Recent Ruins / Catalogue / Glass & Ceramic
Porcelain plumbing fixtures
| Period range | 1890-1950 |
|---|---|
| Usual fabric | Vitreous china; cast iron with enamel on some sinks |
| Usual form | Pedestal basins, wall-hung basins, cast sinks with integral drainboards |
| Wear to expect | Crazing in the glaze, stained overflow, drilled tap holes on old centres |
The tap centres are usually what decides whether a beautiful basin can be used, and they are the first thing people forget to measure.
What it is
Vitreous china fixtures are glazed through and fired as one piece, so the glaze is not a coating that can be worn off in the way a cast-iron tub's enamel can. Pedestal basins come as a two-part set and the pedestal is frequently not the original. Cast sinks are iron shells with fired enamel, often with an integral drainboard on one or both sides, and they are heavy enough to need their own bearers.
How to tell age
Look underneath at the unglazed foot ring and any impressed marks, and at the fixing arrangement, which moved from brackets and a pedestal toward concealed hangers. Overflow slot shape and the presence or absence of an integral soap recess both shift with period. Old fixtures are drilled for tap centres that no longer match current standards.
What commonly fails
Crazing is a fine crack network in the glaze; it is usually cosmetic on china, but it holds stain permanently and it cannot be polished out. Chips at the rim and around the tap holes expose the body. On cast sinks the enamel wears through at the drainboard where dishes were dragged.
What to check before fitting
Measure the tap hole centres and the waste position first, and confirm you can obtain fittings for them. Check the underside of a pedestal basin for hairline cracks radiating from the fixing holes, which is where they carry load. For a cast sink, plan the bearers before it arrives, since it will not sit safely on a standard cabinet.