Bathroom taps today are made to suit every budget and every possible type of bathroom design, consequently choosing the best bathroom taps can be confusing. Do you first consider how a tap is going to look, or is functionality more important. The first thing to consider whether or not you are fitting bathroom taps to an existing fixture such as the washbasin, bidet, or bath or you have purchased new fittings, is the fact that it will already have pre-drilled tap holes. It is necessary to purchase a tap fitting that matches those holes.
Three factors influence which type of tap is necessary, the number of taps from which the water flows, i.e. a single tap for both hot and cold water or two separate taps, or a single cold water tap, the number of holes in the fitting and the number of valves which control the flow of water. Taps are either low pressure or high pressure and high-pressure taps will not function efficiently with low water pressure.
You will almost certainly have high-pressure if the mains cold water goes directly to all cold taps and then travels directly to the hot water cylinder, or a combination boiler fed from the mains which uses hot water as you require it or a gravity fed system with a pump which increases the water pressure to more than 1.0 bar. However, all is not lost; if you have a low pressure system because purchasing a separate pump will increase the choice of taps that you will be able to buy.
As a general rule single lever ‘mixer’ taps need high water pressure, whilst taps with two handles can function with low pressure as can pillar taps.
Finishes for bathroom taps
The most expensive bathroom taps are made of stainless steel because they are very hard wearing there are often polished to maintain a high shine or a low sheen. The most popular material for bathroom taps is chrome and whilst in its natural state chrome is one of the hardest metals when it is used in conjunction with taps it is a plating of chrome rather than the solid metal to finish aluminium brass or copper. Chromium plated taps are resistant to corrosion and scratches and relatively easy to clean. Chrome plating can create different designs to much modern bathrooms and retro bathrooms because of their shine they appear cleaner. Their shiny metallic finish adds brightness and a clean modern look they can look spectacular when set against a dark blue or black bath.
Another beauty of using chrome taps is the fact they are easy to clean and chemicals can damage the plating the best way to clean chrome taps is to use a soft cloth and liquid soap.
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