Time For A New Kitchen Faucet. Recommendations?

[Looking4new]

I have been using MOEN for about 9 years so far and whenever a cartridge goes bad I take it to the hardware store (6 miles away) and they replace it free, except for the time and gas to get there and back.

 

[Daver1963]

The Delta at our old house and new house both came from the plumbing supply shop nearby. HD and Lowes had similar faucets with slightly different model numbers and lower cost. Plumbers tell me they are not the same, that they cut a few corners to be competitive on price.

I worked for Delta Faucet (Jackson, Tn factory) making faucets on the assembly line about 18 years ago. The only difference between Home Depot/Lowes faucets and what you get from plumbers supply is packaging and sometimes the hookups. Back then the ones that went to Home Depot/Lowes had connections for screw on hoses and the ones that went to plumbing supply places had straight pipes that had to be soldered. Otherwise all the internal parts were exactly the same. Delta also makes Peerless faucets. The main difference between Delta and Peerless were the escutcheon (that's the base plate), handles, and the warranty. Otherwise, all internal parts were the same. As for the warranty, Delta has a limited lifetime for the chrome plating and Peerless had a 5-year on the chrome (if I remember correctly).
Again - this was 18 years ago. I cannot testify to the accuracy of this information today.
That said - we had to replace the faucet in the house we bought in 2013 and got a Delta. The parts look like the same ones I assembled 18 years ago and we have liked the model we purchased.

 

[MinnesotaEric]

The last one I installed was a big Delta loop model with separate hot and cold and got a couple of extra cartridges for it since I popped it in at my lake home in the land of untreated hard water.

Three years on and no problems yet.

2497LF Cassidy Two Handle Kitchen Faucet with Spray : Kitchen Products : Delta Faucet

 

[oosik]

When I built the house here in '82 I used all Moen faucets. That was 32 years ago and they are still going strong. No cartridges, filters or any of that cr+p - just plain old country water - pumped right out of the old homesteaders spring.

 

[buckeyefarmer]

I have been using MOEN for about 9 years so far and whenever a cartridge goes bad I take it to the hardware store (6 miles away) and they replace it free, except for the time and gas to get there and back.

Guess I should try that. my moen sink faucets leak around the handle.

 

[AchingBack]

Delta has excellent customer service and they stand behind their limited warranty. In 2001 I paid 159.99 for a single handle pull out spout kitchen faucet in biscuit. Due to my hard water problems, (even with a softener), in a couple of years the enamel or whatever finish it is, badly flaked off. No questions asked, they sent a new one. Few years later, same problem. I called and asked if I could pay extra and upgrade to stainless steel, (nickel). Bless their heart, they upgraded me for free. Since then things were going along okay until at times it became extremely difficult to rotate the spout from left to right and back. I figured there must be a hard water build up inside the valve housing and I tried taking off the handle and the bonnet and pouring straight vinegar down around the problem area. This seems to help free the calcium build up. However, I'd had to do this so many times, the threads in the handle which hold the set screw wore out. I called Delta and they said no problem. They sent me a new handle and a new cartridge because the agent figured the stem must be worn out, too. I put the new handle on, but I still have the problem with the stiff rotation. Looking at the parts diagram I see there are a couple of O rings which I believe are worn and causing the undue friction. The last time I tried removing the nut which holds in the cartridge, even after soaking over night with vinegar, I could not budge it with my crescent wrench. I'm afraid I'll break something and then wind up turning a mole hill into a mountain.

I can't blame Delta, they have bent over backward to help me. I think their stuff is very well made. The bath tub/shower valve I put in back in 1980 has never leaked and still works like new.

I worked for Delta Faucet (Jackson, Tn factory) making faucets on the assembly line about 18 years ago. The only difference between Home Depot/Lowes faucets and what you get from plumbers supply is packaging and sometimes the hookups. Back then the ones that went to Home Depot/Lowes had connections for screw on hoses and the ones that went to plumbing supply places had straight pipes that had to be soldered. Otherwise all the internal parts were exactly the same. Delta also makes Peerless faucets. The main difference between Delta and Peerless were the escutcheon (that's the base plate), handles, and the warranty. Otherwise, all internal parts were the same. As for the warranty, Delta has a limited lifetime for the chrome plating and Peerless had a 5-year on the chrome (if I remember correctly).
Again - this was 18 years ago. I cannot testify to the accuracy of this information today.
That said - we had to replace the faucet in the house we bought in 2013 and got a Delta. The parts look like the same ones I assembled 18 years ago and we have liked the model we purchased.

 

[WM75Guy]

We put Delta in when we built as they have lifetime warranty. Have had to replace a few O-rings and seats due to trash in the coop water causing a drip. Called Delta customer service, gave them the model number, they sent them right out no cost to me. Had a shower head clog up, local dealer replaced it at no cost.

 

[the old grind]

Another vote for Delta. My BIL is a plumbing contractor and prefers the brand because if a customer calls he offers to talk them through a fix if they'd rather DIY than pay a service call. Kohler is the one nowadays that still has funky hookup configuration and is often more fuss to fix or get cartridges for.

Had a hard time getting BIL to install a Moen for me (getting old, I am ), but a 3-handle tub valve is one thing Delta hasn't offered for many years. Delta for all the rest, tho'. (btw, Moen pioneered the single-handle faucet decades ago, but it's been Delta's domain since the '70s)

 

[dmccarty]

We installed Moen products in the kitchen and bathrooms in the new house build in 2004. After a few years, we would get leaks in the kitchen faucet, slow at first but then getting worse spending on the position of the handle. The faucet has one handle that controls both temperature and flow rate. It takes a bit of getting used too but it is easy to use one handed or with one elbow. :laughing::laughing::laughing:

I know I took apart the faucet a few times to fix the leak, but I can't remember what I did, and eventually I needed a new part that Moen shipped to us free. At one point, maybe back around 2012ish the faucet needed another part and the wife called up Moen. I am guessing the part was not longer stocked, so for $50-75, they sent us a completely new unit that was about $300-400 retail. I sure did not want to have to take out the old faucet an install a new one but I can't really complain about Moen's customer service.

We also had problems with the filter clogging up with particles that would form from our hard water. The old faucet would loose pressure due to clogging of the filter pretty quickly. The new faucet does not have this problem, though the filter size looks the same. Go figure. :confused3: The filter is easier to access in the new faucet as well.

Later,
Dan

 

[Travelover]

I have a Moen kitchen faucet and when after 6 years it started to drip, I called them and they sent me a cartridge, free. Three years later, the O ring failed that seals the spout as it pivots from side to side. The problem was that the two parts had seized together and not wanting to put a pipe wrench on the chrome, I called and they sent me a whole new faucet for free. I'm sold on Moen customer service.