve already replaced cartridges or o-rings recently and it’s leaking again

A mid-grade kitchen faucet runs $150–$400 in materials, plus install. If you’ve already spent $50–$80 on parts in the last few years and it’s still failing, replacement is usually the smarter call.

When to Replace the Whole Sink

Sometimes the issue isn’t the faucet — it’s the sink itself. Signs:

• Cracks or chips in porcelain (rust forms underneath)
• Stainless sink with rust spots — usually from carbon steel pots scraping the surface
• The sink is detaching from the countertop
• You’re remodeling anyway

Going from a top-mount to an undermount, or upgrading to a larger basin, almost always involves countertop work, so plan accordingly. We handle full kitchen sink installation — top-mount and undermount.

A Word From Don

If you’ve tried DIY and the leak is persistent, or you’re staring at a corroded supply line that won’t come off, give us a call. Most kitchen sink jobs are same-day service on most plumbing calls. We give free phone estimates before we head out so there are no surprises.

Serving Burleson, Crowley, Joshua, Alvarado, Keene, Everman, and all of South DFW within about 20 miles of Burleson.

Call Don: 817-447-2654

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