How do I judge the quality of new taps to buy All aspects of plumbing questions and answers, help, tips and information

[donkey1]

I want to buy new taps for the bathroom. But there are dozens of suppliers. I can get a cheaper tap (Bath mixer with shower head) from a diy giant in their premium range at £130 or there are many suppliers (large and small) where the same design is at £200 - £400. The diy giant puts a 5 year guarantee on its taps, the same as the other suppliers.

I dont mind paying more for quality but the taps look the same.

Is there a real difference between premium diy giant taps and other suppliers?

And what questions should I ask of a manufaturer to judge the quality of their products?

[htg engineer]

It's all down to personal choice really, and how much you want to spend.

You can buy some cheap products that last as well as more expensive ones, and some are poor quality and will tarnish or the poorly coated chrome finish will crack and peel.

There's a few ways of looking at it,

Pay £400 for a good quality one, may last the life of the bathroom, but it may start looking tatty, parts to repair the tap may not be available in ten years time.

Or pay £130, it may also last the life of the bathroom, it might or might not look tatty quicker, but you could fit the original and then replace it for the same tap or similar twice in the next 10/15/20 years - for £390.

Hope it makes abit of sense - it's just my views, some say you get what you pay for, but it's not always the case.


htg