faucet engineering

Friends,

My recent fun with leak repair on my 40 yr old Kohler sink faucet led me to ask this of another forum's responder.

If, the next time my faucet starts to leak, should I get off the billfold and buy a new Kohler 4 inch faucet, which I priced at 250-300 bucks? Has faucet engineering improved in time so that new stuff would be better stuff and not just new?

I used to think that engineering in general gave us better products, but have begun to suspect that it has yielded not better, just cheaper, and in many cases, less fixable stuff.

Opinions?

It would be a mistake to think that the engineering generally brings us "better" things. On the one hand, the case could be made that cars today are more technologically advanced, better mileage, and longer lasting, than say 30 years ago.

In the consumer retail world, innovation is generally driven by a need to lower cost. They will of course look for some functionality improvements which can be touted in advertising and marketing. But I don't think you could make a case that all the parts that today are thin metal or plastic, chrome plated, are in any way "better" than solid brass pieces with heavy chrome. Ceramic disc technology may last longer than a flat washer, but parts are more expensive and harder to find.

My first job after retiring from the Navy in '86 was for a consumer electronic manufacturer. My first assignment was to take a product ( a telephone set) which was just introduced to the market ( retail $39.95) and get 15% out of the cost. We needed better margins. Those cost reductions were not "improvements" in any way!

As to your replacement question: I would not want to bet that any faucet you purchase today will still be serviceable in 40 years. The chrome finish may not stand the test of time, and same for the internals.

If the appearance of your faucet is still excellent, and you don't have a burning desire to upgrade the style, and if it turns out that the "wear and tear" internal parts are still available, then I see no particular reason to change it out.

Jimbo,

In your answer you helped support my original expression.

I KNOW cars are much better "engineered" today than they used to be.

My old faucet still looks shiny.

I also know that electronics design is better, but especially there the idea of fixability is history.

Now I hear that brass is about to be outlawed for having low level lead content. Is there science behind this or is it just a move to make people buy, not fix, stuff?

The lead thing is California-driven, and you know we are all fruitcakes out here. I am not aware of what studies showed lead leaching from brass faucets.

leaching

Lead "leaching" from anything may be California hysteria. If the brass was leaching lead, then the faucets would be full of holes. Now, imported valves DO have a situation where the water eventually leaks through and creates "tumors" on the outsides.