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Three Common Modern Types of Faucet Valves |
There are three main types of valves used on most residential faucets. Whether it be for the bathroom or the kitchen you will usually find either a ball, cartridge or ceramic disk type available at most retailers. The older type that used compression on a rubber or plastic washer are still available but are quickly becoming a thing of the past. The newer styles are more durable and less prone to leaks. They seldom leak or need replacement parts.
Of these three types of faucets the ceramic disk is the usually considered to be the Cadillac of the bunch. It is the longest lasting and the most leak resistant. It basically uses two ceramic discs that are manufactured extremely flat. The two disks rotate on top of each other and in the right position allow water to flow through two matching holes. Ceramic is very hard and so it can be made almost perfectly flat. This allows the two disks to be under pressure and scrap off any sediment deposits or calcium build up which would otherwise accumulate between them. It is basically is self cleaning. Replacement if needed is inexpensive and easy to do for any DIY types.
Ball valve faucets are very common. They are similar in mechanism to the ceramic disk type only they use a ball with two holes that align with the hot and cold water supplies. They are common in single handle faucets for either kitchen or bathroom. These style valves use rubber seals and have springs and other parts that can wear out. They are more likely to need replacement compared to the ceramic disk style but cost very little to replace. Again, an easy task for a DIY type…
The third style is a cartridge type. It still uses the same principle of aligning holes only this time using cylinders inside one another. They are usually made of plastic and have o-rings for seals. These of course will eventually wear out but this faucet valve type has few moving parts and so it has pretty good longevity. The other advantage is the cartridge just pops out and is replaced with another. They are not expensive either and very easy to replace. The cartridge type of valve is commonly found in each of the taps of the two-tap style faucets.
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