Kitchen Taps - Making the Right Choice

There are many manufacturers, styles, and designs of Kitchen Taps available on the market these days. The market trends can change and develop in the blink of an eye. So how do you choose the right kitchen taps that compliment your current kitchen style? How do you choose the right kitchen taps (or brassware as it’s referred to within the industry) to compliment a remodel?

A new set of kitchen taps can add a whole new dimension to your current kitchen design, simply upgrading the kitchen taps and fixtures can add a new feel and level of comfort to a tired old kitchen.

Usually your first consideration resides with the aesthetics of your current kitchen. So it is worth considering the environment the tap will be installed in. Are the cabinets and cupboards modern looking or painted in thick gloss paint? If so then you should look for either a smooth curvature in the tap nozzle, a sharp squared design or a futuristic design, perhaps with a single tap control. A single tap control allows you to mix hot and cold water to your desired water pressure with a single handle, and can look very pleasing to the eye. These are only available on mixer taps (a single nozzle tap that supplies both hot and cold water) sometimes referred to as monobloc mixers.

Are the cabinets a more traditional exposed wood? If this is the case then it may be an idea to look at the kitchen tap finish. High shine chrome is quite a standard finish, but particularly if your cabinets are soft woods, you may be very impressed with the look of a tap finished in gold or brass. This can add a warm glow to the finishing of a kitchen in this style. It’s worth considering Victorian or Edwardian styled taps for a more traditional feel, these can sit very well if you are trying to create a old world country kitchen look.

What type of sink or surface are the taps to be mounted on?
There are two primary methods of tap mounting to consider, Deck mounting and Wall mounting. Deck mounting means that the water is supplied up through the sink or work surface, and a wall mounted tap is supplied through the wall horizontally. If when choosing the tap you desire, it requires separate hot and cold feeds, look out for information about the pipe work centres. Centres refer to the distance between the two pipe feeds; these have to match up to the centres of the surface you will mount onto if the surface is supplied pre cut.

There are thousands of available designs that will suit all styles, designs & needs perfectly. Two manufacturers with a large catalogue are Bristan and Cifial, but there are many other manufacturers that also create beautiful kitchen taps. My advice would be to go to your local bathroom supplier and see what they have on offer.

As with any bathroom or kitchen items you intend to buy, always look out for manufacturer guarantees, and warranty periods from your supplier to add peace of mind when making a purchase.