diff --git a/controller/place.js b/controller/place.js
index c4e78978..c7b1f421 100644
--- a/controller/place.js
+++ b/controller/place.js
@@ -13,40 +13,16 @@ function setup( backend ){
       return next();
     }
 
-    /* req.clean.ids contains an array of objects with id and types properties.
-     * types is an array of one or more types, since it can't always be known which single
-     * type a gid might belong to (osmnode and osmway both have source osm and layer venue).
-     *
-     * However, the mget Elasticsearch query only accepts a single type at a
-     * time.
-     *
-     * So, first create a new array that, has an entry
-     * with each type and id combination. This requires creating a new array with more entries
-     * than req.clean.ids in the case where entries have multiple types.
-     */
-
-    var recordsToReturn = req.clean.ids.reduce(function (acc, ids_element) {
-      ids_element.types.forEach(function(type) {
-        acc.push({
-          id: ids_element.id,
-          type: type
-        });
-      });
-      return acc;
-    }, []);
-
-    /*
-     * Next, map the list of records to an Elasticsearch mget query
-     */
-    var query = recordsToReturn.map( function(id) {
+    var query = req.clean.ids.map( function(id) {
       return {
         _index: 'pelias',
-        _type: id.type,
+        _type: id.layers,
         _id: id.id
       };
     });
 
     service.mget( backend, query, function( err, docs ) {
+      console.log('err:' + err);
 
       // error handler
       if( err ){
diff --git a/controller/search.js b/controller/search.js
index 9fafdd20..4adaf31d 100644
--- a/controller/search.js
+++ b/controller/search.js
@@ -8,10 +8,10 @@ function setup( backend, query ){
   query = query || require('../query/search');
 
   function controller( req, res, next ){
-
     // do not run controller when a request
     // validation error has occurred.
     if( req.errors && req.errors.length ){
+      delete req.clean.type; //to declutter output
       return next();
     }
 
@@ -25,9 +25,12 @@ function setup( backend, query ){
       body: query( req.clean )
     };
 
-    // ?
+    // set the Elasticsearch types to filter by,
+    // and remove the property from clean so the API
+    // response output is cleaner
     if( req.clean.hasOwnProperty('type') ){
       cmd.type = req.clean.type;
+      delete req.clean.type;
     }
 
     logger.debug( '[ES req]', JSON.stringify(cmd) );
diff --git a/helper/text_parser.js b/helper/text_parser.js
index a561aef9..7b9ffcfe 100644
--- a/helper/text_parser.js
+++ b/helper/text_parser.js
@@ -15,7 +15,7 @@ module.exports = {};
 module.exports.get_layers = function get_layers(query) {
   if (query.length <= 3 ) {
     // no address parsing required
-    return type_mapping.layer_with_aliases_to_type.coarse;
+    return type_mapping.layer_mapping.coarse;
   }
 };
 
diff --git a/helper/type_mapping.js b/helper/type_mapping.js
index 06a8ec2d..ced5f1f3 100644
--- a/helper/type_mapping.js
+++ b/helper/type_mapping.js
@@ -1,87 +1,85 @@
 var extend = require('extend'),
   _ = require('lodash');
 
-var TYPE_TO_SOURCE = {
-  'geoname': 'gn',
-  'osmnode': 'osm',
-  'osmway': 'osm',
-  'admin0': 'qs',
-  'admin1': 'qs',
-  'admin2': 'qs',
-  'neighborhood': 'qs',
-  'locality': 'qs',
-  'local_admin': 'qs',
-  'osmaddress': 'osm',
-  'openaddresses': 'oa'
-};
+function addStandardTargetsToAliases(standard, aliases) {
+  var combined = _.extend({}, aliases);
+  standard.forEach(function(target) {
+    if (combined[target] === undefined) {
+      combined[target] = [target];
+    }
+  });
+
+  return combined;
+}
 
 /*
- * This doesn't include alias layers such as coarse
+ * Sources
  */
-var TYPE_TO_LAYER = {
-  'geoname': 'venue',
-  'osmnode': 'venue',
-  'osmway': 'venue',
-  'admin0': 'country',
-  'admin1': 'region',
-  'admin2': 'county',
-  'neighborhood': 'neighbourhood',
-  'locality': 'locality',
-  'local_admin': 'localadmin',
-  'osmaddress': 'address',
-  'openaddresses': 'address'
-};
 
