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Bathroom Potential
When deciding on the budget for your bathroom taps,
it is important to consider the finish that you wish
to achieve. In a kitchen, you can buy a budget
kitchen and add more expensive doors, work surfaces
and handles, to make it look a million dollars. The
same theory can be applied to bathrooms. A
reasonably-priced suite can be made to look more
expensive with cleverly chosen taps. However, it is
important to remember that this theory can also been
applied to the contrary, if you team your bathroom
suite with cheap-looking budget taps, this will
reduce the calibre of your bathroom design overall.
Investing in high-quality bathroom taps is,
therefore very important.
Complement the design of your ceramics
When choosing your bathroom taps, the basis of your
ceramics design should be considered as a key
influence. If your bathroom suite is very angular
and geometric, then taps with a high level of
curvature would not match. The shape of spout and
handles should both be thought about. A lever tap
denotes a contemporary, angled finish, when combined
with straight or square-based spouts.
For a rounded-front basin, a tap design with a
curved spout or round handles balances these
features, and moves towards a better designed
bathroom. Before purchasing your taps, ensure that
you consider all the items in your suite, from the
basin, to the bath and also to the shower fixtures,
to ensure all products will tie in together. It is
worth buying all of your items from one
manufacturer, as they will often supply showers as
well as taps, and their ranges will harmonise with
each other.
Practicalities
If you are elderly, or have joint or arthritis
problems, the design of your taps is crucial. Taps
that have little ergonomic consideration in their
design are difficult to grip, turn and therefore
turn on and off. This becomes even more of an issue
if you do suffer with joint problems, as they can be
painful to use. A lever tap offers a solution; they
are easy to use, without any reduction in
efficiency. The tight sealing of valves in modern
taps means that there is no longer the need to screw
them as tight as possible to prevent them dripping;
they can be turned over with a simple move of the
lever.
Lever taps are also more hygienic; professions where
cleanliness and hygiene is rife have been using
these designs for decades; it is important to
doctors, dentists and vets alike that germs are not
spread. A simple lever attached to the taps allows
them to be turned on and off with an elbow, or side
of the arm, meaning germs are not transferred from
the handle directly back on to a clean hand. These
designs have now moved in to the public and domestic
domain in the move towards lever taps, which also
reduce the surface area available to transfer germs
from and to.
Mix it up
Mixer taps or monobloc taps are different to
individual taps, in that they combine the flow of
hot and cold water in to one unit. These single taps
can have one handle to control flow and temperature,
or two, but the water flow comes out of a single
outlet. The benefit of using a single unit is that
it allows less brassware to feature on your
ceramics, making the appearance more minimalistic,
and an optimum temperature can be achieved by
combining the hot and cold water.
Hudson Reed is a well-renowned supplier of taps,
accessories, mixer showers and heated towel rails
and you can be assured that their products are of a
high calibre. They offer a mix of traditional and
contemporary designs, and different options for
handles, so that you can be sure they will have a
range to suit you.
Checklist for choosing taps
1.Who are the main users of the tap?
This may influence both the type of tap, and the
budget you assign to your taps
2.What type of décor and accessories feature in your
bathroom?
Taps need to complement existing items, both in
colour and design
3.What is the general shape of your bathroom suite?
For angular designs, use straighter taps and curves
suit more rounded designs.
4.Do you have any special items that need to be
considered?
A freestanding bath might have special requirements
when choosing your taps.
5.Have you considered, and make a list of all the
items you require taps for?
You will need to choose a range that caters for all
your items, so that they match.
6.What type of waste are you using?
Some taps come with wastes attached, so this needs
to be considered
7.What is the depth of your ceramics; from the tap
hole to the wall?
A tap with a pull waste lever attached to the back
would require room to operate.
8.How many tap holes have you got on your ceramics
(especially baths)?
A monobloc mixer tap will not fit in to two tap
holes. Baths are often supplied with no tap holes.
Drilling of extra taps holes is an additional
costing to consider.
9.What is your budget?
The type, design and brand of tap will be very much
dependant on your budget.
By: Ruth Brown
Article Directory:
http://www.articledashboard.com
Ruth works in Marketing at WD Bathrooms, to view a
range of their products, visit WD Bathrooms or to
view more of her work go to the WD Bathrooms News
Archive..
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