Faucet Installation in Vancouver
Fitting a tap is rarely about the tap. It is about what is underneath — the age of the shutoff valves, the state of the supply lines, and whether the new tap matches the holes in your sink.
Checking the shutoff valves first
The first thing we do is test the isolating valves under the sink, because a tap change depends entirely on being able to stop the water. Valves that have not moved in fifteen years frequently will not close, or close and then weep once disturbed.
If a valve has failed, replacing it becomes part of the job and means isolating the water further back. It is worth knowing this is a realistic possibility on any older installation, rather than discovering it as a surprise partway through.
One-hole, three-hole and widespread sinks
Sinks are drilled for a specific configuration. A single-hole mixer will not directly fit a three-hole sink without a deck plate, and a widespread set needs holes at a particular spacing that a standard three-hole sink may not match.
Count the holes and measure the spacing between the outer two before buying anything. Getting this wrong is the single most common reason a new tap cannot be fitted on the day it arrives.
Replacing supply lines
We replace flexible supply lines as a matter of course when fitting a new tap. They are inexpensive, they degrade invisibly with age, and a failed supply line under a sink releases water continuously until somebody notices.
Braided stainless lines are the sensible specification. Given that the cost is trivial next to the damage a burst line causes in a condo — where it becomes your neighbours' problem too — this is not a corner worth cutting.
Deck plates and hole covers
A deck plate lets a single-hole tap sit on a three-hole sink by covering the two outer holes. Most manufacturers sell one to match their tap, and it is a clean, standard solution rather than a compromise.
Going the other way — fitting a widespread set to a sink drilled for a standard spread — is not solvable with a cover plate. That needs a different tap or a different sink, which is why measuring first matters.
What this costs
$370–$2,600 for most callouts
Performed by a licensed subcontractor at $185/hr with a two-hour minimum. Fixture swaps sit at the bottom of the range; re-piping a vanity or relocating a supply sits at the top. Permit-gated work is quoted separately.
Materials are always separate from labour and passed on at cost. Quotes are free and written, and the full rate card is published rather than given out on request.
Common questions
Will a new faucet fit my existing sink holes?
Only if the configuration matches. Count your holes and measure the spacing between the outermost two before buying. A single-hole tap can cover a three-hole sink with a deck plate, but the reverse does not work.
What if my shutoff valve is seized?
It becomes part of the job. Replacing a failed isolating valve means shutting off further upstream and adds time. It is a common finding on older installations rather than an unusual complication.
Should supply lines be replaced too?
Yes. They are inexpensive, they degrade with age in ways you cannot see, and a burst supply line under a sink runs continuously until discovered — which in a condo affects the units below yours as well.