Caroma Pin range buying guide
This page holds three kinds of product under one name: the Caroma Pin Lever Sink Mixer with a gooseneck outlet, a family of Caroma Liano II basins in matte pink, and the Urbane II bamboo chopping board. The Pin name belongs to the mixer. The pink basins are the Liano II range in a matte pink finish, and the board is sized to sit in a sink bowl. The guide below says what each product is and gives the numbers the maker publishes. It then explains how the pink finish varies from piece to piece, sets out what the Pin mixer needs from the bench and the plumbing, and covers fixing the basins and caring for all three. Each fact below is attributed to a listing, a maker sheet or a retailer page, and conflicts between sources are stated.
What is on this page
The pink basins are the largest group. They are a hand wall basin, a 580mm pill that can go under or over the counter, a 400mm round inset, a 530mm pill inset, a 530mm pill above counter, a 440mm round under or over counter basin and a 400mm round above counter basin. The Pin mixer is a single lever sink mixer in chrome. The board is a bamboo chopping board with rubber feet. A page like this is a range grouping and not a type page, so the sections below take the three in turn. For the full Liano II range see Caroma Liano II basins, for other pink finishes pink basins, and for the brand Caroma basins.
The matte pink finish
The Caroma listings describe the Liano II basins as premium fine fire clay with a thin rim and a smooth, stain-resistant surface that is non-porous and easy to clean, in an Australian designed and engineered range. A retailer FAQ describes the matte pink as a soft and elegant shade of pink that can complement a range of bathroom decor styles. The listings say each basin has been handcrafted and hand finished with the application of colour, so every basin is unique and colour appearance will vary from the images.
That note matters most for a coloured basin. A pink that looks right in a photo may sit warmer or cooler in your room, and two pink basins in one bathroom may not match exactly. Look at the colour in the room's own light if you can, and ask the supplier for a sample if one exists. Other sellers list matte pink basins too, including pill, mini and fluted shapes from another Australian brand, and the pages for them give no sizes, materials or care text, so the colour name alone tells you little about the basin. The listings say the matte finishes are offered beyond the standard gloss white, matte white and matte black, and that availability of the pink finish varies, so ask before you plan the rest of the room around it.
The pink basins and their numbers
The Liano II hand wall basin in matte pink is nominally 530mm by 280mm, with an overall height of 172mm, and one tap hole. The listing gives a capacity of 2.7 litres, and the spec sheet shows a D.200 fixing kit and a 40mm trap. The 400mm round inset basin holds 7.5 litres and has no tap holes. The 530mm pill above counter basin is 530mm by 350mm by 120mm and holds 11.9 litres, with no tap holes. The 580mm pill under or over counter basin is listed at 580mm by 330mm by 125mm. A retailer page gives its capacity as 6.7 litres. The maker's sheet for the white version gives 12 litres without an overflow and 6.7 litres to the overflow, so the two figures describe different versions, and the pink listing on this page says non-overflow only.
The 440mm round under or over counter basin is 440mm in diameter and 182mm high on the maker's sheet. A retailer lists the pink 440 at 4.9 litres, and the maker's sheet for the 440 gives 9 litres, so the sources differ, and the 4.9 litre figure may be a capacity to overflow. The 530mm pill inset and the 400mm round above counter basin complete the group. Ask the supplier for the capacity of the exact model before you rely on any of these figures. See round basins, pill shape basins and small hand basins.
Overflow, waste and dress rings
The pink listings say overflow: non-overflow only, and that the basins are supplied with a colour matched ceramic pop-up plug and waste. Metallic wastes from the Urbane II range are available as an additional purchase, and the listings say dress rings in chrome, matte black, PVD brushed nickel, PVD brushed brass and PVD gunmetal are available to match tapware, sold separately. With no overflow slot, a basin with the plug closed and the tap running has nowhere to send water, so turn the tap off before the bowl fills. See basin wastes. The sister page Liano II basins with overflow covers the versions with an overflow.
