Motion Sensor Flush Valves

Log Out | Topics | Search Moderators | Register | Edit Profile

Author Message Mary Eatinger (Unregistered Guest) Unregistered guest Posted on Friday, July 15, 2005 - 10:16 am:    I'm not sure this is a spec question but you guys are the product gurus. Our landlord is thinking about installing battery powered motion sensor flush valves on all our urinals and toilets. The logic is that the cleaning crew only comes twice a week and this will help provide low maintenance restrooms. My question (maybe dumb, maybe not)is what happens if the toilets clog and the sensors continue to run? Is there a certain toilet spec that is recommended? How long do the batteries last? Would any of you recommend this? Thanks! William C. Pegues, FCSI, CCS Senior Member Username: wpegues Post Number: 418 Registered: 10-2002 Posted on Friday, July 15, 2005 - 10:42 am:    Mary, My understanding on this is that the sensor is running on its battery 100% of the time. It is sensing the motion of the person at the device, not tied to flush valve except to trigger it to flush. This use of power is very very low, it spikes only to trigger the flush. But it is not telling it at any time ever to 'stop' the flush process. That is mechanically within the valve itself. So if a valve sticks, it is not using any power from the sensor device. We have them here in our building, they were a conversion by the building management to both toilets and urinals just like they want to do there at your location. We had urinals that would stick regularly. And after the conversion, those same urinals continue to stick with about the same frequency. So whatever the problem is/was, this did not change that. For your conversion, the only thing they replace is the manual flush valve mechanism. Not a big deal. There is no problem with these, it is recommended as far as I am concerned. It does assure that the unit is flushed. Most also include a manual push button, and we have found sometimes that someone wearing all black that is somewhat shiny, the sensor does not 'see' them. Stealth clothing I guess. William Mary Eatinger (Unregistered Guest) Unregistered guest Posted on Friday, July 15, 2005 - 11:02 am:    Hi William. Thanks for responding. And thanks for the info about black. After all, we are in the DC area. Do you ever have any overflows? We're getting new fixtures. Any recommendations? William C. Pegues, FCSI, CCS Senior Member Username: wpegues Post Number: 420 Registered: 10-2002 Posted on Friday, July 15, 2005 - 11:46 am:    Mary, The overflows are due to bad drainage plumbing. As long as the drain is not clogged, if a valve sticks open it just keeps on going down the drain. The drain can handle multiple flushes of units, so multiple stuck valves in the same bathroom will not be a problem anymore than they are now. The problem of a valve getting stuck is no more likely with or without the sensor system. If a unit is getting stuck now, as I mentioned, apparently there is some elements of the replacement process that does not quite replace or need to replace everything. In those cases, the landlord should be advised to talk to whoever is going to do the work and have those units looked at specifically to see if more than just the upgrade needs to be done. They had to come back and do more work on some of them here. I think they thought that just the upgrade would also fix all their problems. It did not. So after several months when it did not 'just go away' they took those problem units apart and replaced something else on the mechanical side of things. In summary, sensor systems are no more likely to have an overflow problem than manual systems. And its never the flush valve that causes an overflow, its the drain plumbing. And sensor systems are no more likely or frequently to get stuck than manual systems. Doing a change over to sensor systems will not cause any units that get stuck to overflow any more than they currently do with their manual valve. The sensor is not involved in turning off the valve, only in triggering it to flush. It does not stop the flushing action . William Anonymous   Posted on Friday, July 15, 2005 - 11:31 am:    We installed Geberit flush valves in our office urinals after a long, ultimately unsatisfying, trial period using waterless urinals. We selected the Geberit valves because they can be adjusted from 1.0 to 0.3 gallons per flush (we have had them at .5 for a couple years now - no problems at all). Along with the urinals, we also installed Geberit sensor faucets. The sensor technology, as explained to us by the rep, in the Geberit units is superior to other stuff on the market. So far absolutely no problems at all with either fixture type. We have replaced the batteries once in the urinals (2+ years) with plenty of advance warning, faucets still going strong. We have experienced no urinal clogs, so I cannot tell you what might happen in this circumstance. John Bunzick, CCS, CCCA Senior Member Username: bunzick Post Number: 381 Registered: 03-2002 Posted on Monday, July 18, 2005 - 12:04 pm:    If the toilets have a history of clogging, your landlord would be much better off fixing that issue than putting in auto-flushing valves. If someone uses a toilet that is clogged (would they?) the sensor will flush it again when they are done. I'm also not sure how these will make a more maintenance-free restroom. They may make it more pleasant for those who come in after those who don't flush, but the restroom will be just as dirty. Mary Eatinger (Unregistered Guest) Unregistered guest Posted on Wednesday, July 20, 2005 - 01:09 pm:    Um, well the only way to fix the clogging issue is to ban women from using the toilets! Hate to say it but we're worse than guys. Right now there are only two of us and 10 guys. By next month our occupancy will be over 100 with three fixtures in the women's room and two in the men's. We've had no complaints from the guys, but a previous tenant was a call center with lots of female employees. We had a lot of issues. Tom Peck Senior Member Username: tom_peck_csi Post Number: 7 Registered: 08-2004 Posted on Friday, July 22, 2005 - 09:31 am:    This raises a related question ... With sensor operated toilets, we have a client that does not want to use the sensor on a toilet for the following reason: One rises from the pot, something falls from a pocket and into the pot, and then the item is flushed away before it can be retrieved. With a manual flush valve ... not a problem (except for actually having to, um, retrieve the "damaged" item). I bet others have run into this issue in the past ... have you not installed the sensor on toilets for this reason?