A tale of two faucets

This week's task was to replace two faucets, to go along with the renovation of the bathrooms that my wife has been steadily doing.  We figure that the faucets are original with the house, and, well, they are in pretty bad shape.  Replacing the faucet was not hard, the problem was taking the old ones out.

Faucet 1

Faucet #2 with a base that has corroded through.

So the first task it get the tools.  Home Depot had some good instructions on replacing a faucet.  They also allude to the fact that hardest part is getting the old faucet off and I would need some extra tools.

iPad with instructions and some plumbing tools

So, I got a basin wrench for those nuts that were hard to reach under the sink and a locknut wrench for the locknuts that were holding the faucet in place.  The first faucet resisted the locknut wrench.  It finally came off after several days of using penetrating solvent into the faucet hookup.

The locknuts of faucet 1

And so faucet one was done.

One faucet done

The recalcitrant locknut and the beat up locknut wrench

Now for the second faucet.  This was harder because it was in a cabinet.  The standard nuts came off fairly easily.  But these locknuts were of tougher  stuff.

This locknuts did not just beat up the locknut wrench, they cracked it.

Locknut wrench showing battle damage in defeat

I finally decided to forget it and I cut off the stuck locknuts using an oscillating multi-tool.  After all, the faucet was so corroded that it was well beyond saving anyway.

The remnants of the locknuts and the tools that took them apart.

The replaced faucet

The end result, a second faucet done.