tv [untitled] December 27, 2012 7:30pm-8:00pm PST

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a little bit higher, so they are easier to get in and out. >> i would like to continue that discussion when we talk about aging in place. as people get older in their homes, we need to accommodate the special needs. good. and some of these are -- i guess these are all one piece. we used to see separate tanks. >> that is the new trend. traditionally, it would be a separate tank and a separate seat, and now, there are melding together. i like that look a lot. it is a very clean line. again, less things to clean. a low profile. very elegant looking. >> you have people in your showroom, and they look around and look at toilets, what do you see that they are looking for? what do they buy? >> number one, they want a toilet they can flush. that is definitely important. but then, water savings. i guess lastly would be the

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esthetics of it. the ada, or comfort height, as they call it -- >> let me interrupt you. hey, how're you doing? are you shopping for a toilet? walk right over here. are you in a shopping for a toilet? if you were, were your shopping for a toilet, what would you look for? >> i don't know. some banks eco-friendly. -- something eco-friendly. >> do you have a lot of people say that? >> yes. water savings, and most have rebates, so you are saving on costs. that is important today. >> let's talk for a minute about aging in place because it is such an important issue. we have a seat height to be concerned about, but a lot of other things. for example, people worry about getting into bathtubs because they are slippery.

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how do you deal with that? >> it all depends. the most important thing you can do is have a grab bar for the tub and shower. we think about the toilet heights. we think about having barrier- free back from -- bathrooms. if you are in a wheelchair, a shower curtain would be a barrier. thinking about the door to the bathroom. you want to have a nice, white door. 3 feet would be very nice. even a little bit larger bathrooms are you could maneuver in it would be helpful. >> let's look at some six. we got an e-mail from some of who watches us online who had a question about whether or not there are any downside to getting one of these vessels sinks, one of the six that sits on top of the counter. >> that is one of the reasons i like j.c. plumbing.

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they have a great selection, and i can make my point. let's compare these two six. this is a bowl shape, and this is a ceramic that comes straight down. the disadvantage of this -- and it is very beautiful and makes quite a statement -- and i alluded to this before. it is about cleaning this, and coming year. getting down here, that is difficult to do, so that is going to be more difficult to clean. this is a good one. again, clean lines that come straight down. there is no difficulty cleaning that. >> would someone call that -- caulk that? >> absolutely. make it watertight. >> are there any other disadvantages? these all have an external mounts. >> it is a little more complicated, so you have to have a tall faucet to come down. wall-mounted faucets. but again, these are very

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popular. i'm always wondering how popular they are going to be in five or six years. think about that. >> i have heard that there are already shift in style happening, but those happen all the time. what is the real traditional kind of laboratory? >> some good examples are behind us here. this is a vanity. it has the countertop and the basin. it has the areas for storage. this is something that people would like. another popular trend -- i do not know if the camera can catch it, but below here, so people would roll up their towels. >> this also allows you to have one more step toward aging in place and accessibility. if you ever need to roll a wheelchair in, you have an opportunity here. >> absolutely. >> this does not have an overflow. is that required? >> overflows are not technically required.

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>> what i mean is one of the little holes like this where the city will run out so it will not spill out onto the floor. >> they are practical and important to have, but they are not a code requirement. if you have children or something, you might want to have an overflow. if you are comfortable having one without, then you would have that choice. >> i was particularly intrigued by this sink. i know the manufacturers were up this year. this is made out of some extremely heavy duty class. here is bob, who is the rep from oceana who manufactures this thing. this is not the type of sync that would set on top. it recesses. what is this made of? >> it is actually made of glass. it is a company in pittsburgh, and it is an extremely durable class. they actually do the globe in chicago for a recovery like

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standards. >> and outdoor material in chicago has to withstand the heat of chicago and the cold -- the heat of summer and cold >> of winter > exactly. this piece comes in about 12 different colors. it has a backing to it, to. you cannot see through it, but it gets a lot of light back through it, so you could actually back like it if you want. >> we really like all these different styles. some of these that sit on top have advantages as well as disadvantages -- cleaning -- but they are stylish. but this has real advantage. when you lay it down, flesh, dram, and it has the faucet holes in here. it has the race area here so water will not run back off of it. >> let's go take a look at shower fittings and fixtures and the shower systems year. they are fascinating and very, very modern looking. all sorts of great stuff.

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do people like these in their homes? >> yes, i think this is a great example of how people do not want their parents shower anymore. this is the new generation of shower systems, and they have and what occurred, -- accouterments. they just give a wide volume of water distribution. >> is that a problem with water flow? >> these technically meet those standards. the shower head distributes it, so it just kind of gives an appearance of more volume. these are body sprays that will take your body. this is a hand-held, and this is a good example where you could put a bar here. you could leave it in place as the traditional shower, or you could take it, and you could do it, and this is also great for cleaning and washing your dog and things like that. >> right, so you cannot get your hair wet while your taking a

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shower. i suppose this has the same kind of back float servants and -- backflow prevention built in. >> right, and it shows the variety of finishes here. the chrome. this looks like brushed stainless steel. what you do not see is brass, and press has really become -- is in favor these days. kroll is probably the most popular. it is similar to in kitchen appliances, stainless steel. is good. it goes with all color schemes. >> there was a recent change to san francisco's codes that said you could not have more than one sitting turned on at any more than one time. so you cannot have multiple salaries and more for water savings. >> right. a lot of people like showers for two, and now, you are saying one valve for one shower. >> i think you could probably

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sit flow rates could be adjusted, and you could probably make it happen, but it is beginning to be very tightly regulated. tell us, when people come in to buy, what is it that they like? what are they actually buying? >> a lot of it has to do with style. first is for the lab faucet's. you have the widespread, the two handles, hot and cold. very modern design. >> people like modern. >> people like modern, but we are in san francisco, so we get a wide range. then the one hand, very popular, ada-approved. saves water. very easy to use >> > one of the standards for commercial, not residential, is that you have to be able to operate equipment with a single operation without tight grasping or pinching.

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so this actually allows that to happen. you can operate without having to grab and pitch and twist something. this is very user-friendly. it is also reduced flow, and you do not have to have two faucet's running. >> only have to cut one hole in your credit. . granite. this is really traditional, very popular fish. >> nice. and this is, -- chrome, and brushed nicke. >> as far south as there, and showers are popular right now. rain heads are popular, but you want something that is functional for what you use, so hand showers are great. >> is this one of the ones that has a sheet of water? >> it does.

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waterfalls of this type come down to a point when you turn them on. this particular one, because we have reworked the inside of it in a fairly complex plumbing system in there, it will actually come out as a sheet of water like a true waterfall. >> but it still meets the flow requirements? >> it does. many of the process we are shipping today will be these standard at 1.5. >> i think 1.5 is the california appliance efficiency standard. >> that's right. that is what we are shipping out. >> terrific. what do you call this kind of head? >> there are just the regular overhead tight showerheads. they can be mounted, or they could come out at different lengths. >> so you could screw this on to enormous shower? >> as long as they can rotate. some of them are fixed flat.

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>> that is terrific. thank you for joining us today for "building san francisco" and we hope to see you on the third wednesday of every month. sometimes we do leches with guests in our studio. please join us, and you can get more information that sfgov.org. it is a wonderful day, and i'm going to go get a burrito. ♪

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