Fixture Restoration FAQ

More and more of my energy at this point, the beginning of 2015, is being directed toward the restoration projects people ship to me. I am working on an average of three projects at a time on the bench. The normal order of events on a project are:  

Regarding My Restoration Work

More and more of my energy at this point, the beginning of 2015, is being directed toward the restoration projects people ship to me. I am working on an average of three projects at a time on the bench. The normal order of events on a project are:

1.  Initial contact, I have an old...   "Can you? Would you? How long? How Much?" In general the answers are Yes, yes, between one and six months depending, My regular plumbing rate which is now $120 an hour.

This rate pertains to actual bench time. If I charged folks for the actual time I invest while emailing, shipping, phone time with manufacturers, research, uploading, downloading, and the sourcing of parts, I would get lonely. Or I would be charging a lot less an hour. As it happens $120 is what I charge when I am on a call in a client's home. 

I am inherently creative, not inherently organized so there is no way I could keep track of my efforts devoted to each of the various projects before me at a given time. If I were inherently organized I would have 20 people working for me and would think you were crazy for even asking me to fix a fifty year old faucet, just like everyone else. 

2. Estimates of cost, difficulty, and duration of the project. This is best done via email so that I have a record of what I said. I will usually want lots of photos and some history. I will provide a project email for this exchange.

3. Shipping and receiving. I prefer not to receive porcelain handles because I see no advantage to risking them in shipping. If they are to be sent they should be dismounted and wrapped separately. I will confirm arrival via email.

4. Disassemble, clean, and appraise condition of individual parts.

5. Source parts, consult machinists and or re-plater, form a restoration strategy.

6. Wait! For parts, answers to queries, in line at the machine shop, in line at the plating shop.

7. Reassembly, the fitting of or making of the required gaskets and seals. The actual assembly and the pressure testing of valves and joints.

8. Notification of completion and invoicing.

9. Final shipping.

Please remember that restoration is a creative process subject to uncertainty and epiphany like all creativity. 

Thanks, Brian.