Sensor Faucets Buyers' Guide

Touchless faucets, which use a sensor in place of handles to turn on water, can help you save money while improving hygiene. The lack of handles eliminates a contact point, which can help limit the spread of germs and ensure the faucet is ADA compliant. Sensor faucets also include a number of options that make it easy to save money on utilities while promoting water conservation and using less energy. T&S Brass uses durable materials for these products, including a scratch-resistant sensor lens and water-resistant circuit control modules, to ensure a long life in a commercial environment. Installation is kept simple, with pre-assembled parts and no need for sealant, making it easy to add a T&S Brass touchless faucet to your business.

Electronics Positioning

T&S Brass offers two categories of sensor faucets: above deck and below deck. These options refer to where the products' electronics are located. Above-deck faucets have their electronics housed inside the faucets, while below-deck models have the electronics contained in a separate housing underneath the counter.

Above-deck Faucets

Pros:

Electronics are easy to access for maintenance and changing settings
Gives an overall cleaner look
Easy to install on existing sinks
More temperature mixing options (pre-set or point of use)

Cons:

Easier access to electronics means a greater risk of vandalism
Water mixing ratio is not pre-set
Wall-mount options not available

Below-deck Faucets

Pros:

Electronics are hidden away to prevent tampering
Pre-set water temperature means fewer setup requirements

Cons:

Separate electronics makes these harder to install
More difficult to customize temperature
Will not always retrofit onto existing sink setups

Power Options

There are multiple power options for the electronics on T&S Brass ChekPoint sensor faucets. The best option for your business will depend on the number of sinks you have to power, maintenance needs, and the potential for vandalism.

Easywire

The Easywire power supply comes standard with all T&S Brass ChekPoint faucets and allows the user to simply plug the faucet into a nearby wall outlet. If multiple sinks are in use, this power source allows you to gang as many as eight faucets together onto a single transformer that can be plugged into a single outlet. This is one of the easiest power supplies to install, but can be vulnerable to tampering.

Hardwire

Touchless faucets can be hardwired into an electrical circuit, with as many as eight faucets wired in together to a single power supply. This power type is more difficult to install and requires a licensed electrician. However, because these wires will run behind the wall adjacent to the sinks, it is much harder for vandals to cut power to the sinks.

Battery

Along with AC Easywire, the option to use battery power also comes standard with ChekPoint faucets. The battery location will be determined by the type of sink; above-deck faucets will have the batteries housed in the faucet, while below-deck faucets will have the electronics, along with the batteries, mounted under the counter. While there is always the danger of the sinks being temporarily out of commission when a battery runs out of power, each sensor faucet has a low-battery indicator light that will flash when that point is near.

Hydro-generator

The hydro-generator uses the movement of running water to generate energy, allowing a sensor faucet to work without an external power source. The hydro-generator is attached to the incoming water line, where the movement of the incoming water turns an internal turbine, generating power that is used to run the sensor. Extra energy is stored for as long as eight months. The hydro-generator only needs to run 15 seconds per day at 1 GPM and 60 PSI to create enough energy to use immediately and store some for later. This solution is ideal for installing a sink and sensor faucet in an area where wiring for power is not convenient. Some sensor faucets are available with a hydro-generator already included, but these accessories can also be purchased separately.

Customize Your Sensor Faucet

T&S touchless faucets include many options that allow you to customize how your faucet will operate. Most above-deck faucets include a point-of-use temperature mixing valve, where the user can set the temperature from a knob on the side of the faucet. Another option is a thermostatic mixing valve, which is available in above-deck and under-deck models. These valves allow you to set a maximum temperature and will prevent the water from exceeding that level.

Users can also change settings that affect when the water comes on and how long it stays on. The sensor range can be set to activate at as close as ³⁄₄ of an inch or as far as 6¹¹⁄₁₆ inches, allowing you to customize the sensor to be compatible with faucets and sinks of different sizes. You can also adjust how long the water runs after hands are removed from the sensor, from the default of 1 second to as long as 30 seconds. The overall run time regardless of sensor activation can also be adjusted from 15 seconds to 20 minutes, which can help prevent water waste in the case of vandalism.

Other options available on ChekPoint faucets include a variety of aerators and auto-flush settings. An auto-flush rinses the faucet out once every 12 hours, helping prevent the growth and spread of bacteria in the faucet and plumbing. This feature is often required in medical settings and can be turned on and off. Medical facilities also often need a laminar aerator, which, unlike most aerators, does not use the surrounding air to add texture to the flow of the water. Laminar aerators have a 2.2 GPM flow, and standard aerators are available in 0.5 GPM to 2.2 GPM flows. All aerators used on T&S Brass commercial faucets are vandal resistant to help protect your equipment.