# Kitchen taps - standard fittings



## Alcalaina

Anyone know if a tap bought in the UK will fit Spanish plumbing?


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## jojo

As far as I know, the answer would be maybe lol! Although they have tried to standardise them across europe, I think the Uk have been more successful than Spain, so I guess it depends on where you got the taps and how standard your plumbing is in Spain ??????? Check the bore sizes on both??

Jo xxx


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## thrax

As far as I know, taps bought in Spain will often not fit in with Spanish plumbing...


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## adamkarenjack

Alcalaina said:


> Anyone know if a tap bought in the UK will fit Spanish plumbing?


Hi,

i am a uk plumber living in javea spain, most uk kitchen sink taps will be either 15mm rigid copper tails or half inch flexibles where as hear in spain 99% of taps have three eighths (inch) flexibles, however the uk taps are easily converted as half inch to three eighth adapters are readily available in both rigid fittings and flexible connectors.


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## Alcalaina

adamkarenjack said:


> Hi,
> 
> i am a uk plumber living in javea spain, most uk kitchen sink taps will be either 15mm rigid copper tails or half inch flexibles where as hear in spain 99% of taps have three eighths (inch) flexibles, however the uk taps are easily converted as half inch to three eighth adapters are readily available in both rigid fittings and flexible connectors.


That's just what I needed to know, thanks!


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## thrax

adamkarenjack said:


> Hi,
> 
> i am a uk plumber living in javea spain, most uk kitchen sink taps will be either 15mm rigid copper tails or half inch flexibles where as hear in spain 99% of taps have three eighths (inch) flexibles, however the uk taps are easily converted as half inch to three eighth adapters are readily available in both rigid fittings and flexible connectors.


Good answer!!! erm where are you? it says location in Spain but that you are also expat in NZ.... You are either having a busy commute or you have a very successful split personality...


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## adamkarenjack

thrax said:


> Good answer!!! erm where are you? it says location in Spain but that you are also expat in NZ.... You are either having a busy commute or you have a very successful split personality...


hi Thrax,

Currently living in Javea where we have been for the last eight years or so but looking to another move to NZ , don,t know what happened with the expat nz thing and have tried changing it but does,nt seem to make any difference!


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## country boy

I just love the "Experts" who appear on these forums....:clap2:

Plumbing sizes have been international for at least a lifetime...of course they will fit...ask a Spaniard what "Tres Quatros" is!


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## Alcalaina

country boy said:


> I just love the "Experts" who appear on these forums....:clap2:
> 
> Plumbing sizes have been international for at least a lifetime...of course they will fit...ask a Spaniard what "Tres Quatros" is!


Well, funnily enough, the UK supplier I contacted just replied saying exactly what adamkarenjack said ... so long live the Experts!


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## country boy

Alcalaina said:


> Well, funnily enough, the UK supplier I contacted just replied saying exactly what adamkarenjack said ... so long live the Experts!


Indeed!


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## dunmovin

adamkarenjack said:


> Hi,
> 
> i am a uk plumber living in javea spain, most uk kitchen sink taps will be either 15mm rigid copper tails or half inch flexibles where as hear in spain 99% of taps have three eighths (inch) flexibles, however the uk taps are easily converted as half inch to three eighth adapters are readily available in both rigid fittings and flexible connectors.


sometimes its not that simple. Repairing a neighbour's poolside shower, I found that what I thought was 15mm(1/2" nominable bore copper tube) was actually 14 mm and locally the only fittings available were the the capillary soldered type (I wanted to replace them wiith compression ring fittings, {connex or at a push securex.....if I can remember where my pipe drift is}where the joint would slip rather than rupture the pipe)

I need to replace 2 straight couplings, two elbows and suppose have to braze the shower rose again. All the the other joints that need attention,are in places that require the flexible body of a snake, the patience of a saint, no fear of distrubing hibernating snakes or scorpions or centipedes.....

Is it any wonder I left plumbing... and went to ladies lingerie?


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## maxmo

Believe it or not here in Ireland we are still on the old imperial standard!


