Our Favorite Plumbing Fixtures
Designing and building houses means that we review a lot of plumbing fixtures; and with the overwhelming number of fixtures on the market, it’s critical to filter down the options to a manageable selection from which to choose. By the time we evaluate the function, cost, aesthetics and timeliness of the available fixture options, we’re typically left with only a handful of great fixtures.
There are a number of fixtures on the market that we admire for their aesthetics, like Dornbracht and Vola, but they rarely meet the target budget of a project. So while we’re fans of such fixtures, you won’t find them in the list below; the items on this list meet all of our requirements including a high cost-effectiveness.
It’s a valuable list that we’ve come up with over the years –these are the tried and true fixtures that we continue to use on our projects; and anytime we find valuable information in our database we like to add it to the BUILDblog and share it with the rest of the design community. This is just our list, though. If you’ve got your own favorites we encourage you to share them, because we’re all in this together.
KITCHEN FAUCETS & SINKS
Brizo 63020KF-PC Solna single handle faucet with magnetic pull-out spray, polished chrome.
A quick note -you’ll see a lot of “Polished Chrome” finishes called out in these fixture specs for a reason; polished chrome is much more cost-effective than it’s pricey (albeit super sexy) neighbors: brushed nickel and brushed stainless steel.
Kallista P25200-00-CP faucet with pull-out spray and side mixer, polished chrome.
Insinkerator Ise F-HC1100 Water Filter, polished chrome.
Custom stainless steel sink with drain board, designed by BUILD LLC and fabricated by Metal Masters, non-directional finish.
Blanco 501-113-10 Magnum single bowl under-mount sink with sink grid 220-997.
BATHROOM FAUCETS & SINKS
Whitehaus WHLX78211 Luxe single hole/single lever faucet with pop-up drain and faucet pull-rod, polished chrome.
Graff G6102 M.E.25 faucet, polished chrome.
Kohler K-2214 Ladena undermount sink with pop-up drain, vitreous China, white.
WetStyle VC-24 acrylic above counter sink with overflow, white.
POWER ROOM FAUCETS & SINKS
We like to do something a bit more pronounced at the powder room. Since it is primarily guests using the space, it can be a nice visual to use a faucet and sink with more sculptural qualities.
Kohler K-T944-4 Stillness wall mount faucet, polished chrome.
Kohler K-T954-4 Stillness deck mount faucet, polished chrome.
Lacava Aquagrande vanity #5464 sink bowl, white porcelain. Used in conjunction with custom built cabinet box by SPD.
Duravit 030970.00 Starck 3 Vital wall-hung, white vitreous China.
Duravit #D14005 to #D14008 Happy-D pedestal washbasin.
SHOWER & TUB
Kohler K-17494 Flipside Multifunctional Handshower.
Kohler K-T948-4 Stillness shower & bath trim, polished chrome.
Kohler K-T14420-3-CP Purist shower & bath trim, polished chrome.
Kohler Tea-for-Two K-855 5’-6” long, cast iron white tub with integral flange.
For a kid’s tub with lower sides and less water volume, we recommend: Kohler K-715 Villager, cast iron white.
Duravit Starck #700003 Acrylic tub.
TOILET
Toto MS864114 Supreme elongated one-piece toilet.
UTILITY ROOM SINKS & FAUCETS
Hansgrohe 12877001, Interaktive S HighArc single hole faucet with spray pull-out, polished chrome.
Mustee 10 Durastone white deck-mount sink.
Cheers from team BUILD
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By Bob @ Life of an Architect, November 1, 2011 @ 7:04 am
K+A – great post! I have been working on a similar one for a few moths now and maybe yours will inspire me to actually get it done.
Once again, thanks for the transparency
By Jeff Stern, November 1, 2011 @ 8:18 am
Thanks for the excellent resource. I’ve found Danze Parma to be a nice line of cost effective modern faucets. For a filtered water faucet, the Mountain Plumbing MT1403 is definitely worth a look.
By damian, November 1, 2011 @ 1:09 pm
I’ve found this company very chic and afordable for all related to plumbing fixtures. http://www.nameeks.com/welcome.htm
We also bought inexpensive european type toilets from: http://www.badenbath.com/
Cheers
By Amy Stoddard, November 1, 2011 @ 5:37 pm
Thanks for posting this. I’m merely a DIY homeowner who enjoys your blog. Would you consider posting an entry about your favorite door and cabinet hardware soon? Maybe even include barn door and sliding door hardware too (including the pulls)?
PS. You should get yourselves an Amazon Affiliate ID and link to product. You could earn 4% commission on everything you refer.
By Shane, November 1, 2011 @ 11:04 pm
Great resource. Learned some new lines I hadn’t seen before – thank you for sharing.