Fixing the pink basins
The maker manuals and installation sheets for the matte pink basins give the same rules as the rest of the range. For the bench basins, the underside of the basin rim is sealed to the counter top with an acetic cured silicone sealant, epoxy type glues must not be used, and the supplied template must be used for the cut-out. The 440 round sheet adds that the basin can go under a conventional laminated timber or marble countertop with four wooden blocks pre-fitted and four clips, and that over the counter the template corners take 20mm holes as jigsaw starters.
The hand wall basin bolts to the finished wall with the D.200 kit included, on a wall reinforced behind the sheeting. The drawing shows a recommended height of 865mm above the finished floor and about 815mm between fixing centres, with a 40mm Caroma plastic short P-trap or a Vogue bottle trap, neither supplied. Other makers give different sealant rules for other basins, so follow the Liano II sheet for these. See above counter basins, inset basins, undermount basins and wall hung basins.
The Pin lever sink mixer
The listing describes the Pin mixer as contemporary in style, with a chrome finish and a sleek lever for easy control of hot and cold water. It lists a 35mm cartridge, an ergonomically designed pin lever handle, lead free brass construction, a swivel outlet and a water conserving feature. It carries a WELS 4 star rating at 7.5 litres a minute, registration number T37386, and the listing says all Caroma taps are Watermark certified. A search result for the product certificate describes the model as a Pin lever sink mixer gooseneck in lead-free chrome for continuous operating temperatures not exceeding 80 degrees.
It is a sink mixer. The name of the product, the outlet and the water efficiency line all describe a mixer for a sink, and the listing says it suits a bathroom, kitchen or laundry. That matters for how you use it on this page, because a gooseneck outlet is tall. A retailer listing for a near-identical product under another brand name gives a spout height of 290mm and a reach of 200mm, but those figures are not confirmed for this model, so they are not relied on. Ask for the spout height and reach before you put it near a basin. See basin mixers for taps made for basins.
What the Pin mixer needs from the bench
The installation sheet for the Pin sink mixer gives the constraints, and they are specific. The tap body hole in the deck is 34 to 36mm, and the deck thickness must be 45mm at most. A bench thicker than that is outside the sheet's limit, so ask the supplier before you plan it for a thick top. The static inlet pressure range is 150 to 1000 kPa, and hot and cold inlet pressures should be equal. The maximum hot water temperature is 70 degrees in accordance with AS 3499. The sheet also notes a 500 kPa maximum static pressure at any outlet within a building under AS/NZS 3500.1.
The mixer is fitted with flexible tails. The sheet says to hand-tighten the tail with the red indication into the hole marked H, to connect the tails to the hot and cold isolating stop taps, and not to kink, twist or tension the tails, with a minimum bend radius of 50mm. It says not to install the tails where they are subject to ultraviolet light, to flush the pipework before installation, and that the mixer is not suitable for gravity feed systems.
The flow-regulated aerator and your hot water system
The sheet carries a caution that depends on the system behind the tap. The mixer is fitted with a flow regulated aerator insert. The sheet says the low flow rate may not suit some instantaneous gas water heaters, some tempering valves, some solar water heaters and some thermostatic mixing valves, and to check with the manufacturers of those products. That is a point to settle with the plumber before the tap is bought, because it is easier to choose a different tap than to change the hot water system.
The sheet also explains the two parts that need care over time. The aerator insert can be replaced, and lime deposits can be removed by washing it in a vinegar solution. The cartridge is replaced by turning off the isolating stop taps, loosening the handle with a 2.5mm allen key and tightening the cartridge nut to 10 newton metres. A tap with a replaceable cartridge and aerator is serviceable by a plumber without removing the mixer.
