Patent ID: 8240326

Claim:
A faucet, comprising: a valve body operable to receive at least a portion of a cartridge assembly and to connect to at least two hoses, the valve body having a first end and a second end, the first end including an opening, the second end including at least two hose openings; a mounting tube operable to mount the faucet to a surface, to receive at least a portion of the valve body, and to connect to at least two hoses, the mounting tube having a first end and a second end, the mounting tube including an opening extending from the first end through the second end; and a hose retainer operable to interface between the valve body and the mounting tube and to connect to at least two hoses, the hose retainer having a first side and a second side, the hose retainer including at least two hose openings extending therethrough from the first side to the second side; wherein the valve body, the mounting tube, the hose retainer, and the hoses include structure to ensure that the valve body, the mounting tube, the hose retainer, and the hoses are properly assembled together; wherein the valve body includes a circumferential groove near the second end of the valve body; and wherein the mounting tube includes a circumferential groove near the first end of the mounting tube, the mounting tube groove being formed by inserting the second end of the valve body into the opening in the first end of the mounting tube and deforming a portion of the mounting tube outwardly adjacent to the valve body groove into the valve body groove.