Touch Vs Touchless Faucet: Which Is Worth Money?

Sharing quite a few similarities in main functions and appearance, touch vs touchless faucet has puzzled lots of consumers. You might wonder which can efficiently support your kitchen procedures, guarantee cleanliness and deserve your cost.

 After reading our comparison, you will realize their differences. Let’s start with the definition!

What Is The Touch Faucet?

Touch Faucet
Touch Faucet

A touch faucet only starts its operation after a physical tap from any part of your body. Fingers, arms, or even elbows are also approachable to the device. 

A lot of customers mistake touch faucets with the traditional ones. However, please note that you do not need to switch a lever to access the water like the ordinary cock anymore.

Instead, these models are also equipped and operate based on sensitive sensors. They will respond to your contact and immediately release the water flow.

Then, you only need to repeat the touching to turn off the motion. 

With this touch cock, procedures in the sink can significantly come in handy. In some cases, your fingers and palms stick stains while clearing the leftovers. Or they can be covered with full soap bubbles when you do the dishes.

That’s when the touch tap has its moment. You can flexibly use other parts of your hand such as your elbows, arms, or even shoulders to awaken or stop the spray.

Also, preventing stubborn food impurities on the device’s body, you can save your time cleaning the cock afterward.

Pros

  • Hygienic
  • Affordable price
  • Eco-friendly (water-saving)
  • Easy to clean

Cons:

  • Harder installation 
  • Not absolutely antibacterial (due to your hand touch)

Related: How To Bypass Touch Feature

What Is The Touchless Faucet? 

Touchless Faucet
Touchless Faucet

More advanced than the sensor faucet, the hand-free cock is innovated by a passive infrared sensor mostly mounted at the base. You just need to show your hands or any object right under the faucet. From there, the device will automatically detect and drain water in just a few seconds.

Like the touch-sensitive tap, touchless cocks also ease you when your hands are dirty. Sometimes, you are fully carrying a stack of bowls or plates, and you yourself can not turn on the appliance. That is when the motion sensor device shines.

Because there is no necessity for any physical contact between your hands and the faucet body, bacteria are impossible to enter and contaminate the device. Therefore, the germ-free characteristic is more absolutely certified.

What’s more, you will no longer spend time cleaning the device like with the touch-sense one. Rarely being rusted or stained, the device almost maintains a shiny and new appearance after one year of usage. This way, you can cut down some costs from replacement!

Nowadays, hand-free faucets are also finely improved in design. This appliance can make your kitchen space more modern and luxurious with a slim and delicate appearance.

Pros

  • Easy installation
  • Eco-friendly
  • Durability
  • Electricity saving

Cons

  • More expensive
  • Battery replacement 

Differences Between Touch Vs Touchless Faucet

The differences between these two rinsing appliances are recognized through 4 obvious sections.

Operation Principle

Touch Faucet

The electric power from your body will activate the sensors.

When you directly contact the tap, the sensors will quickly obtain hidden power from your fingers. Then, sensors will convert it to the faucet capacity. From there, it can operate and bring the water out.

Touchless Faucet

By contrast, the infrared sensors are controlled by heat energy also expressed by your body. When you move your hands within the sensors’ detection range, they can detect and activate the faucet to pour out the water.

Price

Overall, whether it is a touch or touchless cock, the price tag is quite more expensive compared to the traditional ones (of course). Specifically, the price difference between these two smart devices is also insignificant, and it mostly depends on which brand you choose.

However, when installing a hand-free faucet, your operation in the sink has been reduced rather than when using the touch pipe. Thus, its price seems to be a bit higher. In return, its benefits are worth your investment.

Water-saving

Mentioning the ability to preserve water sources, the winner probably favors the touch faucet. Because only your direct contact can awaken the device, you control water flow. 

In contrast, the infrared sensor does not distinguish between your hands or other objects. The device will work as soon as it detects some motions in the possible field, such as a pet.

So, in case you accidentally handle something in the sink without the intention to rinse it, the faucet will still automatically drain. Let’s imagine holding your smartphone, and the tap turns on. What an issue!

Cleanliness

Obviously, touchless taps come out on top in this category. Whether your hands are covered with black oil after an engine repair or have food stains, the touchless faucet will not be affected in any way. Therefore, it can still maintain its initial beauty for a longer time.

As we analyzed above, the germ is also unapproachable to the appliance due to a distance from your hands, significantly preventing you from infectious diseases. 

Thanks to its high cleanliness, motion sensor faucets are not only applied in an indoor kitchen but also installed in public buildings.

Touch-sensitive faucets are also considered sanitary. However, the external contact makes it inferior to the other when it comes to hygiene.

Which One Is Better?

It is hard to identify which is better for you since each product expresses its pros and cons.

We highly recommend the touch faucet for families having toddlers or mischievous offspring. Due to the height, the under-5 aged children can not access the faucet unless you support them. Hence, they can not randomly turn on the device which can cause water waste or some sudden water accidents.

Oppositely, if your families have seniors or disabled members, let’s purchase a touchless faucet to facilitate their hand-washing procedure. Besides, a contactless tap can also become a capable assistant for a housewife who often attends the cooking space.

FAQs 

Can a touchless work faucet work manually?

The answer is “Yes”. It is inherently upgraded in technique. Therefore, it also has a spare ability to operate manually in case of an electricity or battery outage.

Do touchless faucets break? 

This is not a common situation, but we had better consider it. No matter how modern your touchless faucets are, they can malfunction due to environmental impacts like sunlight and moisture. It can also meet power issues, and the sensors’ sensitivity can sometimes become lagged. 

Are touchless faucets more hygienic?

Touchless taps are obviously more hygienic than their counterparts. As we described in detail, germs from hands, especially after you use the toilets, or stains from the leftovers can not affect the fixture. 

Do touch faucets use electricity?

The touch faucet both runs on electricity and battery. However, it does not mean the A/C power usage. In fact, the operation is controlled by a D/C source equipped with 1,5 V batteries.  

Do motion sensor faucets save water?

Water preservation is a signature of the automatic cock. If you use a traditional or touch item, sometimes you accidentally don’t handle the lever or re-touch the fixture body to turn off the water. Waterflow can be leaked and wasted.

Fortunately, you will not face this situation when installing the automatic faucet. The water will immediately stop flowing as soon as your hand is out of the sink.

Conclusion

We hopefully believe that we untangled your confusion by comparing touch vs touchless kitchen faucets.

After reading our review, you can now evaluate their strengths and weaknesses. Thus, you can purchase the one that fully meets your current condition and demands.

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Edvian Berrios is a homeowner who has become a plumbing expert through self-study and practical experience. Despite not being a professional plumber, Berrios's deep understanding of fixtures and do-it-yourself techniques has enabled him to successfully handle even the most challenging plumbing problems in his own homes.