We've had one for a month now and I love it. It was great to get rid of one of the switches on the wall. It's very easy and convenient to operate and was a breeze for DH to install. No problems so far.

Any suggestions on brands? Has more come of the "fiber-optic" ones to suggest they justify their price premium?

I've had mine about a month also. I love it. It's one of those simple things that makes me smile when I use it. Mine is installed right at the corner of the sink.

I went with an Insinkerator because that was the one that popped up on my web searches and I was able to see it at my local Lowes. I liked that it came with three different colors of buttons for the sink (white, black and polished nickel). My garbage disposal is also an Insinkerator which is another reason I went with the brand. I don't know anything about one using fiber optics.

I have windows all above my sink area, so the air switch saves me a looong reach over to the wall, which I love.

One thing - I bought an aftermarket button in a different color for my Insinkerator air switch, and it sticks a little bit after depressing it, so I'd advise staying with the same brand for both switch and button if you want to change out the finish. Otherwise, they're fab!

You might post a separate thread with fiber optic switches in the title to catch anyone here who has one and can give feedback. They seem optimal for islands and other specific scenarios where the wiring is limited and crucial, perhaps?

Re: fiber-optic switches, I already tried to revive a thread about them. No responses. I think it's too new to have too many reviews? I took the plunge anyway since they were about $100 on irawoods (vs. $70ish for the quality air switches on ebay). DH washes dishes with gloves b/c of eczema, so I thought the cleaner button on the fiber-optic would be better (gloves can catch in the air switch when you depress the button). It isn't installed yet, so I unfortunately can't give reviews of it yet!

Using mine a month, love it.

Skoo, I plan on installing an air switch in my upcoming remodel and came across the fiber optic option as well. Have you had a chance to use it? Would you recommend it? thanks..

So far so good on the fiber-optic switch. To be quite honest, we don't use the disposal a whole lot because we compost almost everything that we can, but over the past 2 weeks since we started using the kitchen, it seems to work great. Very easy to push on, it really does sit flush with the counter, and you can either press again to turn it off or wait for the 20sec auto shutoff.

I'm glad we opted for the fiber-optic over the air switch.

We've had ours almost 2 months, and everything is great so far. We also have many windows above the sink, so it is much more convenient than before when the switch was on the wall (4 ft. away from the sink). Now, it's perfect!

We installed one during a kitchen remodel on our last home over 15 years ago. It's still there (BIL & SIL bought the house), and works fine.

For our current house we bought a Titan Disposal at Costco. They have remote controls so you can put the switch where you want it.

I've had mine in about a month, and I love it. it would be too far for me to reach past the window to a switch on the backsplash. Per recommendations of some folks here I purchased Westbrass off Ebay. No problems and it seems to be decent quality.

debs3: You posted before about the problems of it getting wet - thank you so much for the insight. It helped me to place mine so that it would not be under the faucet handle. Very good point!

Thank you skoo--One other question--did you drill the smaller hole for the FO option? I know they make a filler piece and I'm wondering if I should drill a standard hole so that if this proves to be an issue down the road I can always switch to a standard air switch. I always get nervous when I go non-standard with items as that can prove to be a problem down the road. Having a similar dilemma with our fridge selection...

jsol - I drilled the smaller hole for the FO switch. It's a nice small hole. They do make a filler piece to fit the larger hole required for an air switch, but I didn't want to buy another piece, and I guess I'm optimistic. I can always drill a bigger hole in the future if I need to.

I'm at the point I need to decide where I want the switch (son is doing the job) and I forgot about the air switch until I came across this thread. We made my island larger and added a prep sink and he can wire it but the air switch looks neater. He says he just plans to put a regular switch on the front of the cabnet right under the counter since we don't have a hole in the granite for it. He said " why waste the money on the air switch?"

Is he correct??

Mine is being installed as I type this. Learn from my mistake:

I bought the insinkerator air switch on Amazon. The one from Amazon does not include the satin nickel button, only chrome and white. It was only a few dollars cheaper on Amazon than in a local hardware store. The one at the local hardware store includes the satin nickel button.

I had to pay nearly $25 just for that little button.

~Jay