Sensor faucets are installed in the rest rooms in the large building where my office is located and they are a royal pain in the butt. They usually don't turn on fast enough and turn off too soon. There's no way to adjust the temperature. Also, they have malfunctions at times - refusing to turn on and refusing to turn off. For the latter case, make sure the plumber explains how to turn off the water manually under the sink, else you'll be stuck with running water until the plumber arrives.

It seems to me that having them at home would reinforce bad habits. What will your children do away from home? I'd think training them to turn off the water completely (along with turning the lights out when leaving a room and closing the fridge door) would be more useful to them in the long run.

This post was edited by DreamingoftheUP on Thu, Jun 19, 14 at 8:18

@DreamingoftheUP Thank you for your reply. Yes, I realize some sensor faucets in SOME corporate buildings are a pain in the butt-- this is why I am referencing the Toto Fordham, which seems to have addressed the issues you speak of. I definitely wouldn't buy a cheapo sensor faucet and risk the hassel. I am hoping someone has some experience with this faucet and can give some feeback on it!

Your assumption is wrong-- my kids are "trained" to turn off the water, etc. but sometimes they *think* it is all the way off and it isn't. So no, they do not have bad habits. I am also interested in sensor faucets for the cleanliness aspect and for decreasing our water consumption in general (which is what sensor faucets are designed to do).

I asked a similar question here a couple of months ago and got nothing but negative replies. Honestly, I'm not sure that anyone here has installed one at home. I still think it's a terrific idea, so maybe you and I can report back later. I know that some public restrooms have faucets that are a pain, but I've also been in restrooms with fantastic sensor faucets. I'm pretty much set on ordering the American Standard faucet below which does allow you to increase the hot or cold right at the faucet by waving your hands over side sensors. Amazon has 22 customer reviews on this faucet which are generally positive. The biggest complaint is that originally this faucet didn't come with an escutcheon and big box stores didn't carry one that fit. Sounds like that's been taken care of, but I won't need an escutcheon anyway since we're replacing the entire vanity, sink, countertop, and all.

P.S. I know what you mean about the water being left on. It's an issue with some single lever faucets when the last user doesn't get the lever back to dead center, so it dribbles until someone bumps it over that last 1/4". It doesn't happen often, but I'm always surprised when I come in and know I was the last one using the sink.

Here is a link that might be useful: American Standard Ceratronic Faucet

Thank you! @suzannesl Yes, we have the single lever faucets, which in theory are supposed to be easier for kids, but it's not easy for kids to get them back to dead centre. This is exactly where our problem is! I too have used some really awesome sensor faucets in public buildings. If you think about it, those faucets get way more use and abuse than they would in someone's home. I'm thinking I should just go for it. I bet in 5 years they will be VERY common in home bathrooms (everyone is putting them in their kitchens and they LOVE them). Thanks for the link. I will check those out. :)

I forgot, we live in CA where we're in ultra-water saving mode at the moment. The sensor faucet is great for that as well as encouraging adequate hand washing:

CDC: Wet your hands with clean, running water (warm or
cold), turn off the tap, and apply soap. Lather your hands by rubbing
them together with the soap. Be sure to lather the backs of your hands,
between your fingers, and under your nails. Scrub your hands for at
least 20 seconds.