Putting a gooseneck sink mixer near a basin
A basin and a sink mixer are not designed together, and the page groups them under one range name. For the pink above counter basins, one stockist says an above counter basin pairs best with wall taps or an extended basin mixer because of its height. A tap guide says the spout should clear the rim by about 100 to 150mm, and that the reach should match the distance from the tap fixing to the centre of the drain. A gooseneck sink mixer has a high outlet and a reach that is set for a deep sink, so over a shallow basin the stream may drop a long way and splash. A tap guide says a shallow bowl with a tall tap increases splash.
The basins' own tap holes also decide what fits. The hand wall basin has one tap hole for a mixer, and the bench basins have none, so a bench-mounted tap sits beside the basin on the bench with the hole size and deck thickness above. Two tall mixers made for basins give the numbers: the Kaya Tall has a spout height of 216mm and a reach of 170mm, and the Empire Slim Tall has a spout height of 244mm and a reach of 180mm. Check any tap against the drain position on the basin you receive, because the listings do not give it.
The Urbane II bamboo chopping board
The board is 420mm long, 360mm wide and 28.5mm deep, in bamboo, with non-slip rubber feet. The listing says the feet allow secure in-bowl and on-bench food preparation. So it is a kitchen sink accessory, sized to sit across a sink bowl, and it has no use on a bathroom basin. The listing gives no care instructions and no cleaning guidance, and it gives no further detail on the bamboo. Ask the supplier how to care for the bamboo before you use it with water. See bathroom vanities if you are choosing a vanity for the pink basins.
Rim height and bench depth for the pink basins
A vanity guide gives a floor-mounted vanity at 850 to 900mm and a wall-hung vanity at 800 to 900mm, with a vanity depth of 460 to 550mm and an accessible rim at 800 to 830mm. A UK guide offers 800 to 850mm to the rim as a starting point. The 530mm pill above counter basin stands 120mm above the bench, so on an 850mm bench the rim sits at 970mm, and the 400mm round inset is set into the bench so its rim sits lower. For depth, a 350mm basin leaves 110 to 200mm behind it on a 460 to 550mm vanity, which is the room a bench-mounted tap has to fit in.
Cleaning the basins and the tap
For the matte pink basins, a care sheet for vitreous china says day-to-day care needs only water and a damp cloth. It names a proprietary bathroom cleaner for water marks, grease and soap scum, and household vinegar for limescale, with a vinegar-soaked piece of kitchen paper left on stubborn deposits for 30 minutes. It warns about fluoride products such as rust removers and toothpaste, and says cream cleaners can dull the surface if overused. It gives bicarbonate of soda with white vinegar as a greener option, rinsed well so the rubber seals in the waste are not damaged. It says not to use harsh chemicals such as Domestos, which can destroy chrome and rubber seals, and never to mix cleaning products.
The pink is a hand-applied colour finish over the fine fire clay, and no source gives a routine specific to coloured matte finishes, so test a stronger product on a hidden area first. The listing says the chrome finish of the Pin mixer is easy to wipe over with a cloth. The sheet's advice for the tap is the aerator descale in vinegar solution, which is for the aerator insert and not for the pink basin finish. See bathroom basins for other options.
Choosing what you need from this page
If you want a pink basin, choose the mounting type first: the wall basin if the floor must stay clear, the inset if you want a lower rim, the above counter or the under or over counter basin for the others. Then choose the tap for the basin, which is probably not the Pin mixer, and settle the waste and the dress ring finish. If you want the Pin mixer, check the deck thickness, the hole size, the pressure and the hot water system, and ask the spout height. If you want the board, it belongs to a kitchen sink.
What the sources do not say
The sources leave some gaps. Google Search Console has no rows for the page, and the SERP tool returned nothing for the range name. Two retailer pages for the Pin mixer returned errors, so its spout height and reach are not confirmed. The pink basin capacities conflict between a retailer, the maker's sheet and the listings. No source gives a care routine for matte coloured fine fire clay or for the bamboo board. No independent review of the Pin mixer or the pink basins turned up.
Before fitting: book a licensed plumber for the water connections, and check the plumbing positions against the product before it is fixed, as the maker sheets direct.
