Which mixer to choose for the kitchen

Kitchen equipment is operated in the most severe mode, 2-3 times more intensively than anything else in the house. Therefore, quality requirements come first. To successfully choose a faucet for the kitchen, you will have to understand their designs and materials.

Modern kitchen faucets sometimes have a very quirky look.

Choosing a price range

Choosing a faucet for the kitchen is not so easy and the choice is huge, the difference in prices is cosmic. Where to stop and not miscalculate. First of all, it is worth deciding on the price range in which you agree to search:

• Expensive models. Usually these are German and Danish companies with production facilities in Europe. In addition to the high price, they are distinguished by a long warranty period - at least 5 years. This means that if you have a correctly completed warranty card, you can repair it for free or get a new one.
• Average price range. Most often these are firms that have moved production facilities to China. Their products are of good quality as their controls remain tight. And also in this category are kitchen faucets made in the recently joined EU or in the Eurozone.
• Cheap. This is frank China. How lucky here. It can work for a long time and successfully, and sometimes it breaks during installation (the most severe case) or fails after a few months.
  

  The design of the faucet for the kitchen sink should match the style of the room

If you want to put the tap on the kitchen sink and forget about it, then the choice is unambiguous - only expensive models. If recurring minor problems are not intimidating, you can search in the middle price range. Cheap is a very bad option. Only in case of extreme lack of funds. And how to calculate, if you have to put another crane in two months, the amount as a result will be far from small.

Selection by material

The durability of the device is strongly influenced by the material from which the body and spout are made. There are quite a lot of materials today. Outwardly, only the ceramic models are different, all the rest "in appearance" are exactly the same. Nevertheless, you need to know what the mixer is made of.

• Stainless steel. The most durable, but also the most expensive option. But the service life is long.
• Brass. A very good choice, provided the alloy is of good quality and suitable for use in the food industry. Brass taps serve for a very long time, even hard water does not harm them.
• Bronze. It's also a good option, but most often bronze taps are made in a retro style. In this case, they are not covered with any protective coatings. Conventional models of bronze cases are rarely made.
• Silumin is an alloy of aluminum and silicon. A light alloy, similar in appearance to aluminum, but very unreliable. The bodies of the cheapest mixers are made of this alloy. Their service life is no more than a year.
• Plastic. Not a bad material, but not for taps - the protective coating quickly wears off from constant contact with water. Plastic faucets also belong to the budget category.

Choosing a ceramic mixer you have to be very careful

• Ceramics. Ceramic sink mixers look very impressive, but they are expensive and require careful handling in operation. Shock loads are not tolerated at all. You have to be very careful when washing dishes.

Ceramic so far in our country is more exotic, but all the rest are in large quantities. Normal in quality and not the most expensive in terms of price. But brass is also different.

In cheap faucets, brass contains a lot of lead. It increases the fluidity of the alloy, which means that thinner walls can be obtained. In this case, the quality of the casting will be better - without cavities and other flaws. But the high content of lead in the faucet is harmful to the body. Lead dissolves in water, making it unfit for food use.

How do you choose a faucet made of good brass? By weight. In brass with a high lead content, the walls are thin, which means that the faucet itself is much lighter. Other signs include color. It is sometimes possible to look inside some mixers to evaluate the alloy for this attribute. Low-grade brass has a reddish color, and normal brass is yellow.

Choice of control device - single-lever, two-valve or touch

A couple of decades ago there were only two-valve mixers and there was no choice. Single-lever models appeared several decades ago. Many people like them more - turning on, off, temperature control is done by turning the lever. If the mixer belongs to the category of expensive, the lever travel is smooth and easy to adjust, and this lightness remains for years. Cheaper models are more difficult to control. However, all the same, fewer movements are required to set the required temperature than in a two-valve.

Touchscreens are comfortable but expensive

Nevertheless, valve type mixers also have enough admirers. They are attracted by the fact that the locking boxes can be repaired on their own. In one-handed taps, all repairs - replacement of gaskets and cartridge - the inside of the tap, in which water is mixed.

And quite recently, touch-sensitive faucets have appeared that respond to the approach of objects or hands. Bring your hands to the tap, water starts to flow. The temperature can be adjusted using the touch panel or the rotary lever. Their disadvantage is the high price. This is the most expensive segment.

Spout type and height

The spout in faucets is called the part that ordinary users call the "gander". This is a tube from which water flows, it is of different types and sizes:

• straight;
• curved;
• with pull-out flexible spout.

If straight and curved are the usual varieties, then faucets with a pull-out spout are new. In them, the "gander" consists of two parts, which are connected to each other using a flexible hose. This type of mixer is also called "with a watering can" or "with a shower".

Kitchen faucets with pull-out spray

The hose is made of flexible rubber. On top, maybe a protective braid made of stainless steel or corrugated pipe. If necessary, just pull the lower part and the spout will lengthen by 60–90 cm. A convenient device, but more often found on expensive models.

What is the best spout height and distance

With the height of the spout, you need to find a middle ground. When water pours from a great height, there will be a lot of splashes, if the spout is low, there will be problems with washing large pots, cans, etc. The optimal distance from the bottom of the sink to the end of the "gander" is in the region of 30-40 cm. digits, you need to select a faucet model for the kitchen sink. With a deep sink, a low tap may come up, and with a container of shallow depth, a higher one will be required.

It should be convenient to use

For the correct choice of the mixer for the sink, its spout must be of such a shape that water flows approximately over the center of the sink. The permissible error is plus or minus 10% of the size of the sink. In this case, it will be convenient to use.

