Well, in view of my latest post, which included my replacing a faucet, I thought I would list a few points that would be helpful to someone doing so themselves. My instructions had nothing about removing the old faucet, just installing the new, so I learned as I went.
1. Remember to turn off the water. There are probably two valves under the sink you can close off rather than the one for the whole house. If you replace those valves, though, you'll need the whole-house valve.
2. Get eye protection (I only did too late and ended up getting stuff in my eye, causing a scratch on the inside of my eyelid), a bucket, some absorbent rags; also you may need what's called a "shower valve socket wrench set"--I had to buy one. They're like hexagonal-shaped tubes so you can put them over all the pipe paraphernalia and get to the big hex nut that keeps the faucet central portion in place. You'll also need screw drivers (both kinds), a set of wrenches, maybe one adjustable wrench; and it would also be good to replace the hoses from the valves. I was happy that one of ours broke off at the connection to the valve--otherwise it might have broken later and caused huge damage. They were stiff and at 13 years old, needed replacing. Ours were only about 12" long. Measure the size of the valve connection and the connection at the other end. I didn't and ended up having to buy two sets just to be sure, and now I have a return to make.
You may also need a power saw. The reciprocating saw I used may have been overkill, but it worked better than any other option I could find. Without it I couldn't have gotten my new shower valve socket wrench over all the other stuff.
3. Get your kids busy doing other, engaging stuff. You don't want them messing with you when it gets difficult. Maybe your spouse or a babysitter would be a good intervention.
I hope this helps someone out there in the grim process, to actually enjoy the benefit of learning from my difficulty.
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