Re Kohler Stillness : given the very clean design and price point it is an extremely attractive choice. Specced them throughout our own HQ building (restrooms, shower). 3 years later, im sad to say nearly every handle and movable part continues to jiggle and/or detach outright. It’s a bummer… I was really rooting for them.
By Brian Jewett, November 2, 2011 @ 4:09 am
I see at some of these are laminar flow fixtures which I consider to be the worst mistake I made in building my home last year. They are a giant step backwards over 50 years in fixture design. Aerated flow was nice and splash resistant and kept water reasonably contained within the sinks. These new laminar flow fixtures with their sculpturally clean looking flow hit whatever you’re washing with such force that the water flies every where. A badly placed bowl in the sink can send the entire stream across your kitchen. Anything with a small depression like a spoon or even just washing your hands can send water everywhere. EVERY time I use these fixtures I have to mop up afterwards.
By Build LLC, November 2, 2011 @ 7:05 am
@Bob – we’re looking forward to comparing notes and we’ll be extremely disappointed if at least one of your faucet selections doesn’t have bull horns for the hot & cold handles.
By Les Fitzpatrick, November 2, 2011 @ 7:12 am
Separate hot and cold faucet handles? Not so much.
By Shane hartley, November 2, 2011 @ 7:20 am
I’d add to the list the faucets from the Grohe Concetto line: http://www.groheamerica.com/p/25_7721.html
By Build LLC, November 2, 2011 @ 7:41 am
@ Jeff Stern -the Danze Parma line is very nice and a huge thanks for the tip on the Mountain Plumbing MT1403 -we’ve had a difficult time locating a filtered hot water faucet that matches the aesthetics of most modern faucets -this one is great.
By Build LLC, November 2, 2011 @ 7:44 am
@ Amy Stoddard -great idea for a blog post, we’ll get on it.
By Build LLC, November 2, 2011 @ 7:46 am
@ Shane -that’s a bummer to hear about the Kohler Stillness fixtures. We’ve got a few ourselves and haven’t had that problem yet but it sounds like they’re getting more use in your application.
By Build LLC, November 2, 2011 @ 7:48 am
Brian Jewett -we only have that issue if we turn the faucet on full blast, typically the volume control alleviates that problem for us.
By Build LLC, November 2, 2011 @ 7:50 am
@ Les -many of the fixtures above are available with separate handle options. The shower/bath fixtures are also available with separate temperature and volume controls which is nice if you want to set your temperature and keep it there.
By Build LLC, November 2, 2011 @ 7:51 am
@ Shane -the Grohe Concetto is a nice find, thanks for adding to the list.
By Tom Blaxland, November 2, 2011 @ 9:04 am
Great article! I have a few of these in my new house including the Purist collection and the Duravit tub. The Hansgrohe HighArc is in my kitchen and while it’s awesome, I am disappointed that you can’t set it to a wide spray permanently. You have to hold the spray button each use. As Brian hinted above, if you turn it on with something in the sink it can make quite a mess!
By Mike, November 3, 2011 @ 5:51 am
great list. Kraus is a good price conscience alternative to blanco when an undermount stainless steel sink is desired. their sinks are 16 ga when most other budget friendly mfr’s are only 18. with this in mind, i would not advise using their faucets. i’m currently needing to replace the faucet head for the 3rd time.
By Build LLC, November 3, 2011 @ 10:02 am
@Tom -re: the Hansgrohe HighArc -you can pull the spray pull-out part out, press the button and then reinsert it back into the carriage -the spray should stay on without having to press the button.
By Build LLC, November 3, 2011 @ 10:03 am
@Mike -good to know about the Kraus sinks.
Here’s the link everyone: http://www.kraususa.com/
By ryan, November 13, 2011 @ 7:30 am
what about newform.it – i think that’s the website – pretty amazing, and while a bit more than a typical kohler, sometimes attention to detail is worth it, even if its not for the whole house.
By Brian, November 21, 2011 @ 9:12 am
The Graff G6102 M.E.25 looks surprisingly similar to the American Standard Serin Faucet (http://www.americanstandard-us.com/bathroom-faucets/one-single-control-lavatory-faucet/). We have a predecessor to the Serin in our bathroom.
By Milton, November 27, 2011 @ 8:13 am
Do you have recommedations for low flow toilets, ie 1.0 gpf, pressure assist? I understand dual flush typically doesnt clean the bowl effectively and isnt a good choice.
By Alan Cline, December 5, 2011 @ 1:25 pm
Who says plumbing fixtures have to be boring? We spend how many hours a day in our bathrooms and kitchens, why not invest in great fixtures? They can become show pieces in addition to being functional.