kitchen tap

[alexbartman]

I bought a nice looking monobloc mixer tap for my new kitchen - proble

is with my gravity fed Hot Water from the cylinder upstairs, the ho water pressure is hopeless through the tap and getting warm water i impossible as the cold is fed at mains pressure.....

I've closed the service valve a little on the cold - but its just no good. Was thinking of putting a booster pump (Grundfos 15-90) on th HW feed to the kitchen but this means major major hassles.

As the tap was cheap (new from ebay @ £40) - I beleive it has cerami discs - does anyone do nice modern taps that are suitable for gravit fed systems?? I've got no problems finding awful single taps tha look 'orrible......or should I go for the pump option? thanks

Ale

-- alexbartman

[Christian McArdle]

The problem is that mixer taps suitable for mixed operation can look unsuitable, as they have to be really chunky, which might not be the intended look.

Also, remember that some monoblocs mix at the tap body, rather than at the spout, so might not be suitable for non-potable hot water systems and will require check valves in any case.

Christian.

[Chris Bacon]

Have you considered things like this:

hate "ceramic discs". Rubber washers are easier and cheaper to fix (and may need fixing less often!).

[Christian McArdle]

Surely not? Every single compression valved tap in every house I've owned has eventually worn out its washer. I've never had a failed ceramic disc one. My procedure to fix a tap washer is to replace with a ceramic disc tap.

Christian.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

I bought a modern mixer - levers rather than handles - which had separate taps with 15mm fixings and like a fool thought it was ok for low pressure hot. Now my hot flow is as poor as a combi...

[mike]

alexbartman wrote in news: [e-mail]:

If you do go this way I suggest you avoid the Grundfos, and pay a bit extra for a Stuart Turner or something.

Mine failed to always running after about 18 months, and Grundfos would not supply spares, although it would have been easy to replace the whole electric package, which just plugs into the pump body. They must have hundreds in bins at the works.

I'm afraid they join Philips on my shit list

mike

[The Natural Philosopher]

In hard water areas ceramic disks leak eventually.

[Christian McArdle]

I live in an extremely hard water area. Compression taps only seem to last a couple of years. I've never seen a ceramic one fail.

I never will now, though (except possibly the kitchen tap) as I now have a water softener.

Christian.

[Guy King]

The message from The Natural Philosopher contains these words:

I have a coffee machine that has a ceramic disc valve in it. Sodding thing was so choked with scale when it stopped that the descaler couldn't get as far as where it was blocked. Could I find my tamperproof Torx bits when I needed them?

As for ceramic disc taps leaking - I've got one starting to go and we're in a hard water area.

[Chris Bacon]

I expect you'll be surprised.

If you don't do washered taps up as hard as you can, they last for ages, and washers are easy to change anyway, and cost pennies.

[Christian McArdle]

I just can't stand them, though. And my experience has been that ceramics are very reliable.

Christian.