Knowing the products that will impress prospective clients is not the same as controlling the selections process. But it’s a great beginning. It can help you shape a prospect’s dreams (essential to delivering what they want), and maybe tease out of them a budget. Hopefully, you can lay some groundwork on how they should proceed with selections. Here, we present a range of products in key remodeling categories. Not all are brand new, but all offer unique and interesting living solutions.
Kitchen
The kitchen is the heart of the home, where every installed product is judged on both form and functionality. Indoor cabinets and counters dominate this landscape, with such a wide range of options it would be futile to venture there in such a limited space. Instead, we focus here on a few kitchen trends worth grokking.
Hands-free convenience. Sensor technology designed to increase convenience is a clear trend in home design, manifested here in Richelieu’s foot-activated motion switch for opening the company’s cabinet-integrated waste bins. Pricing starts around $300. richelieu.com
Water Station. Zip Water is an Australian brand acquired by Culligan that has taken the filtered water tap to an extreme level with “drinking stations” that provide instant filtered water—boiling or chilled, still or sparkling— from one counter-mounted spigot. The undercounter unit can also provide instant hot and cold unfiltered water for dishwashing. us.zipwater.com
Measured Fill. The Beale MeasureFill Touch Kitchen Faucet by American Standard delivers a precise set volume of water for baking and cooking. The dial selects up to 5 cups, or 40 ounces; a single touch starts water flowing. The faucet includes an ADA-approved lever handle for manual faucet operation and a retractable spray head. americanstandard-us.com
Outdoor Performance. Danver’s line of outdoor kitchen cabinets are made from 100% 304-grade stainless steel (316 grade is also available) Doors come standard with soft-close stainless steel hinges; drawers are double- wall construction with full extension, self-close/soft-close undermount glides. Cabinets are delivered fully assembled. danver.com
Black Is Back. Continuing last year’s trend of black finishes for faucets and everything else kitchen related, Lenova Sinks is the latest company to offer matte black faucets. The stainless steel faucets are finished with a Physical Vapor Deposition (PVD) vacuum coating process that does not require a clear coat to stave off fading and corrosion. lenovasinks.com
Bathroom
There are a lot of aspects to bathroom selections. We’re not even going to pretend to address the huge range of tile and stone available. (Jump on that one early with clients.) In this design moment, water features are particularly exciting, with inspiring designs that will set the bar on form, function, and price.
Powder Rain. Hansgrohe was awarded a silver medal in the Best of KBIS at the 2019 Kitchen and Bath Design show in February. The aptly named PowderRain showerhead reportedly uses thousands of micro-droplets to provide a sensual shower experience. The water, which is split up in the showerhead, is refreshingly quite, adding a whole new dimension of refreshment, says the manufacturer. hansgrohe-usa.com
Simple Elegance. Tile shower shelves can be challenging to install and are not always the best design solution for the bathroom. Schulter introduced a lined of brushed stainless steel shower shelves that are fast to install and add a unique functional appeal to tiled showers. Made of 5⁄32-inch-thick stainless steel, they require no penetrations through the sub-tile membrane. schluter.com
Reductionist Moment. The Blade is the latest in the line of "3D printed" faucets from American Standard's luxury DXV brand. Produced via a sintering process that progressively fuses stainless steel particles, this reductionist faucet design will challenge your client's budget. Pricing is not yet available, but other 3D-printed faucets in this retail north of $15K. dxv.com
Relaxation Redefined. Toto's Flotation Tub with Zero Dimension is shaped to simulate a "gravity-less" floating position for ultimate relaxation. Featuring massaging water jets and adjustable headrest with a cascading water shoulder warmer, this one's another budget test: It lists for $19K but is readily available for about $5K less. totousa.com
Exteriors
Both durability and design reign in exterior products. Looking good on the surface is not enough. Few materials are wood anymore as the materials that can withstand the elements without frequent finishing have overtaken the field. And with every siding product, what lies underneath counts as much as what's on the surface.
