Basins with 3/4" tap holes
Tim W
Rather been caught out. Bought some bath taps (3/4") and some basin taps
(1/2") in the same make and style. In fact the tap bodies are as near as
dammit identical sizes all over, except for the base which is a little
wider on the 3/4".
Bought bathroom sink later. Having just installed it, I was slightly
surprised to find it had 3/4" tap holes in the ceramic.
It's only a little basin. Is this normal?
I'm tempted to buy more taps in 3/4" and ebay the 1/2" ones (or make sure
shower room basin #2 has 1/2" holes!).
Before I do that, am I missing something - like say the possibility of using
some sort of reducer? I suspect that may leave the 1/2" taps not very well
bedded and thus wobbly - but it's worth not being hasty...
Ta
Tim
--
Tim Watts
This space intentionally left blank...
The Natural Philosopher
Or simply a big washer underneath.and fil gaps with silicone..
> Ta
>
> Tim
>
1501
Can you not fill the space by making up a spacer by cutting a short
length of something like alkathene pipe?
PeterC
I needed the same last time I fitted basin taps (although ISTR that the
holes were a bit bigger than that ?). Had a couple of rough plastic back
nuts for 1/2" tails, so cut out the thread, had to round the corners
slightly, then they fitted in snugly and were only a couple of mm thinner
than the basin.
--
Peter.
The head of a pin will hold more angels if
it's been flattened with an angel-grinder.
The Medway Handyman
Tim W
wibbled on Monday 19 October 2009 20:42
That is very useful - thanks Dave.
What is it with bathroom manufacturers that they have to make *every* hole
30-50% oversized. No way is that the tolerance on the process, even for
ceramic.
Even my acrylic bath which had holes drilled for the overflow and waste
*and* supplied with the correct parts for that bath are as sloppy as hell.
I can locate and drill tap holes in the same bath with 2mm of slop and
+/-1mm of precision - why can't they?
Jules
> What is it with bathroom manufacturers that they have to make *every* hole
> 30-50% oversized. No way is that the tolerance on the process, even for
> ceramic.
>
> Even my acrylic bath which had holes drilled for the overflow and waste
> *and* supplied with the correct parts for that bath are as sloppy as hell.
> I can locate and drill tap holes in the same bath with 2mm of slop and
> +/-1mm of precision - why can't they?
Maybe they expect you to change parts or even the whole bath / sink /
whatever whilst still integrating with existing plumbing - i.e. a
replacement might need to shift 1/4" or so to fit properly, so they use
over-sized holes to allow this?
That or they're just designed by idiots :-)
YAPH
> Bought bathroom sink later. Having just installed it, I was slightly
> surprised to find it had 3/4" tap holes in the ceramic.
Are you sure they're 3/4"? It's usual for tap holes to be much larger as
you describe, so the tap tails fit them "like a turd in a shirt-sleeve"
(an eloquent turn of phrase picked up from one of my tech lecturers :-))
I cut a 1/4 length of 22mm plastic plumbing pipe or overflow pipe or
whatever's handy, slit if necessary, and slip it over the tap tails to
center them in the hole. You can buy little centering gatgets for this.
--
John Stumbles -- http://yaph.co.uk
Question Authority
Tim W
wibbled on Tuesday 20 October 2009 01:00
> On Mon, 19 Oct 2009 14:24:21 +0100, Tim W wrote:
>
>> Bought bathroom sink later. Having just installed it, I was slightly
>> surprised to find it had 3/4" tap holes in the ceramic.
>
> Are you sure they're 3/4"? It's usual for tap holes to be much larger as
> you describe, so the tap tails fit them "like a turd in a shirt-sleeve"
> (an eloquent turn of phrase picked up from one of my tech lecturers :-))
I tried a 3/4" bath tap in them and it fits very nicely. Still a little slop
(few mm) which makes me sure that they were designed to be 3/4".
> I cut a 1/4 length of 22mm plastic plumbing pipe or overflow pipe or
> whatever's handy, slit if necessary, and slip it over the tap tails to
> center them in the hole. You can buy little centering gatgets for this.
I tried again with Dave's Screwfix widget in mind. In the end, due to the
top of the hole sloping meant that the tap didn't bear on much at all. I
decided to buy new taps (all of 26 quid) and sell the others.
But that widget looks like something to remember.
PeterC
Also there's a limit to tightness on plastic - more so than on enamel - and
the taps tend to slide or twist in use, so location is essential.
Last bath that I fitted was a very good GRP one (20 year warranty - ran out
the week before fitting!) with no holes except waste, so the taps went in a
corner and the holes were a sliding fit.