shower valves what brand do you like ?

rfuerst911sc · 01-27-2013, 02:29 AM

The wife and I have decided to refurb our master bath. Typical stuff like new floor, vanity and top and fixtures. The bath/shower is a one piece fiberglass unit and drilled for 8 " centers. I am going to use a remodel plate and replace with a single handle unit. I'm familiar with Moen , Kohler , Delta and have liked all three. Last year I installed a Moen single handle in the shower in the basement, very simple unit turn counter clockwise water comes out, turn clockwise and it shuts off. No pressure adjustment just temp adjustment. Works fine for me. Is there any major difference between the major brands ?

DanielDudley · 01-27-2013, 02:34 AM

I have heard you should not buy from the big box stores. All of the above are fine, although a good friend who is a plumber always installs Delta for himself and friends.

rfuerst911sc · 01-27-2013, 03:38 AM

Is the product sold at big box stores inferior or builder grade ? To be honest that's where I bought the shower valve for the basement.

stealthn · 01-27-2013, 05:37 AM

I like Moen, lifetime warranty on their stuff

Rot 911 · 01-27-2013, 07:13 AM

Nice thing about Moen and Delta is that both are easy to disassemble if necessary and both are easy to get replacement parts for.

Red88Carrera · 01-27-2013, 07:16 AM

Moen. Mine has a pressure compensating flow control. I'm not sure if it is mandated or not. If you lose pressure on one supply, the other automatically equalizes to the lower pressure so you have constant temperature. It's so you can't get scalded when someone flushes a toilet. If you were to completely turn off the cold water supply to the shower, you would have no hot water either.

plumb4u2 · plumb4u2's Garage

I only recommend moen and that is all I install for my customers

As stated they are guaranteed for life and by far they are the easiest to repair down the road

Yes do not buy from the box stores, go to a local plumbing supply house, box store valves are of lesser quality

Moens customer support is top notch I would equate their support to pelican parts

I had a customer who had a high end brushed nickel kitchen faucet that was about 10 yrs old, the finish on the handle had rubbed off a little bit
I called moen to get a replacement handle only to find out that they changed their brushed nickel finish so the new handle would not match
The customer service lady sent my customer an entire new faucet free of charge arrived next day

Evans, Marv · 01-27-2013, 09:18 AM

My neighbor, who owns a plumbing company and did the plumbing for my house, recommended Moen also. I told hiim to install whatever he recommended & thought would be the best quality for the money. So all of my plumbing fixtures are Moen.

NY65912 · 01-27-2013, 10:32 AM

As a professional plumber........we recommend Delta and Moen for their ease of installation, repair and customer support.

rfuerst911sc · 01-27-2013, 12:22 PM

Well right or wrong I purchased a Delta shower valve/shower head/tub spout today and yes it came from a big box store. They didn't have the setup we wanted so they gave us a " better than " for the same price. I guess I'll find out in a few weeks when I install it. Thanks guys.

daepp · 01-27-2013, 03:56 PM

Just refitted everything in our master bath with Hans Groehe(sp?). We are very happy!

look 171 · 01-27-2013, 07:43 PM

hans Grohe is good stuff. Best for the money (them and KWC) IMO. My plumber does not think so due their difficult installation methods compared to a Moen or American Standard , but they do not have nearly the options Hans Grohe offers. I push for Hans Grohe all the time. We put em' in 9 out of 10 baths that we remodel. Never an issue.

vash · vash's Garage

i went with Kohler. from a plumbing store.

no complaints. if the valve goes bad, i only need to change out this cartridge. the main body or housing..is solid brass, has no moving parts. all the moving bits are in the center cartridge. i had to get a scald protecting valve. not sure how that works.

the money i spent, i probably could have gone with hans groehe.

look 171 · 01-28-2013, 08:23 AM

YOu are right Vash. Kohler is not cheap. For a few bucks more, I would have gotten Hans Grohe. Good thing about Kohler is that their valves are always available.

