The hot tap is on the left

[zaax]

It's not in the regs., and as far I can see it's worldwide

[Roger]

The message from "zaax" < zaax [e-mail] contains these words:

Cold taps came first and as 90% of the population are right handed the obvious place for the cold tap is on the right. Having the hot tap on the left also helps the wimps in the UK as the hot tap is still often low pressure and easier to turn off.

[Roger Mills]

It's certainly true that mixer taps seem to be supplied with hot on the left, and it may be *convention* to install separate hot and cold taps in the same way. However, convention isn't always followed!

I have several locations in my house where hot and cold are the other way round - simply due to the convenience of pipe runs. As long as they're clearly marked - with words or red and blue inserts - it doesn't really matter.

[robgraham]

Well, well, well - that's another urban myth exploded !

I was brought up with the fact that the Scots plumbers put the hot on the left and the cold on the right as quoted above, and that the English did it the other way round.

Rob

zaax wrote:

[Adrian C]

If you or someone have just suffered a burn and you are in panic to apply cold water, the dominant right hand should be closer to the cold tap.

However if you are left handed, or have suffered a burn to the right hand, than it will take just a little longer to register a work around to this ;-)

-- Adrian C

[Rick Hughes]

It is also there for blind people ...

[ironer]

It's always been my understanding that it is favoured by hoteliers because most people are right handed & thus less likely to turn on the energy consuming hot tap at their first 'need water' impulse.

[Andy Hall]

I can confirm (from a sample of many hundred hotels) that hot on the left or in the left direction with a mixer faucet is pretty much universal.

They have a number of games like this.

Another common one is asking customers to re-use towels because of the environmental impact of washing detergents.

I have a difficult time believing that that is their true motivation.

The most irritating are those with a card operated switch near the door where one needs to insert a card to operate the electricity. This again is sold on an eco basis.

I wouldn't mind were it not for the poor implementations. Many of them turn off all the power in the room immediately the card is removed. These are the ones where generally only the room key card works - a business card doesn't do it. It isn't helpful suddenly being plunged into darkness. The more acceptable have a timer that cuts the power about a minute after the card is removed.

However, again they excel when the card switch turns off *all* power in the room. I wouldn't mind if it were just the lights, but I would like to charge my notebook, PDA, iPod, iPhone etc.

[Ed Sirett]

Whatever the reason there is certainly a convention. The biggest argument that this is slightly more than a matter of taste is that some thermostatic mixers will _require_ the supplies to the "correct" way around.

[Adrian C]

Stayed recently in a hotel in Austria, which had a main switch by the door which killed all power to the room including that supplied to the bedside clock radio :-|

-- Adrian C

[The Medway Handyman]

Irritating that. That they assume you are stupid enough to believe that their motivation is 'green' and not 'saving a few bob'.

Even more annoying, the multitude of signs warning about scalding, slipping etc. Like no one booking a hotel room has any common sense.

Foretunately my days of staying away from home are behind me.

[Roger Mills]

I've found in one or two that the only thing which stays on is the fridge. So, as long as it's not hard wired, and you have a suitable 2-way adapter . . .

[Owain]

I'm sure you could still find hotels that would allow you to use as much electricity as your pound in the slot meter would buy you, if you really looked...

As a small child I can remember thinking we'd gone upmarket the first time we stayed in a hotel that didn't have a shilling[1]-in-the-slot meter for the one-bar electric fire in the room.

Admittedly my childhood holidays were usually in Scotland.

Owain

[1] Probably 10-bob.

[adder1969]

I once almost scalded my hand by using a mixer tap where the tap on the left had a red band around it so I turned on the tap on the right thinking it would be cold and very hot water came out. Turned out the "tap" on the left was actually the temperature select for the thermostatic valve.

[Andy Hall]

Are these the kind that charge by the hour for the room?

Aberdeen?

[Stuart Noble]

Gadget man!

[John Laird]

Provided one can see.

It's not usually that difficult to cross pipes under the sink.

[Andy Hall]

I know. I can't resist them. I do mainly have Apple stuff (basically because it seems to work well for me)

When I go to customers I regularly get positive comments about the Mac from them because most have to put up with their corporate Windows machines.

Actually I don't have an iPhone yet but am sorely tempted. It does run OS X after all.

[Owain]

I have no idea whatsoever about such establishments - wouldn't the exercise keep you warm?

Cape Wrath, among other places.

Owain

[Stuart Noble]

Whatever turns you on