Monobloc taps

[Bill M]

I have an Ideal Standard Idyll monobloc basin tap, but I would think that most monoblocs are the same when it comes to the tails.

The Idyll comes with rubber 'O' rings which compress as the (10 mm) tails are tightened.

Should they:

i) Have their threads smeared with LS-X and tightened

ii) Be wound with PTFE and tightened

iii) Just murdered up tight

iv) ???

Idealy I want to bend the tails towards the back of the basin so as they clear the pop up waste, but if they are bent, then need to be tightened some more they will point in the wrong direction!

Any tips/advice appreciated. It would be a real pain if they weep/leak.

Thanks

Bill

PS I am just using the Google posting form. Is it possible to anti-spam your email address using it?

[Lurch]

On 14 Apr 2004 10:36:42 -0700, in uk.d-i-y [e-mail] (Bill M) strung together this:

Any of the above, I've not had any leak yet with just the o ring though. If you wanted to be extra sure you could add a bit of whatever you like to the seal.

Make sure you tighten them up before you bend 'em then!

Nope.

[Andrew Gabriel]

I smear threads (or rather the o-ring) with a silicone rubber lubricant (commonly used with push-fit plastic fittings and gutters) so the o-ring slides easily as the tails are tightened and doesn't risk being mangled. I tighten enough that it won't come loose, but the thread isn't the water seal -- doesn't need to be very tight.

Actually, I don't usually use the tails supplied with the tap. You can buy flexible tails with 10mm threads at the tap end and I use these. Wickes do a packet with two, each has a different length 10mm section so the tightening nuts don't clash. Last basin I did I used two of these packs and the longer 10mm section flexible tails from both packs, which allowed the pop-up waste to fit between them. (The remaining tails got used on the kitchen sink with no pop-up waste, and were fitted to the monoblock before it was set into the worktop.)

[David Moodie]

No harm

No harm

in danger of shagging the o-ring

tighten then up by hand and then give them another 1/4-1/2 turn and it should be OK.

A tenner for a pack of flexible tails is one option, this is what the monoblock I recently bought came with... but then I had to go our and buy another set as the compression fitting on the other end was for 12mm...

cheers

David