Old-fashioned bath taps

[NY]

I've noticed in houses with very old plumbing, the bath taps are often side-entry

I can remember them in my parents' first house, probably built in the 1950s (we moved there in 1964 or 65). The older 1930s house in the same street that we moved to a few years later had conventional bath taps, but maybe because the original taps were old enough that they had been replaced.

Was this design just a styling fad, or was there an advantage - eg better flow rate because water only has to turn through 90 degrees rather than 180 degrees with modern bottom-entry taps.

Is there a name for this old design of bath taps?

I presume the abnormally large vertical offset between the side-entry pipe and the tap handle is there only because the entry point needs to be some distance below the top lip of the bath, and the handles need to protrude above the lip so they are easier to turn.

[Brian Gaff (Sofa)]

I had no idea there was such a discrimination. To me I don't care, my current bath has taps, they screw through the end of the bath, just like the previous bath had. If you want posh taps and posh showers etc, then get one. grin. Brian

[Graham.]

Supataps

[John]

Not Supataps.

[John]

Graham. wrote in news: [e-mail]:

Try Globe Tap or Globe Cock

[Roger Hayter]

I rhink it is largely due to the brittleness of cast iron. Holes near the edge would tend to fatigue and crack the narrow bit because of the repetitive flexing as the tap is operated.

[Graham.]

Thanks John, I have seen Supataps on a basin, and these on the bath and have always assumed they were Supertaps big brother.

Someone I know has a bathroom fitted out with Supataps and Globe taps, not because they are trendy, but they simply haven't updated since the '50s!

[Tim+]

Given that the pipes will rising from below or descending from above in the majority of cases, it?s not going to make any difference. The water will still have to negotiate two 90° bends. Even if the pipes came straight through the wall from behind (which would be a bit of a nightmare to plumb) there would almost certainly be elbows on the other side.

Tim

[John]

I think they were "old" in the 50s.

[Graeme]

In message <XnsAAF8A8A1BC922trainJPlantntlworldc@81.171.92.236>, John [e-mail] writes

Agreed. My grandparent's house had similar taps, and they were certainly ancient when I was growing up, in the 50s. Victorian house and I seriously doubt the taps had been changed since the family moved in, around 1929.

[cf-leeds]

My house had these globe taps on the cast iron bath when we first moved in 21 years ago. I replaced all the lead plumbing in the house shortly after moving in and I remember having to buy some Imperial thread elbows with a 22mm solder joint. The guy in the plumber's merchant told me I was lucky to find them.

I had to get rid of the cast iron bath about 4 years ago, after I finally gave up trying to keep the rust at bay. I couldn't bear to throw away the taps, and still have them. I'd happily give them to a good home if anyone's interested. That said, I see there are some great examples on ebay........

I remember also that the plumber's merchant said they didn't conform to modern regs, to back siphonage - Maybe nonsense (?)

[Harry Bloomfield, Esq.]

cf-leeds expressed precisely :

I think modern taps all have there spouts above a basin/sink/baths upper edge, so they cannot possibly back syphon.

[NY]

"Harry Bloomfield"; "Esq." [e-mail]> wrote in message news:qpcudi$1hm$ [e-mail]...

I've seen some houses, especially those with a Belfast sink, where the owners have attached a bit of hosepipe to the tap(s) to direct the jet of water to various places within the sink. thus making the outlet below the level that water could reach. I bet those don't conform to building regs :-)

[Steve Walker]

Flexing? Have you seen how thick and solid an old cast-iron bath is?

Cast-iron baths have several disadvantages, but one of their major advantages is lack of flexing - no movement when you step into one for a shower.

SteveW

[Roger Hayter]

Perhaps I should have said flexural stress, and noted that cast iron, as you say, shows very little movement. The stress is still there, and it is very brittle. Cast iron flanges are usually thickened and ribbed for this reason, to distrbute the forces.

[The Natural Philosopher]

And you can achieve the same effect on even a cheap plastic bath using bits of MDF glued on the outside with car body filler.