Can You Refinish a Sink for Your Bathroom Vanity? Here’s What You Need to Know

Thinking about replacing your bathroom sink? Discover how refinishing a sink for your bathroom vanity can save money, reduce waste, and restore a like-new look.

Why Choose Sink Refinishing?

Let's face it, sinks get a lot of hard use. But when your sink is looking damaged, stained or dated, they can really be an eyesore. While many sinks are small an easy to replace, some may be undermounted or an irreplaceable shape or design. At those times, you can refinish a sink to save your bathroom vanity.

Sink Refinishing uses the same materials used in bathtub refinishing to give your sink a like new surface. Any minor imperfections are repaired before refinishing to have the best possible final finish. But if your sink has major damage, like rusting or cracking, then it may be better to think about replacing.

What Type of Bathroom Vanity Sinks Can Be Refinished?

• The most common types of sinks are porcelain or fire-glazed ceramic. These are set into all different kinds of counters either by over mount or undermount.

• The second most common is cultured marble (composite) sinks. These sinks are formed into the the rest of the countertop seamlessly.

What Types of Sinks Cannot Be Resurfaced?

• Metal sinks, such as stainless steel or copper

• Natural Stone Sinks

• Sealed Cement

Benefits of Refinishing Your Bathroom Vanity Sink.

• Less mess and downtime versus replacing

• Keeps functional items that cannot be recycled, out of landfills

• Preserves your vanity that may otherwise be destroyed or altered

When Sink Refinishing Makes Sense?

• Sink has some minor scratches or even surface cracks

• Sink has permanent discoloration or stains

• Sink is the wrong color and needs to match the new décor

• Sink is dull and hard to clean

When Replacing May Be A Better Option?

• Major cracks that leak or appear to go all the way through to the bottom

• Major rusting

• Needing to change the shape of the bowl

• Planning on replacing the bathroom vanity under/on the sink

How to Prepare For Sink Refinishing?

In order to get the best possible finish for your bathroom vanity sink, and due to how small most sinks are, it is required to have the drain and faucets removed from the sink prior to refinishing. While it may seem easy to take the drain out and the faucets off, we often encounter water issues with the shutoff valves under the sinks. That can be a difficult plumbing issue. So it is always recommend to have a skilled plumber remove the fixtures before refinishing. The benefit to this is that it will be easy to add new fixtures to the sink after we are done, if you are looking at upgrading them too.

As with all other refinishing, it is best to do this when no other work is being done, especially dusty projects. To prevent damage or staining of the new surface, we also recommend doing refinishing towards the end of a remodel.

Maintaining a Refinished Vanity Sink

• Avoid any substances with strong dyes as this can permanently stain the sink

• Clean the sink regularly with refinishing friendly cleaners

• Ensure the water shuts off fully and fix minor drips when they occur