Wider (and Narrower) Decking. In addition to its standard 1⁄4-inch deck boards, Azek Building Products has introduced wider (7 1⁄4-inch) as well as narrower (3 1⁄2-inch) boards in its TimberTech line of composite decking. Both options match trending styles and allow or mixed-width patterns, which are also becoming popular. Of course, the wider boards also save installation time. timbertech.com
Bulletproof Beauty. Boral has extended its True Exteriors line of fly-ash-infused siding, adding several profiles including shiplap, nickle gap, channel, and cove/dutch lap. These add a wide selection of options to this highly stable siding, which requires no sealing of field cuts and can be used in ground-contact applications. trueexterior.com
Weather-Tested Fencing. LP Building Solutions introduced a line of engineered wood fencing that is infused with zinc borate and MDI resin; promises no bending, warping, or twisting; and has been impact tested to withstand hurricane-force winds and flying debris (including baseballs). The fence boards come precut and prefinished. lpcorp.com
Flash in a Flash. Designed to create a waterproof seal around HVAC electrical, and plumbing penetrations, Greenskin is made from polyethylene material. Dimples on the membrane keep it raised off the sheathing to allow air flow. The material is UV rated and non-conductive. Friction fit, it requires no taping or caulking. pro-flash.com
A Dimple Mat for Siding. At IBS, Tamlyn introduced Rainscreen 6.3 —a new, super draining rainscreen material that resembles in function foundation waterproofing systems that employ a dimple mat covered by a geotextile. In this case, it's a series of foam dowels sandwiched between a WRB and high-drying synthetic fabric that acts as a bond breaker. tamlyn.com
Windows & Doors
This year, the trend towards Modernist home designs continues to catch fire (though a variation dubbed the "modern farmhouse" is a close second. This comes through loud and clear in new windows and doors, with an emphasis on lots of glass and, with windows, narrow sight lines.
Functional Form. The Classic Craft door shown above includes two innovations from Therma-Tru: simulated divided lights that allow insertion of triple-pane glazing units for superior sound control and thermal performance. And with those high-performance IGUs, a range of fine-textured and opaque glazing is available for increased privacy. thermatru.com
Window-Wall Assemblies. Introduced last year, Anderson Window's Easy Connect Joining System won a Best of IBS award this year. The system uses interlocking fiberglass to make it easier to install large window combinations. The plates come factory installed or as a site-applied kit, so crews only need to handle individual window units. andersonwindows.com
Light Metal. The Marvin Modern line uses a high-density fiberglass frame with interior aluminum cladding finished in ebony, bronze, anodized/silver, gunmetal, or stone white. All sight lines, even for multiple mulled units, are kept to less than 3 inches. The line currently includes a multi-side door and fixing glazing windows, with casements to come next. marvin.com
Industrial Chic. Sierra Pacific's Urban Casements bring a modern industrial aesthetic that provides one of the narrowest sight lines in the window market for opening up more wall space to light and views. Black is back here, too, on the interior, and can be combined with more than 70 powder-coat finishes or five anodized exterior finishes. The most popular of these finishes, which has a "velvety grit" texture, is called peppered steel. sierrapacificwindows.com
Home Control
Smart homes have been talked about as a radical shift for decades. But we're on the cusp of realizing it in profound ways via the internet of things controlled by smartphone remotes. We're at the midpoint where a lot of previous apps and smartphone controlled systems have seemed non-essential. But as the field of home controls grows deeper, it is changing the way all of us interact with the mechanical systems in homes.
In the Flow. The market has exploded with water monitoring devices aimed at informing owners of burst pipes and other in-house floods. Phyn by Uponor, might be one of the most sophisticated, allowing for total control of a home water system, not only to automatically shut down a leaking system, but also to identify usage trends to help households save water. phyn.com
Battery Backup. After years of deadly U.S. wildfires, battery backup has become an important feature of garage door openers. California recently passed a bill requiring them in all homes to ensure homeowners can safely evacuate. It's integral to the Liftmaster Elite, which also features smartphone control that allows remote access for home deliveries. liftmaster.com
Total Control. The Bosch Connected Control BCC100 Thermostat can be controlled using a full-color, 5-inch touch screen or via Wi-Fi connectivity. Following a trend set by Nest for impactful digital design, this thermostat offers intuitive programming and iOs or Android phone-enabled remote control of all home HVAC systems. bosch-climate.us
Health + HVAC. Johnson Controls's Glas thermostat combines intuitive HVAC control with indoor air quality monitoring of humidity, total VOCs, and equivalent CO2, as well as outdoor air quality reporting of allergens, air quality index, and UV index. It works with Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant, or via the translucent OLED touchscreen. glas.johnsoncontrols.com
Nerve Center. Safety is the heart of the Leviton Load Center with smart circuit breakers that won't reset if a ground or arc fault exists. The breakers are designed to operate a wide range of temperature extremes without re-rating, offering relief for outdoor garage-mounted load centers. Internet connection allows a range of usage monitoring. leviton.com
