Taps, toilets and showers replaced across Maitland, Newcastle and the Hunter
The mixers, toilets and showers on this page are from our own jobs.
New sink mixers, toilet suites, rail showers and bath sets, and repairs to the taps and toilets you already have. We're based in Thornton, about 12 km from Maitland and 26 km from Newcastle by road, and we're open 24 hours, 7 days.
Kitchen and laundry mixers
A sink mixer sits in one hole in the bench or the sink and runs off two flexible hoses, hot and cold, from isolation valves in the cupboard underneath. Most of a mixer swap happens down there, so clear the cupboard before we arrive and the job goes quicker.
A taller style changes more than the look. A gooseneck like the one in this photo has to clear the window sill when it swings and still land its water in the middle of the bowl, so tell us the model you've picked when you book.
What a mixer swap covers
- The old tap and its hoses off
- The isolation valves under the sink checked, since they're what you turn off next time
- The new mixer fixed tight to the bench or sink, on new hoses
- Water back on, hot and cold run through, and the cupboard checked dry
Toilet suites
Both toilets here are back-to-wall suites. The pan is closed in right to the wall, so the waste connection is hidden and there's no gap behind the bowl to clean. The cistern sits on top of the pan and fills from a stop tap on the wall.
In the photo on the left you can see that stop tap and the braided hose running up to the cistern, and the water rating label still on the cistern.
Replacing a toilet
- Water off at the stop tap and the old suite out
- The floor or wall waste checked and the new pan connector fitted
- The new pan fixed down and the cistern connected
- Flushed several times and checked for leaks at the base and the stop tap
Measure before you buy a toilet
Every pan is made to suit a range of waste positions, and the one in your bathroom is fixed in the slab or the wall. When the waste goes through the floor, the number that matters is the set-out: the distance from the wall to the centre of the waste pipe. When it goes into the wall, it's the height of the waste above the floor.
The pan's box or spec sheet lists the range it covers. If your measurement falls outside it, the pan won't connect, and the fix is either a different pan or moving the waste, which means lifting tiles. Back-to-wall pans leave the least room to adjust, because the pan closes against the wall.
Not sure which kind you've got? Look behind the old pan: a pipe into the floor or a pipe into the wall. Tell us which when you book.
Showers and bath sets
Rail showers
A rail shower puts an overhead rain head and a hand shower on one rail, fed from the outlet in the wall. The rail is screwed through the tiles into the wall, so it needs solid fixing behind them to stay straight and firm.
Bath and basin wall sets
Wall taps and a spout, like this bath set, screw onto tap bodies that sit inside the wall. A new set that suits the bodies already there goes on from the front. One that doesn't means opening the wall, and at that point it's a bathroom job.
Dripping taps, running toilets and hidden leaks
Not every job needs a new fixture. Each of these costs you something while it's left.
Checks before you buy a tap, toilet or shower
These checks save a second trip to the shop.
| WaterMark | Taps, toilets and most other plumbing products have to be WaterMark certified before they're installed in Australia, and a licensed plumber isn't allowed to fit a listed product without it. Look for the mark and licence number on the product or box, especially when buying online. |
|---|---|
| Water rating | Toilets, taps and showers carry a WELS water rating label. More stars means less water used. |
| Toilet set-out | Measure your waste position and match it to the range on the pan's box. |
| Tap holes | Count the holes in your sink or bench. A one-hole mixer on a three-hole sink leaves two holes to cover. |
| Wall tap bodies | A new wall set has to suit the bodies already in the wall, or the tiles come off. |
How a replacement goes
Water off
At the fixture's own stop tap or isolation valve where there is one, or at the meter.
Old fixture out
Then the connections behind it are checked before anything new goes on.
New fixture in
Fixed firm, on new hoses or a new pan connector.
Water on and tested
Taps run hot and cold, toilets flushed, every joint checked for drips.
In NSW, any plumbing work needs a licence, whatever the job costs. Ours is plumbing licence 488039C, and we are fully insured.
Common questions
What should I check before buying a new tap or toilet?
That it carries the WaterMark, and for a toilet, that its set-out range matches your waste. Tell us the make and model when you book.
Will a new toilet fit where the old one was?
It will if the new pan's range covers your set-out, or your waste height if it goes into the wall. Measure before you buy.
Do I need a licensed plumber to change a tap?
In NSW, plumbing work needs a licence or certificate whatever the job costs, and connecting a new mixer or toilet is plumbing work.
My toilet keeps running after a flush. Does it need replacing?
Not usually. A running cistern is most often a worn part inside it, and that's a repair.
A tap or hose has burst. What do I do?
Turn the water off at the isolation valve under the sink, the stop tap behind the toilet, or the main stop tap at the water meter. Once it's off, ring 0474 659 574 at any hour, any day.
Do you work on commercial buildings as well as homes?
Yes. Our maintenance work covers both domestic and commercial clients.
Related plumbing
Taps and toilets across Thornton, Maitland, Newcastle, Lake Macquarie, Raymond Terrace, Tea Gardens and the Hunter Valley.
- Always look for the WaterMark, Australian Building Codes Board.
- Water rating label, Water Efficiency Labelling and Standards (WELS) scheme.
- Plumbing, draining and gasfitting work, NSW Government.