Cheap & Easy DIY Off-Grid Kitchen Sink (Foot Pump Plumbing)

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   • 2025 - Year One  

JOURNAL:
January 15th. A bittersweet goodbye to the bucket today. As frustrating as it could be at times, washing dishes that way was a good reminder of how little you actually need to get by. Still, I finally got around to installing my kitchen sink.
Since I plan to keep using jug water—for easy refills at springs and in town—I decided on a foot-pump sink. It feels like the best way to stay mindful of water use when resources are scarce. An electric pump makes it too easy to forget yourself, to treat the sink like one in a conventional kitchen… right up until the water runs out.
The install itself went smoothly - at least, I thought it did. When I primed the pump and sent the first water through the system, I quickly found my mistake. One section of silicone tubing had slipped onto the barbed fitting a little too easily. I’d assumed a hose clamp would keep it watertight.
It didn’t.
The first pump sprayed water everywhere. A mess. But I suppose if you do enough projects, a few upsets are inevitable.
I made a trip to Lowe’s and found the proper-sized nylon fitting (I wanted brass, but none were in stock). That’s when I realized the error: I’d bought a 3/8” barb when I needed a 1/2” and somehow never caught it.
The new fitting solved everything. The sink is officially ready for dishes.

January 16th. Put the sink through its paces this morning with a solid load of dishes. There’s a bit of a learning curve - almost like rubbing your head while patting your stomach. But I can tell it’ll become second nature before long.
And it really is nice to have a sink.

LINKS:
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This video is NOT sponsored. Some product links are affiliate links which means if you buy something I'll receive a small commission. So thank you!

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