Pot Filler Can Save the Strain on Your Body

DEAR TIM: A pot filler faucet has been suggested by my kitchen designer. I have never had one and I wonder if it is really necessary. Is it a good idea? Will the contractor have any problems installing it? What are the most important things to consider if I decide to include one of these interesting faucets in my new kitchen?

Penny R., Manteca, Calif.

DEAR PENNY: I'm willing to bet that within a month of taking possession of your newly completed kitchen you're going to call the kitchen designer and tell her how smart she is. If she has thought out the need for a pot filler faucet, no doubt she has included all sorts of other labor-saving features as well.

Over the past few years, appliances more typical of commercial and institutional kitchens have found their way into residential kitchens. Look at the monster cooktops, ranges, ovens and refrigerators now seemingly commonplace in modern home kitchens. Even my own kitchen has a six-burner cooktop. Pot filler faucets can be added to the list of things that are starting to become mainstream in kitchen design.

I think a pot filler is an excellent idea for your kitchen. Once one of these gorgeous articulating faucets is installed above your cooktop, you never have to carry another pot full of water to the cooktop. This saves wear and tear on your hands, wrists, arms and back.

Water is actually fairly heavy, as just 1 gallon weighs a little over 81/3 pounds. If you measure the amount of water you might boil to make a large pot of pasta, you might be surprised to discover you carry nearly 20 pounds from the sink to the cooktop. When you are doing lots of cooking during large holiday celebrations, the last thing you should be doing is wasting energy carrying water around your kitchen.

I doubt that any contractor or plumber worth his salt will have a problem installing a pot filler in your kitchen. Most pot fillers require a single half-inch cold-water supply line. A plumber can install this extra pipe in 30 minutes or less in most kitchens.

There are several very important things to consider before the plumber arrives at the job site. The location of the pipe projecting from the wall, which feeds the pot filler faucet, is critical. If this pipe is not located correctly, the pot filler faucet might end up too low or it might not fold back completely to nest against the wall.

I urge you to buy the pot filler faucet before the plumber arrives, and read the written installation instructions carefully. If you don't want to get the faucet that early in the job, most manufacturers have all of the technical notes, dimensions and instructions available for free at their Web sites.

You will also need several other important dimensions, such as the height of the cooktop burners above the finished height of the countertop, and the height of your tallest pot. When added together, these dimensions tell you the absolute minimum height above the finish countertop the tip of the pot filler faucet must be. I would always add another inch to be safe. Be sure you or the plumber takes into account the height of the finish flooring as you do all of this math.

Because a pot filler faucet swings out of the way when not in use, you need to make sure it will not hit against wall cabinets that may be positioned on either side of the cooktop. My wife and I wanted our pot filler to fold toward the wall cabinets so it would not block a decorative tile backsplash in our kitchen. It took some planning to make this happen, but it was well worth it.

When looking at pot filler faucets, consider ones that have two separate on and off valves. You may think this is poor design until you walk away from your pot filler and it has a slow drip. The second valve acts as a safety to minimize damage that can be caused by a dripping faucet. Keep in mind that a pot filler faucet in a standard kitchen does not have a sink underneath it to catch pesky drips of water.

More information: Askthebuilder.com

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