Need a new kitchen faucet. What is a good quality brand to look for? I'm leaning toward Delta or American Standard at Lowe's but really don't know anything about the relative quality of the different brands. Any guidance would be appreciated.
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i've been doing side-jobs and home improvements on the side for most of my life. i've installed more faucets than i can count, although i'm sure it's over 200.
i have seen no relation between quality and brand, but definitely a relationship between quality and price.
all the cheap ones are horrible, all the expensive ones are good.
they are pricey in general, the decent ones start at $150, the better ones start at $200.
no matter what someone's budget, i always tell them not to skimp on the faucet. the cheap ones leak and everything comes loose in about a year.
my 3¢
but i hope someone can directly answer your question and specifically recommend a brand, though. for example "the chrome on Kohler always flakes" or "Moen is by far the best." i have seen no relationship.
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The local plumbers tell me that the Delta fixtures you buy from Lowes are of lower quality than the Delta fixtures you buy at an independent plumbing supply house.
Just passing that along...
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all the cheap ones are horrible, all the expensive ones are good.
My insurance company would likely disagree - had an $800 Franke fauct split a connection (cheap plastic) and flood my entire downstairs - $76k in damages!!!!
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I wouldn't really call Moen a high-quality brand. Just an ok mediocre brand.
Grohe, Hansgrohe, Jado, Blanco are what I consider higher quality brands.
BTW, I've been around upscale homes, and construction for 20+ years.
Totally agree. My Moen in my kitchen sink has given me a lot of trouble. The great thing about Moen is their customer service. They sent me a brand new faucet no questions asked, which has started dripping again. I'll call and get them to ship me a new free washer.
Delta also has excellent customer service. They sent me two new hot and cold water valves free when the old ones seized up.
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The local plumbers tell me that the Delta fixtures you buy from Lowes are of lower quality than the Delta fixtures you buy at an independent plumbing supply house.
Just passing that along...
During my recent construction project, I learned the same thing from my plumber. He actually showed me two "identical" faucets -- one from Home Depot, and the other from the local plumbing supply store that cost a bit more. They looked the same on the outside. But the "guts" -- fittings, washers, bushings, and so on, were of much lower quality on the big-box store version.
I forget what brand he demonstrated with, but his advice was "I won't install parts from the big-box stores."
Cheers, John
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During my recent construction project, I learned the same thing from my plumber. He actually showed me two "identical" faucets -- one from Home Depot, and the other from the local plumbing supply store that cost a bit more. They looked the same on the outside. But the "guts" -- fittings, washers, bushings, and so on, were of much lower quality on the big-box store version.
I forget what brand he demonstrated with, but his advice was "I won't install parts from the big-box stores."
Cheers, John
As I posted before, I too have seen this with my own eyes. I usually buy from specialty suppliers, but on a weekend the only places open are the big boxes. So having a plumbing emergency one weekend I took some fittings in to match at Home Cheapo.(no offense np) Much to my surprise, the IDENTICAL part, same manufacturer, same part number, same everything, was a MUCH different part. Sure it served the same purpose and said it met the same standards, but there was a visual difference in quality. I don't know how this is done, whether they are "reject" parts that are being sold as good parts, or whether they are maybe "B" lot parts and all the "A" lot parts go to the specialty stores, or maybe they were Chinese knock offs. I don't know, but that experience changed the way I do stuff and I avoid the big box stores EVEN MORE now. There stuff is cheap, but there IS a reason for that, and you will never know it unless yuo hold the two parts from the two different suppliers side by side and compare them.
Moen is junk plain and simple. I knew a few engineers that worked there some years ago. It is a revolving door and those with the cheapest proposal, regardless of quality, keeps his/her job.
They used to have a manufacturing facility near here. They closed it about 2 years ago and sent everything to China. It was garbage when it was made here, now it is just total crap. The reason the customer service is so good is because they have pennies in each faucet they sell for $150.
I have Delta a Kohler in my house. Can't say they are the best, but they have a few miles on them and still work great.
We bought a high end Kohler and have been happy with it.
Moen is weird, we did a remodel on the old house in 97 put in two identical Moen faucets, one did not get as much uses as the other but both lasted pretty well. Put in another Moen and it died in 6 months, replaced it with another under warranty and it died. The original was a much better part than the newer ones.
Most of it is crap, spend the most you can get away with on a major brand. JMHO, YMMV. Richard.
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I just realized I mentioned the wrong faucet, we have Grohe in our kitchens and have been very good with the exception of one that had a black handle and the coating is coming off. I am amending my prior response.
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The maintenance engineeer I work with swears by Delta. He says parts are easiest to come by. I tried a Price Pfister years ago, and parts were very hard to find.
used Kohler for a little over 20 years in 4 different houses and 12 different models..styles etc..i really like the quality and have never had any issues...plus the parts are easy to get if needed (haven't yet)...and they also sell matching accessories like towel racks that match the family of faucet ...you can sometimes find deals on ebay and craigslist
Well I work in a time share resort. Probably 700 faucets that get used and abused multiple times a day 365 days a year. We use primarily Delta for the above stated reason that the parts are well stocked by most plumbing places and HD/Lowes etc. Most of their seals are vvery easy to replace. To me being able to get a part ten years from now for a faucet is important. Can you say you can get a part for one of the upscale faucets on a Sunday afternoon when all of a sudden it spouts water out the handle or something else bad, wile your having a party at your house??? Probably not....just something to think about.
I think the Delta units are fine.......for most normal people. I can't speak for the other 53%.
Also I have a Moen Kitchen faucet that is ten years old and no issues or leaks...yet. All the others in my house are Delta and also about ten years old. No problems....so far. I did change the seals in all of them when I bought the house. I have replaced a few seals from time to time. We have hard water and it sometimes messes up the seals with scale.
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moen or delta are good. Stay away from the off (HD, Lowes) brands, price fister etc.
Grohe, Blanco etc. are really expensive and nice, but not necessary. You can't go wrong with Moen or Delta - any level of fixture from builder basic to fancy.
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I wouldn't really call Moen a high-quality brand. Just an ok mediocre brand.
Grohe, Hansgrohe, Jado, Blanco are what I consider higher quality brands.
BTW, I've been around upscale homes, and construction for 20+ years.
Rob is correct, these are the highest quality brands, but a lot of the cost must be due to the expensive casting. these are often very unusually shaped fixtures that look awesome. i design castings for a living and i love to look at these things.
Jado is more popular in the commercial realm: bars and restaurant bathrooms, and that should tell you something.
i still say that for the home, unless you go cheapo, you will be okay.
and like Corey said, the more popular faucets will have greater availability of replacement parts - washers, and the like, which you may need in about 5 years.
When I remodeled my house about 6 years ago I installed Grohe, Hansgrohe, Jado and Kohler in the kitchen, bathrooms and laundry room. You can feel the quality on the mechanism and the casting. I have never had bad luck with the lower quality ones, but the feel is not there.
They do have a premium price but it is justified IMO.
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