Buying New Moen Kitchen Faucet: Amazon vs. Local Plumbing Supply

[Beski]

We are getting a new Moen Kitchen Faucet installed in a few weeks, and our Plumber directed us to the local Supply House to pick out what we want. He also said to AVOID Lowes or Home Depot as the Faucet "insides" tend not to be the same quality compared to buying at a Supply House (something about plastic internal pieces vs. metal pieces).

We just bought our Faucet this weekend at the Plumbing Supply but now see it $125 Cheaper on Amazon which includes Free Shipping and No Tax. ($500 vs. $375) I compared the Amazon Part # to the Part # on our Box and they seem identical.

Moen 7594EC Arbor With Motionsense One-Handle High Arc Pulldown Kitchen Faucet, Chrome
Part # 7594ESRS

(Not sure if I am allowed to post the Amazon Link to my Faucet ?)

Should I Return the Faucet we just bought and buy from Amazon to Save $125 ??

Or is there a better place to buy this On-Line ?

Thanks,
Tom

[dcelite]

Your plumber is correct about the same faucet at Home Depot being made cheaper. Also, I would suggest keeping the faucet from the supply house. We have seen too many customers buy online but then they can't get warranty issues taken care of without paying for them.

[jimbo]

There is some truth to lesser quality items at the box stores, but it varies. For example, you will often find a lav faucet with the plastic pop up drain instead of metal , but Moen sells that same thing to all comers.... there are different model numbers, and you could order the same item from a supply store. As far as the internals, I do not believe you find different constructions. The problem with box stores, and with an amazon vendor, you don't know if someone has fiddled with it and borrowed some parts! Either of those probably has a return policy, but do you need the hassle??? There is some advantage to paying up and dealing with a local supplier/plumber who will stand behind the sale.

[hj]

The problem with the big box stores is NOT always a different quality, but often a lack of "final inspection" so you have a higher probability of getting a defective item and having to take it apart then returning it, then reinstalling the new one. Depending on availability, and suppliers do not stock ALL makes and models, I will furnish the faucet if I can find it easily, otherwise I let the customer buy his own and call me when he has it. However, I have had instances when their purchase WAS defective and by the time I had installed, removed, and reinstalled it, including "wait time" while they did the return, the installation cost more than twice what it should have with "good" faucets.

[Beski]

THANKS to everybody for their Fast and Helpful replies !!

OK, that all makes sense, I will stick to the Faucet we have. The Plumber is also installing 3 Toto Drake II Toilets from the same supply house, so I guess we would have some leverage if there was a problem or defective part or we needed any type of warranty service.

Just wanted to make sure we were doing the right thing !!

[Gary Swart]

Good thinking about staying with the real plumbing supply, but it's high unlikely you will have any problems with your new Toto toilets. Toto toilets almost never have a defective part or any other problem.

[mikeplummer]

here's how i handle this...if a customer opts to buy any fixture or equipment through me, faucet, sink, toilet, water heater, etc., then I will handle any warranty issues and no charge for service if required on said item for 1 year. If they supply it themselves then I don't give them the same "service warranty". That is my gaurantee that I will stand behind "my products", always bought through plumbing wholesalers.

[hj]

That is how we do it here also, but when the customer wants some "exotic" brand, we prefer that they furnish it themselves, because any service issue could be a hassle what with ordering parts and waiting for them to be shipped. I once needed some aerator inserts, since they did not sell the entire aerator, and had to wait 3 weeks for them to be shipped from Italy.