Advice on a New Kitchen Mixer Tap

LCunning Linguist on 05/11/2018 - 23:43

So our kitchen tap has developed a leaky hairline fracture and needs to be a replaced. I'm handy enough to replace it on my own but I don't know much about what to buy. Prices seem to range anywhere from $50 to $2000 so does anyone have any experience with this sort of thing on what brands to buy and what to avoid? What's cheap and nasty and what is just over priced? I'm inclined to get one with a pull out hose.

Also I feel like this is the sort of thing that you would almost never have to pay full retail price on - does anyone know good online stores to get good quality taps at decent prices?

I see what looks like the same taps on eBay from Australian stores for almost a 10th of the price but not confident they aren't cheap chinese knock offs.

thanks!

Home & Garden

Comments

  • Nugs on 06/11/2018 - 06:20

    avoid lead….

    i made mistake of cheap pull out type, the handle started leaking after 18 months or so. not sure it was really all that useful either, not like in a shower where can be used to rinse walls after cleaning.

    .

  • Euphemistic on 06/11/2018 - 06:26

    Buy cheap, buy twice.

    Buy something with a 10y warranty and a known brand name. ‘Designer’ is for suckers.

  • altomic on 06/11/2018 - 07:35

    I bought a cheap chinese knock off from ebay. that was 6 years ago.

    I was adding a 2 stage water filter at the same time. a tap that offered dual control from bunnings was ~$250.

    on ebay I got the same tap for $65 from china.

    when fitting the flex hoses to tap - don't over tighten. tighten by hand. and use a dozen turns of teflon tape. don't use a spanner to tighten. if you tighten to much then the O ring will get squashed and will leak.

    also don't let flex hose kink when attaching to the water supply.

    do you have a dual sink? if so then make sure the tap bolt is very tight. I didn't tighten mine when i first installed it. so the whole tap would swivel (which was fine) but the movement meant one of the flex hoses developed a very small leak after 5 years and needed replacing. (flex hoses are required to be replaced at some point as the rubber inside does eventually deteriorate.)

    don't get a pull out hose. sounds like a good idea - personally found it gimmicky and avoided it when replacing my tap.

  • John Kimble on 06/11/2018 - 07:57
    +1

    https://www.bunnings.com.au/estilo-wels-4-star-7-5l-min-chro…

    We bought this one and were pretty happy with it. I wanted to keep it when we renovated our kitchen, but I forgot to take it off and the tradies accidentally broke it when they were demoing the kitchen.

    Wife was happy she got to buy a taller more expensive one…

    But yeah, hose is great in some situations.

  • [Deactivated] on 06/11/2018 - 10:26

    Pull out ones with spring coil, not the crappy handheld shower head curly flex hose.

    I have 6 of them (all for the one sink?) and they are durable. They're all paired with large basins large enough for sauce pans and woks.

    Cheapest one was $300ish. A little chunky.
    Expensive ones were $800ish. Feels more robust even though it has far more finesse than the $300 one.

    • John Kimble on 06/11/2018 - 10:37

      Aren't the springs a PITA to clean?

      • [Deactivated] on 06/11/2018 - 10:40

        It would be if it got grimy. It has never got grimy.

        Dust comes off easily with wiping.

        • Cunning Linguist on 06/11/2018 - 11:37

          Do you have a link for the two models you have by any chance? Something with a spring was what I had in mind.

          This is one I'm considering:

          https://www.bathroomtradeshed.com.au/collections/kitchen-sin…

          There is an identical looking one on ebay for about $80, so I'm guessing that has to be a knock off

          • [Deactivated] on 06/11/2018 - 11:51

            @Cunning Linguist: No chance. This was installed years ago.

            It looks similar to the one you linked. I noticed the very cheap ones (cheaper than my selection) weighed less. I suspect the mixer component (don't know the technical name) is plastic. The mixer handle usually comes detached or is detachable. You will be able to see the components yourself. Beware of chrome "plated" plastic.

            The better ones were predominantly brass internals.

            The more expensive one is also bare stainless steel. Much more expensive to manufacture than chrome or powder coat but won't have to worry about the finish chipping or flaking.

  • hawkeye on 06/11/2018 - 11:30

    John Kimble 3 hours 26 min ago
    https://www.bunnings.com.au/estilo-wels-4-star-7-5l-min-chro…

    Was looking at this brand last week they come with 10 year warranty and for the extra couple of dollars over ebay it's a no brainer

  • Cunning Linguist on 06/11/2018 - 13:37

    Is there a big noticeable difference between a 5L/min and a 7L/min?

  • [Deactivated] on 11/11/2018 - 00:16

    I certainly don't disagree that buying cheapies might not last so long but would a tap that cost $1000 last 10 times longer than a tap that cost $100, probably not. Don't buy too cheap, but don't assume that more expensive is better value.

  • frostman on 12/11/2018 - 20:24

    Avoid Avoid shit from eBay,
    They're all Chinese knock-offs designed to look like $1,000 and cost $35.
    Reason being is that they will leak and install is a nightmare.

    Do yourself a favour, go down to Bunnings and grab a well-known; Caroma mixer tap and call it a day
    Yes it's expensive but will last you a decade

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