Touchless faucets have become popular in residential kitchens these past few years. Not only are they convenient, but they are also easy to use. Touchless kitchen faucets are seen as a great addition to kitchens, especially for food safety. Aside from being used in commercial and residential kitchens, touchless bathroom faucets are also common in public areas.
A touchless kitchen faucet is essentially hands-free which prevents the spread of germs and bacteria in your kitchen. These kinds of faucets also have a quick sensor response that triggers the sensor in just milliseconds.
There are other features that touchless faucets have that make them great in the kitchen. In this article, we will be talking about what qualifies as a touchless faucet for food safety. We will be talking about their features, as well as their pros, and cons.
How Does A Touchless Faucet Work?
Touchless faucets, also called as automatic or sensor faucets, have proximity sensors that allow you to turn the faucet on and off without having to touch the faucet. You can wave your hand, a utensil, or other objects in front of the sensor, which will signal the solenoid valve to activate the faucet. This opens up the valve and the water will begin to flow.
If you want to turn off an automatic faucet, you will have to wave your hand again in front of the sensor. This will send a signal to the valve to close. Most touchless faucets typically have an infrared light to detect movement while other faucets use ultrasonic energy.
What Qualifies As A Touchless Faucet For Food Safety
You will commonly find touchless faucets in commercial kitchens as they provide a hands-free way of operating the faucet. This allows chefs to handle food and kitchen utensils in a more hygienic way.
However, touchless kitchen faucets are not only for commercial kitchens. Most residential owners are now installing a touchless kitchen faucet for food safety and convenience.
If you are looking for a touchless faucet for your kitchen, you definitely would want to know what qualifies as a touchless faucet for food safety. Here are some features that touchless kitchen faucets have to qualify as hands-free or automatic faucets.
Hands-free
First of all, a touchless kitchen faucet should be able to operate hands-free. Otherwise, it is not considered a touchless faucet anymore. A hands-free faucet can prevent you from spreading germs and other bacteria in your kitchen and in extension, to your food.
When you are cooking, you can sometimes get food residue and grease on your hands. When you have a traditional faucet, you will have to touch the faucet’s handle and transfer the food residue to the faucet’s finish. With a touchless faucet, you will be able to avoid touching the faucet, especially when handling raw meat. Aside from a touchless faucet, automatic soap dispensers are also being installed in kitchens to promote food safety.
Voice-activated Faucet
Some touchless faucets also have a voice-activated feature where you can turn the faucet on and off with a voice command. These kinds of touchless faucets can typically be connected to both Alexa and Google Assistant. This can come in handy if you are holding a big pot and can’t access the sensor if the motion sensor is not working for some reason.
Quick Sensor Response
Touchless faucets typically have a quick sensor response and a movement can trigger the sensor in just milliseconds. This can come in handy when you are handling food and need to wash your hands quickly. Most touchless faucets also have a sensor to control the water flow. You do not have to touch the faucet when you want to adjust the flow of the water from the faucet.
Shut-off Timers
When you are washing your hands or food items such as fruits and vegetables, there may be instances when you forget to turn the faucet off. What’s good about having a touchless kitchen faucet is that it has an automatic shut-off timer that turns the faucet off automatically after a couple of minutes.
Pros And Cons Of Touchless Kitchen Faucets
Touchless kitchen faucets definitely have their benefits. As we said earlier, touchless kitchen faucets are very convenient in preventing the spread of germs and bacteria in your kitchen and with the food you are preparing.
Touchless faucets are also easy to use as you just have to wave your hand in front of the sensor to activate the faucet. Even if your hands are occupied with a dish or a pot, you will still be able to turn the faucet on and off because of the sensor. You will also be able to save on water as the faucet automatically shuts off after a couple of minutes.
While touchless faucets can be a great addition to your kitchen, especially when it comes to food safety, there are still disadvantages to touchless faucets. Hands-free or automatic faucets are more expensive than traditional faucets. This is because of the motion-sensing touchless technology. You are paying a larger price for the convenience that touchless faucets offer.
As with all technology, a sensor can be faulty, especially when it is used regularly. You will have to replace the sensor or even the whole unit if the sensor is completely damaged. Touchless kitchen faucets also operate on batteries and when the batteries are low, the water flow will be affected. You will have to change the batteries when needed otherwise the faucet may stop working.
Wrap Up
Touchless faucets are great, especially for food safety in the kitchen. There are well-known sensor faucet brands such as Moen, Kohler, and Delta, and you’ll have a lot of options to choose from.
If you are considering a faucet for food safety, you won’t go wrong with hands-free and automatic touchless faucets. If you have any other questions regarding touchless faucets, let us know via the contact form on our website and we’ll get back to you!
