My plumber prefers easy stuff too. Wanted me to not get kohler and instead use moen or delta. Sorry. They are my fixtures and I know what I picked is good quality and dependable. If he doesn't want the job, I'll find another plumber. He's installing kitchen and three bathrooms full of Kohler :)

My plumber also prefers the brands that have readily available parts. After having so many problems with a "speakman" brand shower fixture (it is a major brand used commercially, but I got it at home depot expo), I am going to try very hard to stick with moen or delta. If they can't get the part for 2 weeks, you have no faucet for two weeks. My showere was out of commission for a whole summer! Luckily, I had another shower in the house. My choices were to wait for the parts or rip out my brand new bathroom tiles on shower wall to relace the fixture. I do recall my plumber saying that either Hans grohe or grohe had readily available parts, but I forget which one.

My plumber said the same thing!

Ditto, didn't stop me. I have a Grohe Ladylux Cafe (stainless/soft black). The black finish on the handle started to come off after a couple years. Grohe shipped me a brand new handle for free and dh installed it.

My plumber said he strongly preferred Grohe to Kohler. He really talked down Kohler. For reasons of style, we ended up doing Grohe for one bath and Kohler for the other. We don't yet have functional bathrooms, but just looking at the Kohler and Grohe faucets and fixtures the Grohe do seem better made with more quality and heavier materials.

Did my plumber diss Kohler just because he believes Grohe is better? Well, I just found out that he gets considerable points towards a prize when his customer buys from the local plumbing store that stocks Grohe. They do not carry Kohler. So makes me wonder if his judgement about Grohe's superiority is completely unbiased!

Thing is, the plumber doesn't have to live with the faucet -- you do!

Plumber also doesn't deal with the companies in getting the parts afterward -- they want to go to the supply store that carries them. I'd tell him you'll get the parts if there's a problem.

We've heard of plumbers saying all kinds of things about very high quality brands (Waterworks often is a target). I have 8 y.o. Rohl bath fixtures with 0 issues (they sent extra porcelain handle parts). Have needed parts for others which companies sent at no charge in warranty. Now I call the faucet company and find out the policy on parts in/out of waranty (they are all different).

Found it helpful, when I'm considering something, to hand them the spec sheet for the specific product I'm looking at so install needs can be discussed. Just did this with my plumber for an addition I'm planning in the kitchen. This often heads off the rejection of brands/fixtures they don't know in general.

My plumber also admitted that after he installed my "foreign" air jet tub -- his first -- that he'd recommended and installed many more of them in other jobs. Sort of a sideways thank you.

I don't think they all know how to get the install specs in advance to tell you what's needed.

Once I purchase, I create download books for all appliances and fixtures with copies for contractor, plumber and electrician plus one to say in the house (they will take them and lose them).

Most folks on this board will be way ahead of the plumber in terms of brands etc. However, there is nothing wrong with the 2 brands the plumber favors in this case. The "foreign" thing is silly -- it's just unfamiliarity and the need to sometimes deal with dual inch and centimeter instructions.

When we did our kitchen, our plumber, the guy at the appliance store (who was wrong about some things, but at least right about this!), and the guy where we bought our faucets, all said-- get a Grohe. The only quibble I have, is with our pot filler faucet; the upper handle pulls off easily (Grohe sent new bushings within days of my phone call). I have a feeling we'll be calling them about a replacement handle itself at some point, and I know they will likely send one without a hassle, and quickly, too.

On the other hand, our plumber was not too keen on us getting Toto toilets. He just didn't feel they are any better than Kohler, not worth the extra $ in his opinion. He didn't put up a stink about installing them--if we had chosen something that he knew to be truly garbage though, he would have been more vocal about steering clear of them.

My plumber was the opposite. He was all enthusiastic when my builder substituted Grohe for Kohler for my kitchen faucets. He looked at me like I was some kind of philistine when I said, "Is that good?"

Honestly, how often does one need to get parts for a faucet anyway. Get what you want.

