KOHLER K-304-KS-NA Rite-Temp Pressure Balancing Valve

Love that there are shutoff valves built into this valve for the supply lines. We were going to have a plumber put in shutoff valves when we were renovating our bathroom, but it would have been hard because the location was tight and we could not put in an access panel as it would have been an eyesore in our living room. The plumber said they make these kinds of valves with shutoffs built in and I found this one online and we wanted Kohler anyway.We have not used the supply line shutoff valves yet, but it gives me good piece of mind that if something goes wrong with the valve mechanism, that it can be replaced pretty easily and without shutting off the water to the whole house or cutting into walls.This valve is a little pricy, but you are going to pay a premium for the Kohler name and quality. We loved the Alteo trim that worked with this valve and you have a lot to choose from.This does have a feature to limit the temperature of the hot water that can be adjusted. This would be great for kids, but it is in an adult only bathroom. My wife likes really hot showers so we had to get our contractor to take the trim off and readjust it because it did not get hot enough in the factory set position. If you know that going in, it may save you some time and from having to remove the trim to readjust it later.

Many years ago we updated the control in our shower with this Kohler stuff - about 2 years ago I replaced the valve assembly (the front portion) to stop a minor drip. We just demoed and retiled the whole shower so I had this new roughing installed. The old assembly and valve did not have to be replaced, but given how this was all buried in a new tiled shower, I wanted to have new parts throughout. This assembly is still offered (not on a discontinued list yet) which, I hope, means spare parts will be around for some years out. It is a quality part. It is still compatible with a good range of Kohler trim, including the older polished brass types in some styles which we decided to stay with for a while longer. Future upgrades into more trendy finishes should be possible in the foreseeable future. (We transitioned from a cultured marble surface to a floated wall with porcelain tile surface - an extension kit was not needed by our clever installer.)

When I first pulled this valve out of the box I immediately noticed the heft of the valve. This is a serious valve and is the same that you'd find at a plumbing supply store.Installation was simple enough. The valve integrates two screws on the front that act as shut off valves which is a nice addition as you can do all the work you need to (provided the soldering joints are legit) from the front of the valve.If it ever fails, you don't have to remove the entire thing. You can just buy the plastic bit in the middle and again from the front pop the old one out and put in the new one.Well thought out and high quality. Worth it.

I installed it per the instructions and after a week the valve leaked with the water running for maybe an hour before we found it. I called them, great customer service, and they sent out another... that one too did not work, only the cold side worked. After a third call and valve I got one that works BUT... now I get hammering on the pipes when the water it turned off or when the washing machine fills. After another call to them they suggested getting a plumber to install shock arrestors 6" from the valve, sigh. After dumping a ton of cash into all these KOHLER products, which I do love, now I have to shell out another $xx for a plumber and arrestors. In doing some research I find this to be a VERY common problem with their valves and had I known or researched it before purchasing I probably would have gotten a different brand.

I used this valve in a full bathroom for my basement. Kohler has a ton of cheap to expensive trim finishes to match with this and it's very easy to install. I paired it with sharkbite valves to connect to CPVC - installation took less than 15 minutes.The screwdriver shutoff valves allows the water to be shutoff when the PBU (Pressure balancing unit) needs to be replaced when it eventually fails - which Kohler warranties. VERY useful to prevent days of leaky shower during repair and prevents the need to shut of the house water.

The Kohler instructions for depth in the wall were very hard to wrap my head around. Especially in my first complete bathroom remodel I did not know my exact finished wall thickness. Luckily they allow for about an inch and a quarter variance if your not exact. I had to re adjust the high temp limit on the valve after replacing my hot water heater and going to a reduced supply temp. The trim I bought was nice but not as nice as the other Kohler valve I purchased. Overall it is doing exactly what I needed it to do.

There's nothing wrong with this valve, per se. But it's probably not the right valve for you. It has two volumes: on and off. The control from there on in is just temperature. So, how do you control volume? Well, I thought I could put a volume valve downstream from it (how else do you plan on controlling volume?) But you can't do that. If you open this temp valve, and then have the downstream volume valve closed, you now have cold water flowing freely through this valve down to your water heater! So, you must close this valve *and* close the downstream volume valve every time you stop showering. Forget to do both and you will be flushing your water heater with cold water. I know it's complicated, that's why I had to find out from my plumber on work day that I ordered the wrong part! Amazon was great in allowing a late return. The correct part, if you want temp followed by volume is the Kohler K-2972-KS-NA thermostatic temp valve (with no shutoff) followed by the Kohler K2974KNA volume control. Also, note: the trim on the two temp valves are different too! Man, trying to order you own parts is a minefield!