A psychologist reviews faucets

jeremynyc

#1 – 10:29 AM May 28, 2009

What a wastes of pixels, both the expert reviews and Norman's take on these thing. Not a single interesting perspective to be found. Sort of silly, actually.

Clay

#2 – 10:50 AM May 28, 2009

Hmm. This is fluffier than I expect from Norman. He never really gets into the cognitive features of any of the faucets.

He offers some vastly more interesting perspectives in The Design of Everyday Things, a book even my non-designer friends have been enjoying.

Anonymous Anonymous

#3 – 10:52 AM May 28, 2009

Absolutely false!

If the water's not hot enough, put it in the kettle. If it's not cold enough, put it in the fridge. If the amount is insufficient, run the tap longer. If the arc is incompatible with tools you need to use (water glasses, spaghetti pots) you have a much worse problem!

Example: most bathroom faucets have a shallow arc suited to washing hands or wetting toothbrushes. If you are smart enough not to drink bottled water, you will want to fill water glasses occasionally at the tap, which is completely impossible if the arcs of the faucet and basin are incompatible with your drinking glass.

Example: if you like spaghetti, and you aren't rich enough to maintain a separate spaghetti-pot tap over the stove-burner, your kitchen sink needs to be deep and have a high-arc faucet.

The arc of the faucet is critically important - actually more so than the amount or temperature (assuming those are non-zero).

I have high-arc kitchen faucets in every bathroom, as well as the kitchen. If I need to fill a bucket, I can always do it at the nearest tap, I don't have to run to the kitchen.

I like to modify the valves, too - stripping off all the crazily fluted teapot shrouds so that the actual valves are exposed. I put chrome sleeves over any exposed threading, just enough so things can be kept clean, but otherwise the valves are visibly plumbing instead of trying to be wacky samovars for hallucinating mice.

hokano

#4 – 2:14 PM May 28, 2009

Emotions are really the most important part of life. Things have to work well, but they also should excite you.

I agree with this right through the first clause of the second sentence. Actually, things have to work well and then leave me the hell alone!

dculberson

#5 – 8:51 PM May 28, 2009

I also care about the feel of the faucet; does it feel like it's going to break in my hands? I care about how quickly it shuts off and how easily it turns on. I care about how hard it is to clean and how durable and long lived it is. (My bathroom faucet is now 15 years old.)

There are so many things beyond temperature and quantity of water.

LeavingHalfway

#6 – 10:45 PM May 28, 2009

for those of you too lazy to read the "reviews" in the link, let me sum them up for you:

ZOMG! Faucets! I love faucets!

devophill

#7 – 1:41 PM May 29, 2009

#3Anonymous Anonymous- Well, not everyone (in America at least) has an electric kettle (I assume that's what you were talking about), but I totally agree with you. Also, I will strive to integrate the phrase "wacky samovars for hallucinating mice" into my everyday conversation.