Advice in picking durable shower/tub rough in valve

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Tom M

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Good day everyone.

I am new to this board and in the planning phase of a complete bath remodel on an older home I recently bought.

I have quite a bit of conflicting advice/comments on the merits of the various manufacturers rough-in valves. A local plumber dislikes Kohler as repair parts (cartridges) seem to be unavailable to anything other than a fairly new product. He said Delta cartridges were always available. However, this is the very same guy who said my slow running kitchen sink drains were working just fine a month before they completely stopped draining due to existing grease in the line. A snake and a plug in the open water heater drain line allowed the 40 gallons of boiling water I poured in to flush out the grease. So much for his opinions.

The Delta shower valve in the bathroom leaks and continues to leak even after he replaced the cartridge. I see multiple customer reviews across the big box store product listing that say Delta valves always leak. Other brands do not even list repair parts or cartridges. "Call them" their websites say. Kohler hseems to have earned a very bad reputation for customer service.

From a professional's point of view, what brand/type of pressure balanced valve would you install if you wanted as few problems as possible. We have fairly high levels of minerals in our water locally, judging by the calcium deposits in the dishwasher and elsewhere. The trim is fairly meaningless from a plumbing point of view.

I have no objection to buying a spare cartridge or two and holding them in stock against future replacement needs if they do not degrade over time.

Spending a bit more money up front to get good equipment that doesn't break has always made sense to me. Has always worked out to be cheaper in the long term. Cost - benefit ratios rule.

Tom M
Oklahoma
 
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