Plumbing & Bathroom Fixtures

Just trying to put this thread on top.

I like Simon's on the East Side -- serial renovators and contractors may have other suggestions as well.

ali r.

this is where most high-end retailers get their plumbing from:

http://www.afnewyork.com/

if you have a designer or architect friend they could order on your behalf and you can get a trade discount.

Sammy,

Af has a very nice showroom and most of the time are very good to deal with. They do have some issues when ordering items they will say something is 12 weeks away and it ends up being more like 24 weeks. If you need items quickly make sure its in stock

Simons- I like very much.

Smolka- Not bad and easy to deal with for the most part

I've always done well with Davis & Warshow. Recently, I bought something from irawoods.com and was very happy with the purchase.

Apparently "reasonable prices" and "mid-range" mean different things to different people.

To me, it's Moen, Delta, and the less expensive Kohler offerings.

All are durable, and if something ever does go wrong, replacement parts are usually easy to find in stock at your local hardware store.

If you know what you want, Amazon has a huge selection of plumbing fixtures.

Ok. Thanks everyone. This has been very helpful.

@Flarf - I agree with your definition of "reasonable prices" and "mid-range". That is what I am looking for.

Has anyone tried Home Depot or Lowe's for anything?

i bought grohe fixtures online and was pretty happy with it, defintely doesn't have the plasticy feel.

There's a Duravit showcase building midtown and also a TOTO showroom in soho i think.

its low/no pressure environment and you can just walk around yourself.

Got to one of the following websites. They carry all the major brands, give a huge discount, and it's easy to be eligible for free shipping. I've ordered from both for several projects. A plumber told me that American Standard and Kohler are the easiest to repair and have a high quality range that is tops. (I replaced Hans Grohe, Moen, and Delta's that were awful.) You also can link into all the specs for the plumbing to see exactly what features you're getting.

http://www.faucetdirect.com/
http://www.faucetdepot.com/faucetdepot/main.asp

They also carry sinks, toilets, etc. I did buy a specially sized bathroom sink from AJ Madison and got a hefty discount also.

DON'T USE HOME DEPOT or LOWE'S. My contractor told me that the manufacturers sell these stores merchandise that is only made for them. Often they are knock off's of the better line that the manufacturer carries. This is to keep the price in line with the type of merchandise Home Depot and Lowe's sells.

@Sammy, I bought all my fixtures/tile/vanity from the Freeport Home Depot when I renovated my bathroom out at my beach house. No complaints. I like the Home Depot in the city less though -- smaller selection, and I don't think the staff is as knowledgeable.

Blackman Plumbing - Locations on Long Island and I think they might have added Manhattan.

Also, New York Replacement Parts (Lex & low 90's). They deal mostly with the trade but are open to the public. No showroom per se, but they carry alot. They will help you but you need some idea of what you wnt. If you go, the early mornings are very busy with contractors. You'll get more attention later in the day.

Your contractor should be able to get discounts on most plumbing supply places. The discount brings down the price to the same levels as Home Depot and Lowes but you get better service.

I had to match kohler and found there was a huge difference online, but you can get great deals. Think in end I ordered from wayfair, which had loads of options.

We renovated a kitchen and bath almost entirely by buying through Amazon.com. It worked great, the prices were better than anything anywhere.

Only problem is, a toilet arrived broken (we shipped it back, no loss). So I wouldn't do this with anything fragile.

But faucets, towel racks, etc.? Amazon.com worked great for all of that.

>Only problem is, a toilet arrived broken (we shipped it back, no loss).

Still, annoying.

My kitchen faucet line recently broke (causing a horrendous leak) and the faucet had to be replaced. The plumber told me to buy a new faucet, what to look for and to go to Home Depot. In preparation for this adventure (me in Home Depot is like a straight guy in Saks' Shoe Department) I first visited Home Depot online and found a large selection from a number of manufacturers (our old one was a Kohler), so I felt I would have no problem finding something in the price point I had imagined I would have to pay. When I went to Home Depot in-store however, I was supremely disappointed. There was virtually no selection. I could have ordered from the online store, but it would have taken approximately a week for delivery and a week without a kitchen sink was not an option. (Because the water was shut off we couldn't operate the dishwasher as well, washing dishes in our miniscule bathroom sink was neither fun nor effective.) I ended up spending about $100 less than anticipated, which I guess is good news but only because they had no higher end models. I guess this is long way of saying don't rely on Manhattan Home Depot, the selection is really poor. In retrospect I should have gone to Simon's although I don't know if they carry stock in store or it would have had to been ordered.