Gunmetal Taps

Gunmetal is a dark, smoky grey metal finish, somewhere between graphite and pewter. It is the one to reach for when chrome feels too bright and matt black feels too heavy: dark enough to anchor a basin, soft enough not to shout about it. Our gunmetal bathroom taps cover basin monoblocs, bath fillers, wall mounted taps and compact cloakroom mixers.

A short buying guide and some quick answers follow, then the taps themselves. If you are still weighing up finishes, gunmetal sits nicely alongside our black taps and warmer brass taps in the same shop-by-colour range.

What to look for in gunmetal bathroom taps

Buy the finish for the look, but buy the tap for the job. Gunmetal is a colour, not a type, so what actually matters is matching the tap to your basin or bath and to your water system. Here is how to narrow it down.

Match the tap to the fitting: basin, bath or wall. Most people asking for “a gunmetal tap” mean a basin monobloc, which is one lever in one tap hole sitting on the basin. The Montana Gunmetal Basin Monobloc Tap at £84.99 is the everyday pick: solid brass with a 35 mm ceramic cartridge, single lever, deck mounted, done. On a small cloakroom basin a full-size monobloc can look chunky, which is where the Koko Gunmetal Mini Monobloc Basin Mixer Tap comes in, a compact mixer with a tactile fluted lever and ceramic disc control, sized for tighter basins. At £69.99 it is also the cheaper of the two, so going smaller costs you less, not more.

Baths want a bath filler rather than a basin tap. If you would rather keep the bath rim clear, the Montana Gunmetal Wall Mounted Bath Mixer Tap at £119 runs the spout and single lever off the wall instead. A roll-top or freestanding tub is a different job again. The Montana Gunmetal Floor Standing Bath Shower Mixer Tap at £299.99 is the statement piece, solid brass with a bath filler and a handheld shower, and it has to be planned in, because the pipework comes up through the floor rather than being bolted on at the end.

Deck mounted or wall mounted. Deck mounted, where the tap sits on the basin or bath rim, is the simple default. The supply pipes come up under the fitting and most people can swap one in a morning.

Wall mounted looks cleaner, with the spout floating off the wall and nothing cluttering the rim, but be honest with yourself about the install. The valve body and pipework have to be buried in the wall, so it is a job you plan in before the tiling goes on, not a like-for-like change. The Koko Gunmetal Wall Mounted Basin Mixer Tap at £99.99 is a tidy option, solid brass with a 35 mm ceramic cartridge and a distinctive fluted handle. Your basin needs no tap hole for it, though the wall behind it does, and retrofitting onto a finished wall means chasing that wall out first. Browse the full set under wall mounted basin taps.

Care and cover. Coloured finishes like gunmetal ask for a gentler cleaning routine than chrome. Wipe with a soft cloth and warm water, and keep abrasive creams, scourers and harsh limescale chemicals off them. Three of the taps above come with a lifetime guarantee: the Montana Gunmetal Basin Monobloc Tap carries a lifetime manufacturer guarantee, the Koko mini monobloc a lifetime guarantee, and the Koko wall mounted basin mixer a lifetime guarantee on the tap body. For the two Montana bath taps, check the individual product pages.

Matching the rest of the room. Gunmetal is a dark neutral, so it holds up against crisp white tiling and against darker, moodier schemes. We list taps by finish so you can keep one tone across the basin and the bath, and the gunmetal taps sit in the same shop by colour range as the other finishes.

Quick answers

What are gunmetal taps? Taps in a dark, smoky grey metal finish that sits somewhere between pewter and a deep charcoal. Gunmetal is a colour finish rather than a type of tap, so you get it across the normal formats: basin monoblocs, bath fillers, wall mounted and cloakroom mixers.

Are gunmetal taps any good? The finish is only the surface, so judge the tap by what is underneath. The Montana Gunmetal Basin Monobloc Tap and the Koko Gunmetal Wall Mounted Basin Mixer Tap are both solid brass with a 35 mm ceramic cartridge, and both Montana bath taps are brass too. The Montana basin monobloc and both Koko taps carry a lifetime guarantee, which on the Koko wall mounted mixer covers the tap body. Keep the finish looking right with a soft cloth and warm water, and keep abrasive scourers and harsh limescale removers well away.

Do you do gunmetal bath taps and wall mounted taps, not just basin taps? Yes. For a bath there is the Montana Gunmetal Wall Mounted Bath Mixer Tap at £119, and for a freestanding tub the Montana Gunmetal Floor Standing Bath Shower Mixer Tap at £299.99, which pairs the bath filler with a handheld shower. For basins there is a wall mounted option too, the Koko Gunmetal Wall Mounted Basin Mixer Tap at £99.99.

Is there a gunmetal tap for a small cloakroom basin? Yes. A full-size monobloc can look bulky on a little cloakroom basin, so for those there is the Koko Gunmetal Mini Monobloc Basin Mixer Tap at £69.99, a compact mixer with a fluted lever that suits tighter basins.

What is the difference between gunmetal and gun metal grey taps? Nothing. It is the same finish spelled two ways. People search “gunmetal”, “gun metal” and “gunmetal grey” interchangeably and they all describe the same dark grey tap finish, so do not read anything into the spelling. “Brushed gunmetal” is the one that does tell you something: brushed means a fine-grained, satin texture rather than a smooth sheen, so if texture matters to you, check the product photos before you buy.

Will gunmetal taps work with my water pressure? Most mixer taps are fine on standard UK mains or combi-boiler pressure. The one to watch is a gravity-fed system with a tank in the loft, where pressure can be low. The Montana Gunmetal Basin Monobloc Tap and the Koko mini monobloc both work from 0.5 bar, while the Koko Gunmetal Wall Mounted Basin Mixer Tap needs a minimum of 1 bar. If you are on a gravity-fed system, check your pressure against those figures, and if you are unsure, ask us before you buy.