304 stainless steel garden tap with quarter-turn lever

This tap looks nothing like brass garden taps: a brushed stainless steel cylinder, from which a spout curves forward and a second outlet points to the floor. Each has its own lever, one planted on top of the body, the other in the centre of the round disc.

You can keep a hose permanently connected to the lower outlet and use the spout to fill a watering can or bucket. The levers operate a ball valve: a quarter-turn and the water flows, with no need to turn a head several times.

Both outlets end in stepped, barbed nozzles: the flexible hose pushes on and is locked with a hose clip, to be bought separately. These are not clip-on quick connectors: a hose fitted with a clip-on garden connector won't attach directly.

In the dimensioned photo, the tap measures 12.5 cm end to end and 7.5 cm for the part that projects from the wall. The inlet thread is 1.2 cm long. Allow a few more centimetres for the hose and its clip below the lower outlet, especially if the tap is fitted near the floor.

Compare the inlet thread with your wall outlet before ordering: on French installations, outdoor outlets are most often 1/2″, i.e. 15x21. Slide the SUS304 wall plate over the thread, wind on five or six turns of PTFE tape, then screw in until the top lever is vertical.

Brushed stainless steel cleans with soapy water; limescale comes off with a cloth soaked in diluted white vinegar. No abrasive sponges, which would scratch the brushed finish. In winter, switch off the supply, open both levers and leave them open.