Can I Convert a Top Mount Kitchen Sink to a Bottom Mount?!?

[Mark Lammert]

Hi all,

Does anybody know or have experience with converting a self-rimming (or top
mount) kitchen sink into a bottom mount kitchen sink...

My wife really likes the look of the bottom mount (you know the kind that
are under the counter top) and honestly so do I... Problem is, they are all
special order at HD and the Borge... So, the same top mount sink that sells
for $125.00 is now $275.00... Not because it cost more from the manufacturer
but simply because HD is buying one of them instead of 500 of them... Price
in the manufacturer's catalog is pretty much the same...

Anyway, to the point, the only difference I can see between a top mount and
a bottom mount sink is the rim of the sink and little "clip" things that
come with the bottom mount to attach it to the bottom of the counter top...

I would think you could easily fabricate your own clips and give it a good
dose of silicone just as you would with a top mount...

Does anybody have any opinions or recommendations or experience with
something like this...

Thanks all,
Mark

[db...@sprynet.com]

Think you are incorrect on why the price is higher???? i went to the
american standard Web site and found the new toilet we wanted, it list
on th web site for $250 to $300. i called their 1-800-number and asked
about the price.. the lady order taker told me that if i went to home
depot or a store like that and ordered one it would cost me about $125
or so.... i went to home depot and they had to order it, they did not
have any colored toilets like i wanted so we ordered it, $96.00 complete
including shipping....

[<RJ>]

I've been looking for a good method too.....

It should be pretty straightforward to mount a sink "underneath"
but then
Unless the countertop is corian, or granite,
how would you seal/finish the cut in the ( formica ) countertop ?
It would always be exposed to water !
<rj>

[Lukas Louw]

What type of countertop material? Undermounts are the easiest with solid
types, anything else is a problem to finish the cutout edge.

Anyway - try http://www.faucet.com/.

We bought all the plumbing stuff for our recent remodel from them - near
wholesale prices, and just about everything under the sun you need, and easy
to navigate around.

You're best off building a supporting cradle for the undermounted sink,
instead of trying to hang it off the countertop - it may pull off due to the
weight when it's filled with water, so don't bother with the clip things.

Hope that helps,
Lukas Louw

[SChen68221]

I sucessfully converted my self rimming cast iron sink to an undermount style
during my kitchen renovation. It saved me a ton of money and gave it a modern
look and also gained me a couple inches in sink depth.

I casted my own concrete countertops to fit the sink where the walls of the
hole would fall at the flat portion of the sink rim. So there will be the
radius of the rim which drops down into the basin.

I supported the heavy sink from the cabinet not the countertop with wood planks
under the rim or under the sink itself. This makes countertop installation a
breeze because you can just slide it into place over the sink. A bead of good
silicone covers the union.

I have to say that it worked very well in almost every way, and looks modern
and makes cleaning up spills and crumbs easy as pie.

[NOSPAMBOB]

Our kitchen was redone last year and the paperwork with the Kohler sink warned
that it was NOT to be used as undermountas another was designed for that. The
Certifiable Kitchen 'Designer' said he always used it that way. Kohler
responded to an E-mail question that it was acceptable in that configuration
but I didn't pursue the warning. Ours rests on a rabber cut around the opening
for the sink so doesn't use the clips to hold it in place. Caulk seals between
granite and sink.

In article <tvi48pc...@corp.supernews.com>, "Mark Lammert"
<mlam...@healthlink.com> writes:

>Does anybody know or have experience with converting a self-rimming (or top
>mount) kitchen sink into a bottom mount kitchen sink...

Name works for E-mail

[Mark Lammert]

Okay, here are my thoughts on this...

The counter top is going to be tile... So, I have my plywood counter,
moister barrier, thinset, concreteboard, thinset, tile...

If I rabbet a groove along the perimeter of the hole of the sink and cover
the rabeted area the same way the rest of the counter will be covered minus
the tile, I think that will be completely moisture resistant... I mean, what
is keeping the rest of the counter from being exposed to water... You know
what I mean... Then when I got to lay the actual tile I would just tile up
to the edge of the sink...

If there is some serious flaw to my thinking, please let me know... But, it
seems to me it would not be exposed to water...

Thanks,
Mark

"<RJ>" <bara...@shen-heightsaccess.net> wrote in message
news:3bf97539...@news.shen-heightsaccess.net...

[WStehlin]

Mark
I have the same question and would appreciate any info you get that hasn't been
posted. When I asked a kitchen designer at Lowes, he said the rims on above
counter models slope slightly away from sink even though look flat, and this
would create sealing difficulty. Their below counter models weren't much more
$, but none had faucet holes in sink unit and they required separate holes in
countertop. In my situation, this wouldn't work since I am working with
existing cutout in soapstone countertop for 22*32 SS sink. I'm not concerned
about how to support sink since already plan to build support system
underneath, but rim that slopes away creates a sealing problem.
TIA.
Bill