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## carosapien

adamkarenjack said:


> hi Thrax,
> 
> Currently living in Javea where we have been for the last eight years or so but looking to another move to NZ , don,t know what happened with the expat nz thing and have tried changing it but does,nt seem to make any difference!


Are you sure there's the work for you? I'd say give Australia a go, that's where many Kiwis are headed at the moment and unemployment is still rising in New Zealand.

Unemployment Rises To 6.7 Per Cent | Stuff.co.nz


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## Alcalaina

Problem solved, finally found exactly what I wanted in Ikea. Who'd have thought the perfect tap would be so hard to find? Talk about a kitchen sink drama ...


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## adamkarenjack

carosapien said:


> Are you sure there's the work for you? I'd say give Australia a go, that's where many Kiwis are headed at the moment and unemployment is still rising in New Zealand.
> 
> Unemployment Rises To 6.7 Per Cent | Stuff.co.nz


hi carosapien,

thanks for the message, no not really sure there is work for me there at the moment, but have a couple of other ideas/options i am still investigating, have been provisionally accepted on wifes job being on the wanted list and will be moving from a country with 25% unemployment!


regards adam


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## adamkarenjack

dunmovin said:


> sometimes its not that simple. Repairing a neighbour's poolside shower, I found that what I thought was 15mm(1/2" nominable bore copper tube) was actually 14 mm and locally the only fittings available were the the capillary soldered type (I wanted to replace them wiith compression ring fittings, {connex or at a push securex.....if I can remember where my pipe drift is}where the joint would slip rather than rupture the pipe)
> 
> I need to replace 2 straight couplings, two elbows and suppose have to braze the shower rose again. All the the other joints that need attention,are in places that require the flexible body of a snake, the patience of a saint, no fear of distrubing hibernating snakes or scorpions or centipedes.....
> 
> Is it any wonder I left plumbing... and went to ladies lingerie?



Think you will find that there is no such thing as 14mm copper pipe in spain and never has been!


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## gus-lopez

adamkarenjack said:


> Think you will find that there is no such thing as 14mm copper pipe in spain and never has been!


Unfortunately there is ! & 16 & 18.

http://www.cobres.net/index_archivos/TARIFA_COBRES.pdf


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## adamkarenjack

gus-lopez said:


> Unfortunately there is ! & 16 & 18.
> 
> http://www.cobres.net/index_archivos/TARIFA_COBRES.pdf


 I stand corrected, have never seen this anywhere before or 16mm, can,t really see the point but there it is, will take this in to my spanish merchants on monday and get you an apology from them aswell as they told me there was no such thing in domestic pipe sizes in copper and never has been (hence my first reply), can,t you solder a 15mm capillary fitting onto the pipe?


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## gus-lopez

adamkarenjack said:


> I stand corrected, have never seen this anywhere before or 16mm, can,t really see the point but there it is, will take this in to my spanish merchants on monday and get you an apology from them aswell as they told me there was no such thing in domestic pipe sizes in copper and never has been (hence my first reply), can,t you solder a 15mm capillary fitting onto the pipe?


Why they use it , God only knows ? Swimming pool shower tails is one I've seen it on. The Italians are even worse. All refrigeration pipework is imperial the world over as it's dictated by the American market. The Italians build there commercial equipment with metric piping & supply metric to imperial adaptors !!:confused2:


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## adamkarenjack

gus-lopez said:


> Why they use it , God only knows ? Swimming pool shower tails is one I've seen it on. The Italians are even worse. All refrigeration pipework is imperial the world over as it's dictated by the American market. The Italians build there commercial equipment with metric piping & supply metric to imperial adaptors !!:confused2:


Hi gus-lopez
thanks for the reply, at the risk of turning this into a plumbing forum (but i am really genuinely interested to know) i have seen internal pipework in non standard sizes internally on manufactured appliances etc. i.e. boilers ,water heaters etc. the point i was trying to make from the origanal post was that i have never seen a domestic pipework installation in spain i.e. hot or cold water supply ran in 14mm or 16mm copper pipe, are you saying you have? the point being that whatever tap tails were connected to the tap (in the origanal post) would be of a standard adaptable size, i also probably wrongly assumed that the guy in the other post was referring to a piped outside shower as opposed to a manufactured shower unit.
p.s. iam still willing to purchase a large slice of humble pie and/or a hat and eat both if necessary.


