DESIGN ON
TAP
An eye-catching roll top bath requires stylish
bath fillers to complete the look. Here we offer buying guidance on wall
mounted or freestanding bath filler varieties
Freestanding fillers
on tall legs are an ideal choice for use with traditional and contemporary
freestanding baths. The tap can be positioned at the side or end of the bath
and makes an attractive design feature in its own right.
Choose from either
a mono bath filler – which is essentially just a tall, single spout mixer tap
with a lever to control flow and temperature – or the more traditional filler with
separate controls for hot and cold, two spouts or a single mixer spout. Both
bath filler varieties are secured to the floor, ensuring there is no chance
that the tap can be accidentally knocked out of position. The bath tap should
not, however, be used as a support for getting in and out of the bath.
Most freestanding bath
filler mixers include a hand shower; either the traditional telephone handset-style
that sits on top of the taps, or a modern bath fillers, wet stick microphone shower head
that clips on to the fitting.
Wall mounted
fillers are a fashionable option for both baths and basins and come available
with many different spout designs, including waterfalls. The one drawback of
this bath filler, however, is that the piping and valve elements of the tap
have to be hidden behind a false section of wall to allow access for servicing.
There are two basic styles of this bath fillers – a three hole mixer with a central
spout flanked by hot and cold controls, or a mono mixer single spout mounted on
a backing plate with a single control lever for flow and temperature. The latter
bath filler is easier to fit as only one hole has to be created in the wall to
accommodate it.
BATH TAP FINISHES AND QUALITY
Chrome is the most
popular finish for taps, and these days it is quite hard to find anything else,
unless you opt for a refurbished antique. Gold bath taps did enjoyed a brief revival
but did not sell well, so many manufacturers dropped the option from their
ranges.
All new taps come
with a ceramic disc in the interior instead of the traditional washer. Ceramic discs
rarely wear out so it is unlikely that the tap will ever drip. The ceramic disc
also allows the tap to be turned on and off with very little effort. If you are
buying a lever operated tap, check that the lever moves smoothly and does not
feel loose. Also look out for deep, shiny chrome plating with a smooth finish –
a sign of quality manufacturing.
BATH FILLERS SUITABILITY
As a final warning,
before you buy any bath filler, check the flow rate, which will be described in
litres per minute. A filler with a low flow rate can take up to 30 minutes to
fill a standard size bath. Check carefully that the tap is suitable for use with
your water system. If it is described as high pressure only it will probably
not work well on a standard gravity plumbing system (where there are tanks in
the loft) – a plumber will advise.
BATH FILLERS CLOCKWISE
FROM TOP
Individual hot
and cold taps in an ‘H’ Stand, available in brass, nickel or chrome, £954,
Drummonds.
Wall mounted bath
filler, Silver range by David Chipperfield, £284, Ideal Standard.
Philippe Starck’s
ultra modern Starck bath filler, £1,469, Axor.
Alvero
wall-mounted, three hole filler in chrome, £369, Crosswater.
Period-style
mixer with integral hand shower, £701, Thomas Crapper
We hope that our buying guidance on wall
mounted or freestanding bath filler varieties will help you with your bath remodeling!
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