If we asked you to name some of the most important appliances in your kitchen, your immediate answers might include your fridge, your oven, or even your kettle, which provides you with that all-important mug of coffee every morning. You might not say your kitchen sink is top of the list – or more specifically, your kitchen sink taps.
No, we’re not kidding. Your kitchen tapware is a vital part of your everyday life, and you may not have given it a proper think! If you stop to think about it, your taps provide you with water to wash your pots, clean your vegetables, fill your kettle, boil your potatoes, and stay hydrated. It’s used multiple times every day and used often by guests. Are you starting to see how important your taps are now?
So, are you taps standing the test of time, and how do you go about finding the perfect tapware?
In short, there are four key areas to focus on when choosing your kitchen tapware.
Tap Handles
Are you looking for individual hot and cold taps? Will they join to produce the water from a single spout or will they have their own hot and cold spouts? Or would you prefer a single lever, where you can control the water pressure and heat quickly and easily?
In the end, it’s all down to preference and what suits the style of your home. Two-handle copper taps mounted to the wall will suit any rustic or antique-chic home, while a single-lever chrome handle gives a sleeker feel to your tapware.
Spouts
When it comes to your spout, there are even more variables to choose from. First up, do you want a single spout, that mixes the hot and cold water, giving you complete temperature control, or two spouts, separating your hot and cold streams? Would you like your spout to be mounted in one fixed position – your only choice if you decide to have it mounted to the wall – or would you prefer a spout that is able to swivel – useful for anyone with a double-basin sink?
Again, your decision depends on the style you want your kitchen to carry. Having separate spouts for your hot and cold streams looks much more traditional, whereas single spouts look more minimalistic and modern.
Style
It can be tempting to try to scrimp and save when it comes to choosing your kitchen tapware, but ultimately, it pays to invest. When selecting the style of your tapware, making sure your choice is durable as well as stylish could save you money in the long-run. Buying lower-quality tapware for the sake of saving a few dollars will come back to bite you when you find yourself having to replace them in a few years time.
Instead, when you find your perfect tapware, make sure it is durable, classic, and comes with a manufacturer’s warranty. If the manufacturer has confidence in their product, you can feel confident, too.
Warranty
Because taps see everyday use and wear/tear (like getting banged around by a pot, pan or baking dish whilst cleaning), you should consider the warranty on your product. How many years are you covered for? It is a full refund offered? Under what circumstances is the warranty valid? The best you can hope for is a Money-Back Guarantee along with a warranty that is of a multi-year length and applies to multiple situations. (Our warranty ticks all those boxes).
Extras
While you might be happy with a tap that runs hot and cold and doesn’t do much else, you might do well to keep in mind the extras that are often available for your tapware. Features such as pull-out spray taps can help with the washing up, water filter taps can provide clean, filtered water at the flick of a switch, and boiling water taps can save energy waiting for the kettle to boil. All these features are gaining in popularity.
When purchasing your tapware, remember to look for the warranty, and ask a professional about any extras that might be available.
