Ever Wonder About the Drip on Your Kitchen Faucet?

Drippy Faucets Offer Lesson In Physics: "Drippy Faucets Offer Lesson In Physics
ScienceDaily (Feb. 6, 2009) — To Peter Taborek, a drippy faucet is a physics experiment. Taborek uses high-speed video to capture the motion of drops and bubbles coming apart. Knowing the details of this “pinch-off” process is important when designing inkjet printers, because ink must form a single droplet without trailing liquid. It also is useful in biotechnology when fluid is used on microchips, and it has applications in cosmetics, food and structural materials industries."

“When water drips from your kitchen faucet, it spontaneously forms a long filament of fluid that connects to the falling drop,” says Taborek, UC Irvine physics professor. “The connection point shrinks to zero in a characteristic way that we have studied in detail, down to atomic dimensions."
In a recent study, published in the journal Physical Review Letters, Taborek and colleague Justin Burton analyze the pinch-off process of xenon bubbles in water. Xenon gas is used in lamps and lasers and has been used as a general anesthetic.
The scientists discovered the main difference between drops and bubbles is the density of the liquid inside. The pinch-off process is bubble-like until a certain density is reached, then the pinching becomes drop-like.
“In addition to providing amusement for physicists and mathematicians, the pinch-off process in drops and bubbles is a model system to study how one thing turns into two things,” Taborek says. “This is common in nature, ranging from the Big Bang to cell division.”
The National Science Foundation funded this study.

What is A Pressure Balanced Shower Valve

Remember the old style 2 Handle Showers? You could take a shower, but you did so with the fear the someone would flush a toilet and thus scald you.

Those valves would lose all of the cold water pressure once the toilet was flushed. A pressure balanced valve, which is now code required, eliminates this problem.

The pressure balanced shower valve is designed to compensate for loss of pressure on either the cold side or the hot side. The only drawback to this type of valve is that you do lose water pressure when this balancing occurs.

So, for large showers and custom showers, you would be better served by installing a thermostatic shower valve.

What is an Aerator?

An Aerator is the part on your faucet where the water mixes with air to create a aerated flow. A flow mixed with air is less likely to splash. Also, the aerator usually has a a screen that traps scale and debris.

Brizo Baliza

Brizo Baliza combines modern style and modern style to form a faucet that has noticeable beauty. The Baliza Kitchen Faucet includes a four function pull out wand that attaches with Brizo's MagneDock™ technology. Also, this faucet controls not only the spray from the spray head but also the volume.

Designer Plumbing Outlet DPO is proud to carry the full line of Brizo Faucets, including the Baliza.

What is an Airgap?

Question what is an Airgap? Answer: An Airgap or Air Gap is devise mounted on your kitchen sink top that you connect your dishwasher drain to. This airgap prevents the contaminated dishwasher water drainage from siphoning back into the water supply to your home and the neighbors homes.

Most jurisdictions require an Airgap in their plumbing codes. Please check with your local building department, before installing a new dishwasher.

Installing an Airgap protects your drinking water and the communities drinking water.

Many homeowners feel that they are unsightly. However, in the past few years, the manufacturers have offered finishes to match the custom finish of your kitchen faucet.