Your guide to investing in quality products
This month, we’re focusing on a topic we’ve received some questions about in the last several weeks: purchasing faucets and other plumbing appliances. It’s true, you can find the same faucet, by the same manufacturer, at two different price points. Why is that so?
We’ll help you understand the differences between the two products and why it’s important to invest in products that last (or are at least backed by warranties), below.
You may have noticed plumbing fixtures at home improvement stores like Home Depot or Lowes that seem much more inexpensive compared to the products we source for you. This is for good reason! There is a huge difference between a store-bought faucet and a faucet ordered from a builder grade supply house. Even if the product has the same name, same brand, and the same appearance, the price and quality are astronomically different. This is because manufacturers create two different versions of a product: a contractor-grade product and a retail-grade product. Big-box stores will generally order large quantities of fixtures in bulk that are made with lesser-quality elements in order to keep the price per unit low.
Contractor-grade products, especially the ones we use at Kegonsa Plumbing, are backed by strong product warranties in case anything goes wrong. They’re also made with better and more reliable materials, like stainless steel and brass, while the same retail-grade product typically uses plastic for the mechanical pieces. This means retail-grade products wear out more quickly and will require maintenance much sooner than a contractor-grade product.
Pro tip: If you ever see a fixture that looks identical to another but is different in price, always check the model number or part number. The numbers will be similar but will vary slightly. Even within retail fixtures, some manufacturers create an A-grade and B-grade model with differences in price and quality.
When we install a product from one of our suppliers, we stand by its good quality. Using fixtures from contractor-grade suppliers that we’ve already vetted means that installation is done right and that we’re available for repairs if anything goes wrong. If a client hires us to install a fixture that was purchased elsewhere, the responsibility falls to the client if things go wrong. The fixture would need to be taken out, returned to the retail store, and a replacement would need to be installed.
If you’re considering a bathroom remodel, new kitchen faucet, or other fixture, send us a message. Our team has decades of combined experience, so you can rest easy knowing we only recommend and supply contractor-grade, warranty-backed products for your home.