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## carosapien

adamkarenjack said:


> hi carosapien,
> 
> thanks for the message, no not really sure there is work for me there at the moment, but have a couple of other ideas/options i am still investigating, have been provisionally accepted on wifes job being on the wanted list and will be moving from a country with 25% unemployment!
> 
> 
> regards adam


Believe me if it wasn't for the work in Australia the unemployment in NZ would be a lot higher than it is. Thousands of people are leaving NZ to find work over there. Don't take the relatively low unemployment rate in as a good indicator of the amount of work that's available. Even when a job does come up in NZ the immigration dept insists that an employer must try to find a local before he can take on an immigrant worker.

If you want some wise advice apply for Australian permanent residency. That way you'll have the right to work in *both* countries.

If you only have NZ PR you can only work in NZ and will have to wait about five years before you get your NZ passport and be able to work in both Australia and NZ.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/immigration/news/article.cfm?c_id=231&objectid=10801118


> New Zealanders' exodus to Australia continued in March as more kiwis look across the Tasman for a better quality of life, even as the so-called 'lucky country' looks vulnerable to an economic slowdown.
> 
> Some 5,000 departures in the month of March left - a net loss across the Tasman of 3,928 last month, according to Statistics New Zealand. That took the annual net loss to a record 39,456, with 53,237 departures in the year ended March 31. That's continued a trend of record annual outflows to Australia since November 2011, the department said.


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## xabiaxica

carosapien said:


> Believe me if it wasn't for the work in Australia the unemployment in NZ would be a lot higher than it is. Thousands of people are leaving NZ to find work over there. Don't take the relatively low unemployment rate in as a good indicator of the amount of work that's available. Even when a job does come up in NZ the immigration dept insists that an employer must try to find a local before he can take on an immigrant worker.
> 
> If you want some wise advice apply for Australian permanent residency. That way you'll have the right to work in *both* countries.
> 
> If you only have NZ PR you can only work in NZ and will have to wait about five years before you get your NZ passport and be able to work in both Australia and NZ.
> 
> Kiwi exodus to Australia continues in March - Immigration - NZ Herald News


come to think of it I know a welder who emigrated to NZ some years ago & HE leaves his wife & 4 kids for weeks/months at a time to work in Australia


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## adamkarenjack

carosapien said:


> Believe me if it wasn't for the work in Australia the unemployment in NZ would be a lot higher than it is. Thousands of people are leaving NZ to find work over there. Don't take the relatively low unemployment rate in as a good indicator of the amount of work that's available. Even when a job does come up in NZ the immigration dept insists that an employer must try to find a local before he can take on an immigrant worker.
> 
> If you want some wise advice apply for Australian permanent residency. That way you'll have the right to work in *both* countries.
> 
> If you only have NZ PR you can only work in NZ and will have to wait about five years before you get your NZ passport and be able to work in both Australia and NZ.
> 
> Kiwi exodus to Australia continues in March - Immigration - NZ Herald News


okay, food for thought, thanks for the info


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## solarmonkey

14, 16, 18 & 20mm pipes are common in Europe the wall thickness is 1mm meaning the smaller pipe will fit nicely into the next larger without the need for reducers also you can cut a small section of say 16mm and use it as a coupling for 14mm another reason for using various sizes is when 15mm may be too small but 22mm is way too big for mains pressure hence the choice of sizes.


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## Martin balconalmar

adamkarenjack said:


> Hi,
> 
> i am a uk plumber living in javea spain, most uk kitchen sink taps will be either 15mm rigid copper tails or half inch flexibles where as hear in spain 99% of taps have three eighths (inch) flexibles, however the uk taps are easily converted as half inch to three eighth adapters are readily available in both rigid fittings and flexible connectors.


I could do with your number. Bought a villa in Javea needing full refurbishment and a lot of plumbing


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