Hi,

I may be in the market for a new kitchen faucet. The touchless feature seems to be a very practical upgrade to get. This seems to be a more recent innovation. Any comments on reliability of the technology?

I see Moen and Kohler models? Any comments on which model works better?

I appreciate comments and feedback.

Thanks,

Bill

Hi Bill

Touchless faucets are definitely cool, BUT with more cool features comes more parts that can break and need to be repaired or replaced. About 1/3 of the 8 touchless faucets I've installed have had issues with the new fancy parts (solenoid valve, battery packs, wires). The parts were under warranty, but the plumber's time to figure the problem out and replace/repair was not covered.

Myself, I'd stick with the regular faucets until they perfect these a few years down the road. Moen is always the easiest warranty to work with.

Mark

I have 2 Delta Touch2o faucets in my master bath (double vanity). This model has two modes of operation--touch-free and touch. After less than a week I turned off the touch-free mode because in a bathroom the water would be unexpectedly going on and off as I did my daily activities like toothbrushing, etc. My opinion is that there is too much activity around the faucet (in the bathroom at least) for this mode. We used the "touch" mode and it was much more comfortable. You set the water temperature and volume with the lever and simply touch the faucet anywhere to turn the water on/off. You can use a knuckle, elbow, nose, whatever. Since you are generally using a dry part of your body the area around the base of the faucet stays much cleaner. Me likey.

I agree with Mark that the fancy features also bring potential problems. My faucets worked great for about 2 years, then the water volume dramatically reduced. Thinking the filter was clogged, I disassembled and cleaned everything out. Unfortunately this did not solve the issue. I contacted Delta via phone and they sent me 2 replacement electronics/valve assemblies right away. This DID solve the problem, but I doubt that 2 years from now they will be as cheerful to replace them if the problem returns.

Also, recently the faucet on my side (of course) would not shut off. I tried everything, including re-installing the original valve to no avail. I've yet to try diagnosing the issue and simply pulled the battery to operate the faucet manually. When I get a chance I'll give Delta a call and see where that leads me.

Note that I'm not condemning Delta. The unit looks to be of high quality, and I generally use Delta any chance I get.

Once you've experienced this type of faucet, you'll never want to go back.

Hope this helps,
WallyH

Thanks for the feedback. I've decided to go with the tried and tested. I'll let others iron out the kinks.