Several months ago ANO, Inc. began offering the a new faucet in oil rubbed bronze and brushed nickel finish to complement their line of all stainless steel faucets from Eclipse. The Oakbrook model from Freendo has so been so well received that they are expanding the line to include four kitchen faucets and three lav faucets.

Freendo faucets has been making faucets for over twenty years and all faucets come with a Limited Lifetime Warranty.

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ANO, Inc. is a Midwest stocking distributor of accessories for the countertop fabrication industry primarily stone fabricators although we have a number of customers producing laminate and solid surface countertops.  ANO, the letters are pronounced individually A N O and not as a single word, began offering Eclipse Stainless steel sinks to stone fabricators in the Midwest in 2004. In 2007 they added the
Eclipse line of stainless steel faucets.

In 2012 they created their Mission Statement which is : Helping Fabricators Sell More Tops.

There have been a number of evolving changes that serve this newly defined mission.

ANO began looking into how to help their customer grow their businesses. In 2012 ANO published a book cal

led “Selling Stone Countertops” which was aimed at helping fabricators who bu

ilt great tops but were less comfortable with selling their product understand the process of sales. The distribution of the book has reached 500 copies many of which were purchased by the Stone Fabricators Alliance for their members.

At the 2012 Stone Fabricators Alliance Megaworkshop in Nashville ANO present “A Seminar for Stone Fabricators Who Hate Sales.“  The response was very gratifying and resulted in invitations to repeat the presentation at the 2013 Coverings show and the 2014 StoneExpo.

In 2013 ANO, responding to customers requests, began offering a line of faucets with oil
rubbed bronze finish in addition to the line of stainless steel sinks from Eclipse. The Stone Collection from Freendo – a manufacturer with over 20 years of faucet manufacturing experience – is now being launched with stock to arrive in the Arlington Heights warehouse in Early June 2013.

Also at customer request new German made composite sinks will arrive at the warehouse and be available this summer.

In the next few weeks we will be introducing the new products here on our blog. We think you’ll like the new faucets and composite sinks.

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This Spring has been busy for ANO, Inc. The Kitchen and Bath Industry Show was held in New Orleans and a few days later ANO was in Atlanta for the Coverings Show. There were a lot of new products introduced at the Shows and it is difficult to keep it all straight as you wander through thousands of sf of displays from the most basic to the extreme.

In this article we will review some of the new products from Eclipse Stainless.

The Eclipse Poseidon Stainless Steel faucet and the Jacob Jensen  designed Fontein Alta were in the Best in Show Display at KBIS.

The KPS3035 was introduced. This sleeker version of the KPS3030 will be available from ANO this summer.

This picture of a prototype faucet that is still in development. No release has been scheduled.  The sales staff have nicknamed this faucet the Swan.

A new soap dispenser that will match the KPS3034. this soap dispenser will be available this summer.

An finally ANO will have available later this summer an additional filter.

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On all Eclipse faucets and nearly all faucet there is a small screen where the water comes out of the faucet. This screen is to add air to the water. It also traps debris that may come from the water line. It is good to occasionally remove the aerator and clean it out.

This is a picture of the aerator on an Eclipse Shasta faucet. All Eclipse faucets come with a tool to remove the aerator. If you lost the tool the aerator can be removed with a small adjustable wrench. 

This is a picture of the aerator after it has been removed. Flush and clean then re-install. 

This is a picture of debris removed from a customer faucet.

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To Change the cartridge on an Eclipse KPS3029 faucet you need to pry off the button that covers the set screw.

Undo the set screw with the Allen wrench that comes with the repair kit.

 This is inside view of the handle and set screw.

Remove retainer with reverse socket provided. Requires an adjustable wrench not provided. 

Use adjustable wrench to remove cartridge holder. 

Remove Cartridge. To reassemble reverse steps. Make sure the two small knobs align with matching sockets in body of faucet. Make sure you have right cartridge. See article on cartridges here. 

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Changing the cartridge on Eclipse faucets are similar. In other posts we have shown how to change the cartridge on the Shasta (KPS3029) and the Cascade and Hampton (KPS3030) which are identical.

