You have probably already heard the group text: somebody found a faucet on sale, somebody else says the old one is fine, and nobody has asked who is going to be standing in the cabinet with a flashlight. Settle that first. A faucet swap goes smoothly when every step has one owner, and it goes sideways when three people each assume another one is handling it.

Local option: New Plan Care gives families in the St. Louis area in-home help so a parent can stay home: companionship, help with bathing and dressing, meals, and overnight care. Call (314) 405-0887.

Before anything is ordered

Measure the sink holes before you shop. A single-hole faucet and a three-hole faucet are different parts, and the spacing between the holes matters too. Write those numbers down and put them in the family thread so the same measurement is not argued about twice.

Look under the sink at the shutoff valves and the supply lines. Turn each shutoff valve gently by hand. If it turns freely and closes fully, you are in good shape. If it is stiff, does not close, or drips when you touch it, stop. That is a plumber's call, not a weekend project, and you want to know that before the new faucet is sitting in the garage.

Decide who buys the part and who keeps the receipt. The person who buys it should also hold the warranty card and the packaging until the faucet has passed the test below. This is a small line item, but it is the one that gets lost.

The day of the swap

Confirm who is home and where Mom will be during the work. Clear the cabinet under the sink completely, and put down towels and a bucket. Have a second adult in the kitchen, even if they are only handing tools. Nobody should be alone on the floor with their head under a sink while water is moving through the lines.

Close both shutoff valves. Open the faucet to release any leftover pressure, then disconnect the old supply lines. Expect a small amount of water to come out. The bucket is for that.

Set the new faucet in the holes according to its instructions, tighten the mounting hardware from below, and connect the supply lines. Hand-tighten first, then add a small turn with a wrench. Over-tightening is the most common way a good new faucet starts dripping on day three.

The test that matters

Open the shutoff valves slowly, one at a time. Run the hot and cold water. Check the spray function if the faucet has one. Then go back under the sink with a dry paper towel and touch every joint and connection. Leave the towel in place and look again in an hour. A dry towel after an hour is the result you want. A damp towel is a leak you found before it became a stain on the cabinet floor.

Write the test result in the family thread, with the date you did it in plain words such as Monday morning, so the record shows the job was finished and checked.

If you hire it out

If a plumber does the swap, ask them to write the steps they will do, the parts they will supply, and the test they will run before they leave. Compare those written steps across the quotes you get, not just the final number. If you need a starting point for finding a qualified person, the local help page lists where to begin, and the start here page explains how to split the job and the bill fairly among the people involved.