Sizes of tap washers

Any hardware like that to do with plumbing is always a different size than what we would normally measure sizes.

From years ago, plumbing or water pipes and fitting were what was or maybe still is Gas Pipe sizes, which is different to a normal or true size.

I suspect you bought a washer for a 3/4" tap (i.e. for a bath). What you probably wanted was a washer for a 1/2" tap (i.e. for a basin).

The dimension doesn't relate to any dimension of the tap, and is historic. (It's the BSP tap connector thread designed for an iron pipe of 3/4" or 1/2" bore respectively.)

There were also metric (probably) variations. When I had taps that used rubber washers I sometimes had to shave a little bit off "standard" 1/2" diameter ones to get them to fit the cupped "jumper" of the tap.

Save the garden tap all the others are now ceramic.

The hole the washers cover in a 3/4" tap is 3/4" so they have to be that bit bigger in order to overlap on to the tap seat.

harry wrote in news:1d86793a-1dc0-4ffb-a0a5- snipped-for-privacy@f18g2000vbs.googlegroups.com:

...then there are variations introduced by foreign manufacturers who have made "manufacturer specific" washers.

Can you take the tap mechanism to the store?

That's the name of them: BSP thread. I couldn't think what was last night, but then its like 10 years or more since I last had anything to do with them.

I knew what I meant even if no one else did:-)

Ah!

The other replies explain something that happened to me the week before last. I needed a bath plug around 42/43mm. I bought some in Tescos on the strength of the label, and found that they were actually the wrong size, 5-10mm too big.

I took them back and brandished a tape measure to 'prove' my point, but I guess they must have been marked with these notional historical sizes.

Downright c> I have just bought four tap washers from B&Q. They are made by Plumb

I have just found some Texas washers in the bottom of a tool box labelled 1/2", they are 3/4" in diameter and fit perfectly.

Easier to have a box of assorted sizes from Screwfix (or keep an eye out in Aldi / Lidl). There are lots of variations of tap design.

Buy a 5/8 tap washer, which will have a 3/4" outside diameter.

Could be you had a tap that used the so-called 'Pegler washer', or a 3/8" washer,? Both are a slightly harder rubber compound and a little smaller than a standard 1/2" washer.