Safe and healthy throughout the holiday period: Electronic fittings from SCHELL safeguard drinking water hygiene in private households

The Easter holidays are a popular time for travelling. However, while families are away enjoying their well-earned time off, the drinking water at home is left alone in the pipes – and that’s where the problems can start. If this water stagnates for too long, this can endanger drinking water quality. One particular hazard here is the risk of an increased concentration of Legionella, which in the worst case can cause a serious, pneumonia-like disease. The good news, however, is that maintaining drinking water hygiene only needs a few, simple steps, to ensure you return to a safe home after your Easter vacation. A regular exchange of water is essential here – and electronic fittings from SCHELL can actually handle this task as a fully automated process.

Drinking water has a use-by date
Why is stagnation dangerous for drinking water hygiene and health?
Regular exchanges of water help to protect health
Tips for water exchanges on returning home
Intelligent fittings technology with automated stagnation flushes
Keeping that holiday feeling going with electronic fittings from SCHELL

Drinking water has a use-by date

Drinking water is one of the most strictly regulated foodstuffs in Germany and is piped into households at a very high quality. From the service connection onwards, however, consumers are then responsible for drinking water hygiene. And what many people don’t know is that drinking water, like any other natural product, is perishable. Depending on its intended use, water has two separate use-by dates.

According to the German Federal Environment Agency, drinking water should not stay in piping for longer than four hours if intended for direct consumption or for the preparation of food. Water should not be consumed after this time – especially by infants or pregnant women.
For other purposes like personal hygiene or watering the garden, tap water can be used without problems for up to 72 hours.

Wasser_Water — Just like any other foodstuff, drinking water has a ‘use-by date’. When drunk straight from the tap, water should not have been in the piping for longer than 4 hours – or 72 hours for other uses like personal hygiene or watering the garden.

Why is stagnation dangerous for drinking water hygiene and health?

But how does drinking water go bad, exactly? The reason is stagnation, i.e. when water stays still and undisturbed in water piping or tanks. Even during a short stagnation period of four hours, substances contained in materials – such as lead from piping – can leach out and enter the drinking water. Longer periods of stagnation also foster the proliferation of bacteria like Legionella. These bacteria are harmless when they occur naturally in drinking water at low concentrations. If water is left standing in the piping for longer, however, bacteria can spread and present a health hazard. In particular, showering with contaminated water is a potential health hazard because the Legionella bacteria contained in the water vapour can be inhaled. If Legionella manages to enter the lungs, it can cause a severe, pneumonia-like disease. Vulnerable people – such as children, senior citizens or people with weakened immune systems – are especially at risk. It is therefore of paramount importance that drinking water in the household should always be fresh and high quality – even during periods of absence like a holiday.

Regular exchanges of water help to protect health

To maintain drinking water quality, a regular exchange of water is essential. In public and commercial buildings, this is even required by law. In private households, tenants and owners are responsible for maintaining drinking water quality.

Tips for water exchanges on returning home

After a prolonged interruption in use during a vacation, all water tapping points in the household should be flushed through. The following procedure is recommended:

First step: Wash basin – Before using it for the first time, turn the tap all the way to the right (cold) and hold the back of your hand under the stream of water. If it feels lukewarm, wait until the water cools down. This step can then be repeated for the tap’s hot setting, where you wait until hot water flows out – but be careful not to scald yourself!
Next step: Shower – We then repeat this step in the shower. Here, it is important to avoid creating – or even breathing in – a potentially dangerous air/water mixture containing Legionella. This means you should take the hand shower off the rail and let the water drain away into the shower tray – this exchanges the potentially problematic water in the shower hose.
Flush through all other tapping points: The kitchen tap and all other taps in the property should also be flushed through in the same way.

Tip: You can also use the same technique as a precaution at your holiday destination – in a holiday home or hotel, for example.

If you want to make it easier to exchange water at your tapping points when you come back from a holiday, this can be achieved with electronic taps from SCHELL, which are equipped with automatic stagnation flush functionality. This is also a time-saving solution if you are regularly absent for more than 72 hours – when away on business trips, for example – or if some of your taps, such as in the guest WC, are used only rarely.

How to use smart fittings technology to keep your drinking water safe

Electronic fittings, which are often encountered in public buildings, are also becoming increasingly more common in private households. They are not only more convenient to use but also make it much easier to maintain good drinking water hygiene. In the case of long absences or in rooms that are rarely used, these fittings effectively prevent the health risks that could otherwise arise from water stagnating in piping. With its innovative fittings solutions, SCHELL offers the option of having regular exchanges of water carried out automatically – and with maximum efficiency and user comfort.

Electronic fittings for wash basins and guest bathrooms

The MODUS E electronic wash basin tap from SCHELL is an ideal choice for maintaining drinking water quality even while away on holiday. The tap can also be used in guest bathrooms. As operation is controlled by a contactless infrared sensor, the tap is not only especially hygienic and easy to use but also offers the option of carrying out automatic stagnation flushes. These flushes can be set to trigger at specific intervals – such as every 24 hours or 24 hours after the last use. This ensures that drinking water cannot stagnate for excessively long periods of time while also preventing any chance of health risks from Legionella. The elegant MODUS E wash basin tap can also be used to optimise water and energy consumption. Compared with conventional single-lever mixers, users can enjoy water and energy savings of up to 70 percent with electronic SCHELL wash basin taps. As an additional benefit, cutting hot water consumption also achieves significant savings on the energy needed to heat the water.

First-class hygiene – also in the kitchen: GRANDIS E kitchen tap

Another of SCHELL’s ingenious solutions aimed at bringing more user comfort and hygiene to private households is the hybrid GRANDIS E kitchen tap, which can be operated manually with a single lever or via a contactless sensor control. GRANDIS E offers decisive advantages in the kitchen – where hygiene is naturally a top priority. With sensor-based operation, the flow of water from the tap can be activated without being touched directly – which is ideal when both hands are dirty. GRANDIS E also offers the option of carrying out automated stagnation flushes. This is an especially useful function in households whose residents are regularly away from the home.

Keeping that holiday feeling going with electronic fittings from SCHELL

Apart from a well-organised suitcase and itinerary, a stress-free start to the Easter holidays also means sparing a thought for drinking water hygiene at home. If water is allowed to stagnate in the piping, this can promote the propagation of bacteria like Legionella and therefore become a health risk. Exchanging water after returning home is a good strategy. With SCHELL’s electronic taps for wash basins and kitchens, however, drinking water quality is maintained even during longer trips away, as these taps can perform automated stagnation flushes. By achieving a professional level of drinking water hygiene at home, holidaymakers can enjoy their free time to the fullest extent. And when they return, they have the peace of mind of knowing that hygienically safe drinking water is always on tap.