Bathroom Faucet Buying Guide That You Really Need To Read
Written by Wilfred WeiheAre you tired of looking at your old and outdated faucet and you would like to get it replaced, or you are in a position of redoing your whole bathroom, and you have the opportunity to get them replaced? If you are looking for an upgrade of you old and rusty faucet and you don't know where to start looking for the best option, this buying guide will help you and lead you through the process. If you want to know which are the most important things you need to know and check before the purchase, read on or check these best rated bathroom faucets.
THE BASICS
What a bathroom faucet actually is?They are special kind of faucet designed especially for bathrooms.
They are a piece of stationary who don't use any swivel or pull-down spouts, they use the simple technology of just turning the handle, and they start to work.
INSTALLATION TYPE
One of the important things you need to consider is the installation type because there are few different options available.If you have already bought the sink, you have to be careful because not all faucets fit all the sinks.
If you are replacing only the faucet the new one needs to have the same number of holes otherwise it won't be able to fit.
Like I have said, there are few different options available, and this are the ones:
WIDESPREAD
In this case, we have two pieces: the handles and the spout.In this type, you have handles which are not connected to the spout, and they are around 8 inches apart from each other.
They are connected to the sink with the help of some tubing and piping.
The good thing about this specific type is that they are easier to clean because you can reach all the surface without any problem.
MINI-WIDESPREAD
This is the second type, and it is a similar thing to widespread faucets.It is the same thing, but here the handles are usually 4 inches apart from each other.
They are low profile, and they are great if you don't have an option for having a widespread installation because it is the same thing but in smaller place.
CENTERSET
The third option is to get the faucet installed in one unit where the faucet spout and the handles are joint.But be careful – even though it looks like a one piece unit, the sink has three holes, and you need to purchase a faucet with three holes.
These faucets are looking really good, but they are not as easy to get cleaned because of the small amount of space between the spout and the handles.
SINGLE HOLE
The last but not the least of options is the single hole faucet which has everything in one piece, and the sink also has one hole only.They are great if your sink is a little bit smaller because there will be a lot of space saved with this one and you will be able to clean it easily.
FINISH
Okay, another important thing is the finish because it is important that you have a faucet which is compatible with the bathroom décor.There are also few options available, and you can simply choose the one you prefer and the one that suits your space best.
CHROME
If you are looking for a finish that can be fit into any bathroom décor and it is easily cleaned, Chrome is the one for you.It is one of the most common and most popular finishes on the market because it reflects light very good, has a great surface, it is easy to get cleaned, etc.
There might be one thing which can be annoying is that the fingerprints and other spots are easily visible and you will probably have to wipe them down many times.
BRUSHED NICKEL
Another very popular finish is brushed nickel which is not as shiny as chrome, but it is a similar color to silver metal but a little bit less clean.If you are looking for a faucet which doesn't need to be cleaned that much because the fingerprints are not as visible as on chrome finish, this is the one for you.
BRASS
If we move on, we get to the brass finish which is a little bit less common.Because of the specific looks, it is great if you have a marble or any other stone countertop because it brings up the contrast and the bathroom will look magnificent.
If you want to hide all the fingertips and spots, you should go and choose the non-shiny brass which will hide them, and that means less cleaning for you.
OIL RUBBED BRONZE
If you are not for light and shiny finishes, here is a little bit darker option for you.Oil rubbed bronze finish is somewhere between black and brown and has a very specific look which can be added to any bathroom décor.
The only bad thing about this is that you will easily get it dirty with toothpaste or soap, but if we look on the bright side, fingertips won't be visible at all!
OTHER
There are also some other options which are not as popular as the one listed above like, copper, white, satin black, etc.Depends on your taste and décor, you can simply choose the one you prefer.
FEATURES
There are also some additional features that can be added when you have chosen all the things listed above and you can consider getting something out of this:IT'S ELECTRIC
There are also available electric bathroom faucets which are most common in restaurants, public restrooms and so much in home bathroom spaces.They start working when the sensor which is installed detect that there are hands near and that triggers the water on and off.
Electric faucets are great if you have smaller children because they usually can't reach the faucet and there is also no chance that they will leave the water running and waste it for no reason.
SELECT YOUR HANDLES
There are also different options when it comes to handles too!Do you prefer bar handles, lever handles, cross handles?
You can simply choose the one that you like, and you can simply buy the spout and then purchase the handles which you like better.
PLANET FRIENDLY
If you are an Earth-loving person you are probably looking for an environmentally friendly faucet and what does that even mean?There are faucets available who use low-flow, and that means they are using at a maximum of 1,5 gallons of water per minute and the normal faucet usually uses 2,2 gallons, and that is a difference of 30%.
Another thing you have to check if the faucet can reduce the percent of lead in water and low-lead faucets can reduce it to a 0,25% at total, and that means you will be able to drink water which is much healthier for you and your family.
If you are now at the beginning of search process, just stick to the tips from this article, and you will be able to find the right choice really quick.
I hope you find something helpful in this article and you are now getting replaced your old and leaking faucet with a much nicer and good looking one.