There could be many reasons why a plumber (or other tradesmen) recommends what s/he does:
Bad experience with a faucet (But...ALL brands have "bad apples" or "lemons")
They're used to working with one brand or another and don't want (or are afraid) to have to do something different
The get "points" or "kickbacks" recommending one brand over another

Personally, I'd do my own research rather than trust what one tradesperson tells me...

How dare your plumber develop preferences based on his experiences? He's just to empirical for words!
Casey

We had a Kohler faucer in the kitchen that started leaking after only 2 years. I looked at the Lowes website for replacement and saw about 20 negative reviews for the faucet!!! You might want to look at the reviews. It seems Kohler has received the highest quantity of negative reviews amoungst the major brands.

Your crystal ball is as good as anyone else's.
"Trying to figure out why a plumber prefers X or Y."

In her post, rococogurl described details that matter. Millions of plumbers (and other tradespeople) do not go get the PDF's and "install specs" in advance. Many don't know how to. So, it can be normal for people do develop preferences for a silly reason like "I am comfortable reading their diagrams when I'm forced into doing this at the very last minute."

In some regions, plumbers do not supply any products; they only install. Then there is no commercial pressure to install the brands that they have an ongoing contract with. Kohler is a company that creates a lop-sided contract that pays far more when one sells a couple more. So, it can be normal for people do develop preferences for a silly reason like "I am comfortable knowing that I'll be paid a whole lot for selling another one of this company's product."

In other forums, inhabited by plumbers, Delta comes out smelling sweet while Kohler usually gets criticized for a number of things Kohler does, or has been known to do. One thing about Kohler is that they change parts numbers often, and then later discontinue the product, without support. And there are other criticisms also, e.g. about the sizes of the holes and of the pipes being arranged to make it incompatible.

On the commercial side of things, your plumber makes money if he provides the product to you.

Without regard to this, there IS a learning curve whenever anyone has to read new diagrams. There is nothing wrong with having a preference. But, it appears your plumber has taken this too far. He is giving you little choice. A faucet is easy to install. A lot harder to install are shower valves.

Rohl owner (bathroom fixtures) weighing in. We have a problem-plagued shower set-up, and it has been difficult to get parts. When the plumber wasn't able to source them at his usual places in NYC, I dealt first with the authorized online retailer from whom we purchased, and then with Rohl directly. We've received three different parts to fix the problem, it STILL isn't fixed, and we're contemplating opening up the wall and pulling all the rough-ins and switching to a totally different manufacturer for the shower set up. Very annoying.

In the interests of full disclosure, the Rohl bathtub set-up,, which matches the shower, and two sink faucets have been problem free, and those faucets get heavy use.

This is a kind of old post but I just wanted to weigh in case anyone searching finds it. As far as I know, Grohe (or maybe it is just the Hans Grohe subset) has a HUGE operations, warehouse, offices, headquarters in Alpharetta, GA (just north of Atlanta). Yes it is a "foreign" company originally but I have personally driven up to Alpharetta and picked up a showerhead or some other part I needed when we re-did our bathroom 2 years ago.

Yes, Grohe is big stateside.

Some faucets are more difficult or time consuming to install than others. Find a faucet (or several) that you like and get installation quotes on them. Only you will know if the extra installation costs are worth it for you. You might also try contacting the manufacturer to find out about how you would obtain replacement parts in the event of a problem. Do your research and then when your plumber has this discussion with you, you can explain that you understand the costs and difficulties associated, but that you want faucet X. If the plumber refuses to install the faucet you want, I'd say it's time to find a new plumber.

Has anyone ever thought why some toilets like Kohler and American Standard have stocked replacement parts? Maybe it is demand driven? Plummers may like those toilets because of repair rates? Just sayin'.

When we had to redo our master bath in a previous home, my plumber recommended that I check out the showroom connected to his supply house because he knew that they were good about getting repair parts for the stuff they sold in a timely manner. Luckily, the showroom had an excellent selection of display items and catalogues as well as knowledgeable salespeople so I felt like he gave me good advice.