Nozzle design

This is the part from which water flows directly. Usually it is equipped with a mesh to "catch" large mechanical impurities. If at your entrance there arefilters for water purification, this grid does not play any role at all.The type of jet that forms the nozzle is more important:

• Plain, not broken into trickles. Today, this type of mixer is not common, the water consumption is high.
• Aerator. Many small jets that create a feeling of intense flow due to the formation of small air bubbles. The most economical option, consumption is reduced by 20–35%.
• Rain. Several streams, without strong pressure. It is convenient to wash herbs, delicate fruits, etc.

Choice by nozzle design

Most often, the mixer is equipped with an aerator, but there are models that have two operating modes - aeration and rain. Switching is done by turning the lever.

How to choose

Having decided to choose a crane from the category of expensive or from the middle price range, you need to go to a specialized store or just to a construction (but definitely not to a hypermarket). If you are staying at a company, you should go to their official website and see where the points of authorized partners are located. In this case, you will have a guarantee that they will sell the product of this particular company, and not a fake. If there are no such points in the immediate vicinity, you will have to focus on indirect signs:

• clarity of the logo;
• alloy color;
• quality of components;
• availability of a warranty card printed on good paper, where all the coordinates are spelled out;
• the store must correctly fill in all the data, put a seal, only in this case the warranty is valid.

Many find their way out by inviting an experienced plumber to accompany them. This method does not always work, but it can help you not to run into an outright fake.

Selection by design and additional functions

The design and color scheme is probably the easiest to decide. If the kitchen is decorated in a certain style, you should also choose the model in the same way. Technocratic clear lines are suitable for hi-tech and minimalism, bronze without shiny Provence or retro dusting. With such a trendy current as “loft»The mixer can be combined in both of these styles, it all depends on the design of the room.

If the renovation is done in a modern style, where there are little by little signs of many trends, any model can fit in, the main thing is that it echoes the shape of the sink and kitchen set.

Of the additional functions, it is better to have a switch for using tap and purified water. if there are specialfilters under the sink this option can be very useful.

Two spouts for regular tap and purified water

Recently, we have increasingly becomeput dishwashers... It happens that when they are connected to the water supply, problems arise. For this case, there are faucets with valves that switch the water to the dishwasher. Moreover, in some models, switching occurs for a certain period of time - from 3 to 12 hours.

Another nice feature is changing the angle of rotation of the spout. Some kitchen faucets are equipped with interlocks that allow the initially wide swivel angle of 120 ° to be made smaller, for example 60 °, or to keep it stationary.

Which firms can you trust

There will be no surprises in this matter. Market leaders in terms of quality are European brands - German, Swedish, Danish. In the middle price range - Bulgaria, Slovenia and companies that have moved production to China.

Expensive and high quality

GROHE faucets are heard most of all. They have proven themselves excellent. There are only two drawbacks, the high price and the large number of fakes.

And "Groye" has two firms - two brothers. The firm of one is simply called GROHE. The company produces various plumbing fixtures.The second brother has a specialized company that was named after him - HANS GROHE. This is how they mark their products. This company produces only mixers and taps, its products are of even higher quality, but also even more expensive.

One of Grohe's new products is toggle on and off with a touch

The next proven company is Danish Damixa (Damiksa). It is worth considering that the guarantee is given only if there are filters on the water supply. The products themselves are of high quality, the coating is guaranteed for 10 years and for the mechanism itself for several years. If the Damixa starts dripping, it is likely that limescale has formed somewhere. If the warranty is no longer valid, the tap is disassembled, the plaque is removed with vinegar and everything is assembled into place. Damix single lever mixers may leak cartridges, but this is a consumable item and must be replaced.

Mixer Damixa Arc 29000

Mixers Oras and Hansa. These trademarks are owned by one European company - Oras Group. Its production facilities are located in continental Europe. There are very few complaints about the quality of products, if there are any problems, then with cartridges. In Oras faucets they are ceramic and demanding on the quality of water. So if you want a long service life of the tap, install a cleaning system.

Oras Ventura - spout on two levels

The assortment of the campaign includes contactless and "smart" faucets, the latest achievements in the world of plumbing. Models for switching the water to the dishwasher. Some taps can change the angle of the spout. In general, you can choose a mixer from Oras. Their style is peculiar, which pleases. I usually want to put something interesting and new, and not a dull ordinary crane.

It is not easy to choose mixers only from these firms, there are many interesting proposals. The price is about the same, as is the quality. But just do not forget that this equipment is designed for clean water, therefore, cleaning filters are simply necessary for normal and long-term operation.

Average price range

People speak well of Vidima taps and mixers. This is a Bulgarian company whose products have been working well for many years. This manufacturer has expensive and budget lines. Brass bodies, high quality finishes, ceramic cartridges - all this about the faucets of this brand. There are single-lever and two-valve mixers with different spout lengths and heights.

Remember the spelling of the logo so as not to buy a fake

The Russian company IDDIS has been producing sanitary equipment since 2004. The entire process from development to manufacturing takes place in Russia. In any case, it is written on the company's website. The design is both standard and very unusual, with flat, arched, straight spouts. The various designs of the handle add charm to the products. The bodies are made of high quality brass (composition according to GOST). In general, if you need to choose high-quality, but not very expensive, look through all the company's products.

Iddis Kitchen D KD1SBL0i05

Quite good reviews of Zorg campaign products. In which country the production is located, there are many questions, but no one disputes the quality of the sanitary ware. Brass cases, various designs, available in black, white, gray, brass and bronze. The price range is also wide from $ 45 to $ 350.

Zorg Inox - unusual design

Inexpensive options

If you are satisfied that the faucet needs repair or replacement after 2–2.5 years, pay attention to the products of Lemark (Lemark) and Kaizer (Kaiser). Both manufacturers are Chinese, but the quality is pretty good. If you canchange cartridges and gaskets, it can last longer.