Homeowners/Investors ~ When Cheaper Can Cost You A Lot More

Many times when replacing faucets, homeowners/investors will go for the cheaper brand.

Going the cheaper route can sometimes cost them a lot more money in the long run. Let me explain how:

In the house Steve and I rent, the bathroom faucet in our main bath looks similar to the one pictured here. I don't know what brand it was or what brand is pictured here, I am just using this photo as a "for instance".

One Friday evening after washing up, I went to turn the hot water handle to the off position, while doing so, the handle shot from my hand up in the air being propelled by a geyser of hot water.

Having never had something like this happen before my first instinct was to try to put the handle back on and stop the water that way, no luck! Unable to articulate any words, I stepped out of the bathroom to get Steves attention, wondering why the noise of gushing water and the strange noises I must have been making weren't bringing him to the bathroom to see what was going on.

Steve came into the bathroom, very able to articulate words, he put his hand over the hot geyser and instructed me to turn the water off under the sink. The knob wouldn't budge!

Steve's hand is now getting rather hot so he placed towels over the gushing hot water to hold it back and has me run to the garage, "turn the water off at the hot water heater", he tells me. At the water heater my hands soaked once again the knob won't budge, but I grab my gardening gloves and am able to shut the water down.

(Back in the bathroom with the water off, Steve has to get a wrench to turn the water off at the sink, it wasn't just me)

So, why did this happen? The inside workings of the facuet in our house was made from plastic. The plastic parts are known to break and come loose, allowing water to be released like I described above.

The piece that broke on is shown in the diagram that I made up below:

Here is the kicker, this can happen without human help. No one has to be near the faucets and this same type of scenario can happen. That is the scary part.

After my father and his wife moved into their newly built home in TX they had a faucet like this one in the photo, in their kitchen with the one handle.

He was sitting in his breakfast nook when the same thing happened to him.

The handle went flying off, and water gushing everywhere, except no one was near the sink at the time. 

The home builder had decided to save a couple dollars on the faucets and had my dad not been home that could have caused a lot of damage to his brand new home.

Steve tells me that this happens often with the cheaper made faucets with the plastic insides.

He's seen it happen in apartment units where no one is living, or the owners are on vacation. Just imagine the damage the water will leave behind, and in Florida, the possible mold if the home is vacant at the time.

His advice is don't pinch pennies where your kitchen and bath are concerned. Research your purchase, make sure the faucet is a sturdy product. Spending the money now will save you in the long run.