Delta Pilar Single,Touch Faucet, Battery Life Solution

Purchased the Perfect Faucet – This year we remodeled our kitchen and replaced the faucet with the Delta faucet from Lowes. The price, under $350, was very reasonable. The installation went well, but I cannot imagine anyone installing this faucet that does NOT have a solid grasp of mechanical aptitude.

* Battery Life – This all came after replacing 2 sets of batteries in less than 2 weeks. I have been involved in electronics for most of my life and was just mystified why the folks at Delta offered a battery solution without an Optional adapter. I think the battery adapter should have been included with the faucet and charged a few bucks more.  Marketers are always looking for ways to get extended sales and this is a no brainier to offer it as a must have accessory for $30-50. Everyone would buy it.

What you need to do - You are only going to replace the battery pack with a permanent low voltage wall unit. I did not want to wait around for Delta to figure it out, which could be months or never.  Dead batteries on a faucet at anytime is a real bummer.  BTW – Save the battery pack unless you have a power outage, then you can still have running water during the outage.

Quick Fix Solution – If you do not want to mess with wires and testing stuff, I found a universal adapter that will has the plug adapter that comes with it. Radio Shack did not have any adapters with the old style 9 volt plug, which is what they used for this faucet. Really…. it should have been USB.

You will have to order the adapter. When you get it, set it for 6-10 volt range. Start at 6 but i think that you will have to go to the next range to be sure. I spent a long time searching on the net for an adapter that will just plug-in and here it is Quick Fix Adapter, purchased it on Amazon, I could not get the direct link from amazon, and it is under $20 bucks. Perform a search on the following:

Name -Axis-Universal-Adapter

Model number – dp/B0018BMPS

Cost $7.87 + Shipping
Note that One side of the Delta Battery pack is marked as Positive or + .  Your adapter has a polarity changer switch which makes it nice. You can plug in the adapter and switch or polarity changer at the end of the cord.  It will work in one way  and not in the other.

Note: The Delta Faucet is protected from backwards wiring or incorrect polarity, so it will not hurt the faucet electronics for brief periods of being hooked up backwards.  I tested it to be certain.  Make sure you do not leave the adapter plugged into the faucet when it does not work, you could harm it. If it does not work in either position, you probably have to bump up the power selection to the next one. You may have to tap both the spout or the hot cold handle to get the faucet reset itself and start functioning properly.

Geek Speak - My fix was an easy one. I just found an old adapter 7.5 Volt 200ma adapter and wired it directly in. You will need a volt meter to determine the correct polarity of the adapter and connect it to the faucet system.  It is all low voltage coming out of the wires, and as long as your adapter is plugged safely in the wall, there is no potential for getting shocked. (The only time that could potentially happen if the under-cabinet springs a leak but that will happen with or without the adapter.)
DIY’ers – Video Instruction Here

So for you geeks that need to figure out why it does not work, read on. For the simple user

I looked around for the most universal adapter that most can get hold of and found one at Radio Shack.

The battery pack is a 6V battery pack (4 at 1.5 Volts C Cell batteries). I tested faucet module that the battery pack attaches to and found the following specs.

2-26-2010 UPADATE NOTE: IF YOU DO NOT USE A 9 VOLT OR HIGHER TRANSFORMER, YOUR FAUCET WILL WORK IRRATICALLY…LIKE COMING ON BY ITSELF CHATTERING ON AND OFF.

The Delta Faucet runs on: 6-10 Volt DC
Draw: 10-50 milliamps

At rest not turned on the system draws 10ma (milliamps, a form of current drain or flow) (so there is a minute but continuous drain on your batteries, hence, lose the batteries).

When you turn on the water you draw between 20-30ma, and higher up to 50ma when you turn it on and off rapidly.

The smallest adapter that is made by Radio Shack is a 500-1,000ma one at selected voltages. Cut the adapter wire and strip the ends and connect it to the faucet system and your done.

Radio Shack Recommended Power Adapter

Video -

Here are some important tips the installation.

* Hose Installation - Make sure you insert the hose into the correct end of the spout. Also,  You must put the plastic guide piece in the end of the hose (it only fits on one end. The correct side is the opposite side with the free spinning ring on it). If you insert the free spinning ring into the either end of the spout, it will not come out and you have to call the factory. They will tell you that it is not covered under warranty and you should just return it to the place where you bought it.  It is really retarded.

* Spout Wire - If your looking for the wire hanging out of the copper threaded area of the spout, don’t worry, it is there and I found it pushed up inside as far as it can go. You have to carefully fish for it.

* Take your time * – I know, all you professional DIY’ers, this is not typical install. Plan, read the instructions, and read carefully. The install instructions are marginal, but ok if you have some experience.  The average plumber, paid by the hour will be challenged.  If your going hire a plumber or installer, make sure it is someone who has had experience in at least a few installations of this particular brand of faucet or you will pay for his learning time.

Delta Product Information for this Model

They do not make it easy to find the phone number for Delta on the instructions so here it is – 800 345-3358