Sonoma Forge Hands Free Faucets
1 October 2009
“Dude… Way!”
One of the problems with “no-hands” faucets is that they sometimes end up being “no water either!” I’ve occasionally encountered these in public restrooms, and that has always been my experience with them, namely, that sometimes they work, and sometimes they don’t. I remember one time in particular when an elderly old man was trying to get water from the sink next to me, first waving his hands, then holding them just so, trying to figure out how in the heck one was supposed to get water from that faucet, and he finally said, “I feel like I’m praying for rain.”
Well, now, if that has been your experience with the concept, and your reason for not particularly wanting to have them installed in your home, Sonoma Forge has pioneered an automatic faucet that is actually automatic. The problem with the old faucet, as we have come to know and hate it, is that it relies on infra-red sensors that, as it turns out, are rather unreliable. You have to wave your hands to make the faucet work, and as that old gentlemen commented, you often end up “praying for rain,” because you have to break the beam just so. Utilizing electromagnetism, Sonoma Forge has developed an innovative technology that actually turns the spout itself into a sensor, thereby making it 100% reliable.
But, as it is with all things, there is both an upside and downside to this particular technology. The downside is that you do have to have a licensed, competent plumber install them because “the key to this faucet working flawlessly is to isolate the spout from any metals that will carry the magnetic field or anything that may carry electric current and interfere with its operation.” But what the heck, I’m a cabinetmaker, not a plumber, so anything I do in that regard will, of necessity—or prudence—be done by a plumber. And that brings us to the upside, which is that once it’s in, it’s in. And so is an automatic faucet that will make people stand up and pay attention. Because it actually works.
Naturally, not everyone will care for the e-ON, which is the faucet we’ve featured at the top of this blog, so Sonoma Forge has made their hands-free faucet available in other configurations. And for those who prefer to forego that concept altogether, all of their faucets in this line are available in conventional configurations with handles.
But to return to the e-ON with its bamboo-like spout, there is a certain Zen that attaches itself to a design like this one, which is kind of slick when you think about it. One of the things that makes Zen and Taoism go round is their concepts of water, what it means, what it is, what it does. “Water lies in the lowly places that all disdain, wherein it comes near to the Way of Power.” Now Sonoma Forge has come up with its e-ON which, uh, “powers on” all by itself, thereby making the user one with the water! But the really cool thing is that “no hands” no longer means “no way!”
Joseph
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2 Responses to “Sonoma Forge Hands Free Faucets”
October 4th, 2009 at 7:00 AM
Neat idea, but when the folks in the next building with the other hands-free faucets “pray for rain” you might need to pray that lightning doesn’t knock out the power.
Joe
September 23rd, 2010 at 11:15 AM
Joe, Sonoma Forge’s Sans Hands faucets are shipped with a battery pack and optional AC adapter. You’ll still have water even during blackouts!