The Poseidon (KPS3034) is the same except for removing the handle. there is a small notch on the bottom of the handle to insert the Allen wrench.

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You have two bids on your new kitchen. The bids are far apart. One is quoted as dollars per square foot and the other is based on a thorough review of what you want and need.

The high bid measured your tops, furnishes references, and can show you an insurance certificate. You can visit a showroom and a shop. The high bid has a land line phone.
The low bidder only has a cell phone, no insurance, will cut the countertop in your driveway.

It may not be that extreme but you get the “feeling” something is not right.
A stone countertop will be in your home for a very long time. Even if it is the low bid it is likely a lot of money… more than you want to spend to replace it if it is not right.
Below are pictures of some of the problems if you countertop is price too low.
I suspect none of the home owners tell their family and friends “It sucks but that’s OK. I got it cheap.”

Bad Seam

Bad seam

Grain running different directions

Poor Seam

Seam in middle of sink

Slab thicknesses not the same

All of these pictures were obtained off the internet and were not copyrighted as far as I could tell. Below are links to some of the webpages where I found them.

http://www.ns-concepts.com/Shame.html#

http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg0601164117332.html

http://www.paramountgranite.com/blog/category/seams/

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The purpose of a backsplash is to protect the wall behind your countertop from splashes of oils and other liquids. It also protects the wall from kitchen utensils, cooking operations and even small appliances.

There a lot of options for you backsplash including the same material as you countertop, tile, stainless steel or any impervious material that can be easily cleaned.

Probably the most common backsplash is the same material as the counter. Even here there are choices.  A four inch high splash can often be cut right from the same slab as the counter. If the countertop selection is a granite countertop with a lot of graining or many different shades and colors care should be taken to book match the countertop to the splash. That means the grain or coloring seems to continue from the top up into the splash. This is more difficult and therefore more expensive than simply cutting a four inch strip of the countertop and applying to the wall. Granite that is more uniform such as manmade quartz tops, solid surface materials and even plastic laminates are usually easier because color variation and graining is not as extreme.

A full wall splash from counter to cabinet can also be constructed from the same material as the top. For hard surface materials such as granite and quartz the wall applied material which is made heavy for countertops is very heavy to wall mount. Matching the countertop grain and color for a larger splash is even more difficult – read that expensive. There can also be challenges dealing with the wall outlets which are above every counter.

Full wall tile splashes have a number of benefits including they can add color to the kitchen particularly if you have white cabinets. Tile can also lighten up the kitchen if you have dark cabinets and a dark top and will not need to match the color and grain of the countertop.  Tile which comes in smaller pieces will also have less wasted material than materials like granite that come in large slabs.  Tile will make it easier to deal with the backsplash thickness at the electrical outlets.

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Every Sunday I go to a local coffee shop to purchase a cup of cappuccino for my wife. It is her weekly treat. When I purchase the cappuccino I get one of those customer loyalty cards that they punch each time I buy a cup so that I get every fifth one free. I am very confident that the FREE cup is exactly the same as the ones which I purchase at full price because it comes from the same machine as the others and the coffee shop does not know when I will be coming for my free cup.

If you get a free stainless steel sink with your countertop it is not the same as the free cup of coffee.  Many of the sinks given away free are not high quality sinks. Because the sinks are given away free many countertop fabricators buy the cheapest sinks they can find without regard to quality. All stainless steel sinks are  not the same. A high quality stainless steel sink will be certified by an independent testing agency to be made from 304 grade stainless steel and made using the best processes. A 304 stainless steel sink that is made using the right processes will look great for the life of the countertop.

Many cheaper sinks are made with 301 stainless or other cheaper grades of steel. 301 stainless steel has less chromium which give the sink its luster and less nickel which hardens the finish and makes it last longer.  A sinks made from 301 will be duller than one made from 304.

Cheaper sinks will have inconsistent finish and imperfections in the bowls from the production process. A Free sink may not be the same as my free cup of coffee.  If you demand an Eclipse sink you get a sink with the best steel with the best process and certified to be what Eclipse says it is. You also get Eclipse which will stand behind the sink after the sale.

copyright 2013 Tom Robinson

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