Why does England have two faucets?
Chinese taps:
Taps in the UK:
Most sinks in the UK have two taps, as shown below, with hot water on the left and cold water on the right:
Whta? There are actually two taps on the washbasin in the UK. What's going on?
First of all, you need to understand. In the UK, the water in the "cold water" tap is for drinking. Even in remote villages, the cold water pipe is directly connected to the underground water network, which will be disinfected and filtered, and is very clean and safe.
90% of British families usually drink concentrated juice or some kind of fruit powder bought from supermarkets, which is then put into a cup and brewed with cold water. There are even many children who drink this kind of drink every day. Sometimes there is no drink at home, and this cold water can also be drunk directly. The British have a history of drinking cold water like this for nearly a hundred years.
I have heard that some people go to British families as guests, and then they dare not drink the water in the cold water tap, and they don't like the British to use this kind of water to make drinks. In fact, the British will also feel strange and aggrieved because of these things. On the contrary, if someone from the UK comes to your home as a guest, they will also get used to drinking water from the cold water tap. You can try to explain to them the difference in the water supply systems of the two countries.
In the UK, the water from the hot water tap is used for washing things. Like the water for bathing, it belongs to a different system. It usually flows down from the Water Tank on the roof attic. Many old houses don't even have lids on their Water Tanks. You can see all kinds of green and yellow fungal oil (or rust) and small insects on the edge of the bucket and on the water surface. Although this water also comes from the underground water network at the beginning, it cannot be drunk directly even if it doesn't look dirty after being left for a long time.
British children will be scolded if they drink water from the hot tap. In the UK, it is called Spider Tank. The water inside is called Spider Water. In fact, spider water is at room temperature, neither cold nor hot. But in most cases, it can be used for bathing, washing face, and washing hands after passing through the boiler.
As for why the two faucets cannot be combined: the main reason is that the water pipes of the two systems are different. Even if a faucet can be made, the British do not want tap water and spider water to mix. I hope it will not go through the same water pipe or the same faucet. If that is done, many people will not dare to drink water from the cold tap. Now, even relatively new houses may have faucets similar to the integrated ones in China, but many people are still afraid of this phenomenon.
The UK's tap water system developed relatively early, making it difficult to improve some of the culture and design now.