I try to tell my clients to not buy some off brand cheap stuff over the net. Parts aren't available after a few years of if they go out of business. hans grohe, Grohe, KWC, Newport Brass, Kohler, and so on are here to stay. Most valves can be access from the front. Scalding protection is stupid code to protect stupid people. I have never been burned growing up in a house without it.

look 171 · 01-28-2013, 08:26 AM

Oh, when someone flushes a toilet in another bathroom, it will rob the shower of cold water so there wil be a large amount of hot water coming out of the shower head burning someone in use. Since the shower is 1.5GPM, this will never happen. Just another BS we have to deal with like the light bulb. More money, that's all.

HardDrive · 01-28-2013, 09:05 AM

I've always used Kohler. No complaints.

O'Grady · 01-28-2013, 05:40 PM

We have done installations for some of the wealthiest poeple in North America and the demand is always warranty & availability of parts above all.
Grohe & Hans Grohe for finish and delta, moen in laundry/shop areas, these people stand behind their products and the rep will work with the plumber.
We have found a sustantial difference in box store vs plumbing supply products. We will not warranty any box store supplied purchases.

Hads930 · 01-28-2013, 05:57 PM

If you have ever showered in a hotel or hospital then you have probably used a Symmons valve and never knew it. They came up with the antiscald device in the 30's. they are not cheap and can be difficult to install, but if you have the walls open and are redoing a shower then they are worth a look. I just finished a giant commercial kitchen where I used over 30 of their mixing valves, (some type of anti scald device is code) I was amazed at the quality. Just so happened I was remodeling our home shower/bath and my wife came up with one of their faucets. Even buying through a supplier I paid a a bunch compared to other brands. The valve body was brass, the tub filler spout and the shower spout were both solid cast material, the finish is beautiful and we could not be happier. Wife's family has KWC and Hans Grohe in their home and on their boat and I would put Symmons finish and quality up against that stuff any day.

look 171 · 01-28-2013, 05:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by O'Grady

We have done installations for some of the wealthiest poeple in North America and the demand is always warranty & availability of parts above all.
Grohe & Hans Grohe for finish and delta, moen in laundry/shop areas, these people stand behind their products and the rep will work with the plumber.
We have found a sustantial difference in box store vs plumbing supply products. We will not warranty any box store supplied purchases.

You shop at big box store? F'k that. Not worth my time because you can't get replacements parts for most of that stuff in a couple of years. People buy them and swap out the stems and return them so guys like us can buy them and install only to find out its bad and scream.

Hans Grohe's finish is far better then Grohe. Grohe is really the American Standard Architectural series of Germany. Still I would buy them all day long over most out there.

look 171 · 01-28-2013, 06:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hads930

If you have ever showered in a hotel or hospital then you have probably used a Symmons valve and never knew it. They came up with the antiscald device in the 30's. they are not cheap and can be difficult to install, but if you have the walls open and are redoing a shower then they are worth a look. I just finished a giant commercial kitchen where I used over 30 of their mixing valves, (some type of anti scald device is code) I was amazed at the quality. Just so happened I was remodeling our home shower/bath and my wife came up with one of their faucets. Even buying through a supplier I paid a a bunch compared to other brands. The valve body was brass, the tub filler spout and the shower spout were both solid cast material, the finish is beautiful and we could not be happier. Wife's family has KWC and Hans Grohe in their home and on their boat and I would put Symmons finish and quality up against that stuff any day.

Symmons makes rough valve and not so much finish trims? I have a Chicago in my guest bath with a modified (by Chicago)Symmons valve in there. IMO, the Symmons is a Mustang (sorry Paul) and the Hans Grohe or KWC is a Porsche. they work and work and it is robust, but not smooth like their European valves. Now, there are some high end American companies out there that are finished very, very nice such as Andre. its just not my style. When you get up to the very high end kitchen and bath plumbing fixtures, I am not sure if there is a huge difference in quality between companies like KWC (I really like their stuff) compare to Dorn Bracht but I am not sure or sold on the price difference.