| When it's time to clean or repair a sink faucet spray | | | | holes. Replace badly worn or misshapen washers, and |
| nozzle, be very careful since there is an array of | | | | flush out all parts by holding them upside down in a |
| small parts involved. Unscrew the aerator from the | | | | full stream of water before reassembling the aerator. |
| end of the spout with tape-wrapped pliers. | | | | On some models you can unscrew the tip of a spray |
| Disassemble the parts inside the aerator body and | | | | nozzle by hand. More often it is secured by a Phillips |
| set them aside in the correct order and orientation: a | | | | screw and the screw may be concealed by a cover. |
| part reassembled upside down will keep the aerator | | | | Pop the cover out with a screwdriver of penknife, |
| from working. | | | | remove the retaining screw and disassemble the |
| Whatever its design, your aerator will contain a | | | | internal parts. |
| plastic or rubber washer, a disk perforated by tiny | | | | Clean or replace these parts as you would those of |
| holes or a sawtooth edge, and one or more screens. | | | | an aerator; before reassembling them, run water |
| A more complex model may also have a disposable | | | | through the spray head at full force for a minute or |
| adapter for internal and external spout threads, and | | | | two. Do not try to repair the mechanism inside the |
| air-intake holes in the outer shell. | | | | spray head. If defective, this sealed unit should be |
| Clean the screens with a small stiff brush; use the | | | | replaced by an identical model from the manufacturer. |
| brush and a toothpick to clean out disk and intake | | | | |