These types of taps are simple in design as essentially, the sealing washer is screwed up or down to and from the seat, but do cause a lot of issues due to washers and seats wearing and corroding and causing leaks. A push (or sometimes pull) button allows the user to easily switch between using either the taps or the shower as and when needed.

As the seal is effectively not screwed down into its seat, this does in some ways reduce the wear and tear placed on both the seal and the seat so on the whole, they are a little more reliable than their rising spindle counterparts. Most modern taps have shrouded heads of metal or plastic. With these particular designs, the “handle” or shroud allows you to both turn the taps on and also helps to protect the inner workings of the tap. If you’re project involves working with the latter mentioned above then you are better off cutting off around 150 – 200mm off of the existing pipe and fitting a push fit flexi hose instead of trying to fit your tap to old and corroded existing fittings, much less of a headache! Note: If the nut looks rusty or corroded, apply some easing fluid such as 3-in-1 oil or WD40 after giving it a good clean and removing as much debris as possible.

How to Replace Old Taps With New

Once turned off either at the mains or through an isolation valve, turn the tap on to drain all the remaining water out of the pipe.

Firstly, you slide the cap over the pipe and then slide and olive on. The pipe is then insert into the joint body and cap is screwed down, compressing the olive into the body and the pipe and creating the seal that also holds the pipe firmly in place.In essence, the traditional style mixer tap is just two pillar taps joined together so that they share one spout. In terms of how your tap gets it’s supply of water, regardless of the type of actual fitting (more on this below) is through what is known as a tap connector.

If however you are replacing, say, a full run of pipe to the tap with a flexi pipe and push fit end you will need to chop a little of the existing pipe away. Around 6-8 inches (or 150-200mm) should be fine. This is a premium tap with a no-leak guarantee. There are many "water butt taps" on the market however which unfortunately are not suitable for a permanent connection. Changing a tap is a fairly straight forward job for both DIY novices and professional plumbers alike as long as you take your time and concentrate on the task in hand. In pretty much all instances, ceramic disc taps are operated by a single lever that normally has a maximum range of around a quarter turn from off to fully on.Again, do it up finger tight first and then do a couple of pinches up with basin wrench. As before, don’t go too mad tightening, just a few pinches should be ample. Fear not, in this project we will take you through the process of how to change a tap, beit a kitchen mixer tap or a bath tap, although they may look totally different, the principles of the job are the same. Two discs with matching holes in each sit together. When the tap is turned on, all of the holes are inline allowing water to flow but when the tap head or lever is turned into the off position, all the holes are offset and out of line, preventing any water from flowing.

As pretty much all taps feature a screw fitting that connects your connector of choice to the actual tap, this in itself is a form of compression fitting, but instead of using an olive, normally a rubber seal is used to create the seal once the connector is screwed up. A two hole mixer has tails spaced 100mm apart, a three hole mixer appears to have separate valves and spout but they are linked by a tube below the basin. Monobloc Taps As you will probably notice from the images, the supply of water is controlled from a single lever (similar to the single lever mixer mentioned above), but as with all other taps, hot is to the far left and cold is to the far right, with a range of temperatures in between, depending on where the lever is positioned. One end is connected to the base of the tap (under the basin or bath) and the other is then connected to the water supply pipe (either hot or cold). Due to this, they are no longer simply just a go-to choice for the kitchen, they are ideally suited to all water supply needs in the home.Apply pressure and turn the nut to undo it. Ensure that the jaws retain a good grip and that the spanner does not slip off. If it slips off with force, it can easily damage the basin, bath or other object you’re working on. Changing a tap is a relatively simple DIY job if you have a sound knowledge of basic plumbing, but if you are new to this world, it may seem like a daunting task.