Fitting new taps

kerri_gt

Hi all,

I'm hoping you can help me here. This weekend we have had our bathroom taps replaced, the person who did it has placed the big black washers under the back nuts, underneath the sick. It now seems when i was the sink or it gets wet, water is seeping between the tap base and the ceramic basin and down the back pipes.

I was of the belief that these washers should have been placed between the tap and the basin, thus creating a seal to stop the water getting between the two - but the guy has told me I'm incorrect.

Am I wrong or right? (or in other words, do I need to get him back to move the washers from where they are)

TIA.

Ruski

Get him back.

If there was to be a washer between backnut and sink then that would have been a plastic one.

Rubber between tap and ceramic, as you correctly believed, is the 'correct' way. It protects the ceramic from the brassware and also seals between the two.

It can happen that the taps go 'off centre' from the hole(s) and you get the same problem, just make sure this isn't the case.

There will be those on this board that disagree tho... there always is!!

But this is a fairly generic diagram of what you should show if the need arises.

HTH

Russ

kerri_gt

Thanks Ruski - I was having a look on the internet this evening and although there are differing opinions, it makes sense to me that the rubber creates the seal.

Does that mean there should be top hat, or split kick washers for the back nuts? I would have assumed that if they were necessary, they would have come with the taps, but then I'm not sure whether there were ones with the taps previously there and they got thrown out. Argh, why is something that is so simple in theory such a pain.

Ruski

Generally top hats are used for 'thin' sinks, i.e. kitchen stainless steel ones, as this allows the backnut to stop further down the thread, as occasionally you run out of thread on a thin surface.

So if I'm assuming it's a ceramic sink they are not necessary unless you have a particularly uneven/narrow surface to tighten the backnut to. 1 in 10 need this solution.

HTH

Russ

southcoastrgi

Ruski wrote: »

Get him back.

There will be those on this board that disagree tho... there always is!!

If anyone disagrees, then they are wrong, you are exactly right, & sorry OP but anyone that does what your idiot has done certainly isn't a plumber

Ruski wrote: »

Generally top hats are used for 'thin' sinks, i.e. kitchen stainless steel ones, as this allows the backnut to stop further down the thread, as occasionally you run out of thread on a thin surface.

So if I'm assuming it's a ceramic [STRIKE]sink[/STRIKE] basin they are not necessary unless you have a particularly uneven/narrow surface to tighten the backnut to. 1 in 10 need this solution.

HTH

Russ

well yes & no, a top hat will perform two actions, one to create a kind of spring so the nut shouldn't undo & also so you don't have to tighten the nut so much either breaking a plastic back nut or damaging the basin in the case of a metal backnut

plumb1_2

I always bin the washers and nuts that come with taps.

I always bed the tap with plumbers mate, use a 1/2" plastic washer underneath with a brass backnut. Ok might cost me a quid extra, but, i can walk away knowing the taps wont spin loose in the months to come etc.

southcoastrgi

& plumbers mait is the biggest load of crap to ever have been invented, it won't seal taps on a basin, it lets everything stick to it, once it gets wet it won't stick & leaks, harbours loads of baterial, like i said it's complete crap & if that's the way you do it then time to change your name

but i do agree with throwing away the plastic nut & using a brass one

keystone

kerri_gt wrote: »

I'm hoping you can help me here. This weekend we have had our bathroom taps replaced, the person who did it has placed the big black washers under the back nuts, underneath the [STRIKE]sick[/STRIKE] basin. It now seems when i was the [STRIKE]sink[/STRIKE] basin or it gets wet, water is seeping between the tap base and the ceramic basin and down the back pipes.

Do your new taps have an O ring built in to the base of the tap? In that case he just hasn't tightened them up enough! I'm also for chucking the plastic backnuts and using brass ones and there actually is a case for using any provided rubber washer under the basin when using brass backnuts BUT only if there is one (or an O ring) above as well.

As for plumbers mait - well - it does have its uses but for me using it to bed down taps in a modern installation is just, well, neanderthal. But each to his own and if plumb wants to do it that way its no skin off my nose.

Am I wrong or right? (or in other words, do I need to get him back to move the washers from where they are)

Actually its largely irrelevant who is right. The overriding issue is that you have a leak as a result of this work. He needs to be called back to address that. End of.

Cheers

diywhynot

Make and model? Fitting instructions came with product? Photo? 'The person who did' is a professional?

the_matrix

Rubbers create the seal. No question about it.

kerri_gt

Thank you everyone for your feedback. I popped down to the local plumb store this morning and picked up some top hat washers for the back of the sink, and now 'just' need to move the rubber washers from underneath the sink to under the taps.

Thought I was being a total twit when I was told 'that's how he always fits taps' - beginners plumb course here I come :-)