How To Recast Your Sink
How To Recast Your Sink
By: Humberto Ferro Neto
Hi folks! Welcome back to our Craft Series Blog! Today we're going to talking about how to refinish your sink! We will also be going over what is needed, what prep needs to be done, how to do it, tips, and more. Let's jump in!
First let's talk about what you're going to need. You will need Ekopel 2k. Depending on the size of your project will depend on what kit you need. Our sink / shower pan recasting kit covers: 10-12 sq. ft. Our bathtub refinishing kit covers: 20-30 sq. ft. Our 2pk kit covers: 35-50sq ft. You can get these kits from us directly at: https://refinishedbathsolutions.com/ or Amazon. You will also need a stirring stick to mix the Part A and Part B components together properly. You will need A foam roll to spread the product properly. 220-320 dry grit sandpaper for prep. Lysol Power or any toilet bowl cleaner that has hydrochloric acid in it to etch. Depending on the unit you may need car bondo, which you can get from your local home depot or automotive store. A lint free cloth or paper towel. Painters tape, gloves, plastic or paper floor covering. This is to make less of a mess and have easier clean up! A hair dryer or heat gun to pop any and all bubbling even the ones you can’t see but show later. And lastly lots of love!!
Everything starts with the preparation of the sink. Starting with the existing coating that is already peeling off that should be removed with a scraper. Leave the parts that are actually in place and not peeling off. To improve the adherence of the epoxy, you should use sandpaper to remove more imperfections and make the surface more smooth to the touch. Even if it’s pretty smooth just give it a quick rough up. My tip to this is: do it manually, usually power tools are too strong and can damage the surface. This making it more difficult to fix later! Also remove any soap scum or limescale by etching with Lysol Power or any toilet bowl cleaner that has hydrochloric acid in it. If there is some rust or some holes, cracks, fissures on the surface that needs to be filled, use car bondo. Then sand smooth again. The whole area must be clean. Dusting and vacuuming the walls, the sink itself, ceiling, and shelves inside the bathroom is necessary to prevent particles from getting into the coating.
Next remove the drain hardware if you can, then put a lint free cloth or paper towels in the drain. Tape the drain and the existent holes, in order to avoid the product getting into the drain. This can cause a blockage. Some people prefer to remove the drain in order to avoid any future complications. For example letting the product getting into the hole making the hole smaller. Making it difficult for the drain to be put again in place later. The sides of the sink also should be taped, to avoid contact with the product in undesired areas. After the taping you will want to place a plastic, or paper furniture covering down. This is just in case ekopel spills or drips. It won't make a mess on your floor and will be easy to clean after!
Next pour all of Part B into Part A and mix by hand for 10 minutes. Wait 5 minutes, and then mix for another 2-3 minute. Make sure you hand mix and DO NOT use an electric mixer. If you use an electric mixer it would be too harsh, and will cause bubbles and foam that you might not be able to notice until after the pour. After mixing is done you will want to pour immediately or the material can get too hot in the container and start to harden. So make sure you are ready to pour after mixing!
FINALLY you are ready to start your pour!! You will want to start the application from the top of the sink. Allow the material to flow down into the bottom of the sink. Using a foam roller you should lightly start pushing the product up the first walls of the sink. From the bottom to the top gently to avoid marks, repeat the process until you have the product all over the surface of the sink. Once you have the product covering all the surface of the sink, you remove the excess material. Do this with the scooper box that is the wings of the box. After removing all excess material, it's time for using the heat gun or a hair dryer. Do this in order to pop all bubbles that might have been created during this process. Even the ones you don’t see that are called micro bubbles. You need to pop those or they will cause staining. I would recommend going over the entire unit with that heat gun or hair dryer to ensure you have popped them all. Even if it looks great, better safe than sorry!
Now you may think you are done at this point, but you are not! After 1 hour remove the tape dam. Hourly scoop off any / wipe any excess material off drain and floor tape. Wait until material stops moving onto the drain area. Which typically takes around 4-5 hours, then you can remove the remaining tape. To remove wet Ekopel from undesirable areas you do it with with alcohol or acetone if needed. Same if it's on your hands. If it’s dried the next day you can heat with a heat gun or hair dryer, scrape off what you can. Then use acetone to get the rest off. Wait 24-36 hours for it to fully dry and harden and then voilá, your sink is refinished!! We hoped you enjoyed this week's blog, and found it helpful with how to refinish a sink!
Ivana Mihailovic
Thank you Humberto for your blog and instructions.They are very helpful and useful for me .My sink is like new😃