-var SOURCE_TO_TYPE = {
-  'gn'            : ['geoname'],
-  'geonames'      : ['geoname'],
-  'oa'            : ['openaddresses'],
-  'openaddresses' : ['openaddresses'],
-  'qs'            : ['admin0', 'admin1', 'admin2', 'neighborhood', 'locality', 'local_admin'],
-  'quattroshapes' : ['admin0', 'admin1', 'admin2', 'neighborhood', 'locality', 'local_admin'],
-  'osm'           : ['osmaddress', 'osmnode', 'osmway'],
-  'openstreetmap' : ['osmaddress', 'osmnode', 'osmway']
+// a list of all sources
+var SOURCES = ['openstreetmap', 'openaddresses', 'geonames', 'quattroshapes', 'whosonfirst'];
+
+/*
+ * A list of alternate names for sources, mostly used to save typing
+ */
+var SOURCE_ALIASES = {
+  'osm': ['openstreetmap'],
+  'oa': ['openaddresses'],
+  'gn': ['geonames'],
+  'qs': ['quattroshapes'],
+  'wof': ['whosonfirst']
 };
 
-/**
- * This does not included alias layers, those are built separately
+/*
+ * Create an object that contains all sources or aliases. The key is the source or alias,
+ * the value is either that source, or the canonical name for that alias if it's an alias.
  */
-var LAYER_TO_TYPE = {
-  'venue': ['geoname','osmnode','osmway'],
-  'address': ['osmaddress','openaddresses'],
-  'country': ['admin0'],
-  'region': ['admin1'],
-  'county': ['admin2'],
-  'locality': ['locality'],
-  'localadmin': ['local_admin'],
-  'neighbourhood': ['neighborhood']
+var SOURCE_MAPPING = addStandardTargetsToAliases(SOURCES, SOURCE_ALIASES);
+
+/*
+ * Layers
+ */
+
+/*
+ * A list of all layers in each source. This is used for convenience elswhere
+ * and to determine when a combination of source and layer parameters is
+ * not going to match any records and will return no results.
+ */
+var LAYERS_BY_SOURCE = {
+ openstreetmap: [ 'address', 'venue' ],
+ openaddresses: [ 'address' ],
+ geonames: [ 'country', 'region', 'county', 'locality', 'venue' ],
+ quattroshapes: ['admin0', 'admin1', 'admin2', 'neighborhood', 'locality', 'local_admin'],
+ whosonfirst: [ 'continent', 'macrocountry', 'country', 'dependency', 'region',
+   'locality', 'localadmin', 'county', 'macrohood', 'neighbourhood', 'microhood', 'disputed']
 };
 
+/*
+ * A list of layer aliases that can be used to support specific use cases
+ * (like coarse geocoding) * or work around the fact that different sources
+ * may have layers that mean the same thing but have a different name
+ */
 var LAYER_ALIASES = {
-  'coarse': ['admin0','admin1','admin2','neighborhood','locality','local_admin']
+  'coarse': LAYERS_BY_SOURCE.whosonfirst.concat(LAYERS_BY_SOURCE.quattroshapes),
+  'country': ['country', 'admin0'],  // Include both QS and WOF layers for various types of places
+  'region': ['region', 'admin1']     // Alias layers that include themselves look weird, but do work
 };
 
-var LAYER_WITH_ALIASES_TO_TYPE = extend({}, LAYER_ALIASES, LAYER_TO_TYPE);
+// create a list of all layers by combining each entry from LAYERS_BY_SOURCE
+var LAYERS = _.uniq(Object.keys(LAYERS_BY_SOURCE).reduce(function(acc, key) {
+  return acc.concat(LAYERS_BY_SOURCE[key]);
+}, []));
 
 /*
- * derive the list of types, sources, and layers from above mappings
+ * Create the an object that has a key for each possible layer or alias,
+ * and returns either that layer, or all the layers in the alias
  */
-var TYPES   = Object.keys(TYPE_TO_SOURCE);
-var SOURCES = Object.keys(SOURCE_TO_TYPE);
-var LAYERS  = Object.keys(LAYER_TO_TYPE);
-
-var sourceAndLayerToType = function sourceAndLayerToType(source, layer) {
-  return _.intersection(SOURCE_TO_TYPE[source], LAYER_WITH_ALIASES_TO_TYPE[layer]);
-};
+var LAYER_MAPPING = addStandardTargetsToAliases(LAYERS, LAYER_ALIASES);
 
 module.exports = {
-  types: TYPES,
   sources: SOURCES,
   layers: LAYERS,
-  type_to_source: TYPE_TO_SOURCE,
-  type_to_layer: TYPE_TO_LAYER,
-  source_to_type: SOURCE_TO_TYPE,
-  layer_to_type: LAYER_TO_TYPE,
-  layer_with_aliases_to_type: LAYER_WITH_ALIASES_TO_TYPE,
-  source_and_layer_to_type: sourceAndLayerToType
+  source_mapping: SOURCE_MAPPING,
+  layer_mapping: LAYER_MAPPING,
+  layers_by_source: LAYERS_BY_SOURCE
 };
diff --git a/helper/types.js b/helper/types.js
deleted file mode 100644
index d9dec59d..00000000
--- a/helper/types.js
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,43 +0,0 @@
-var type_mapping = require( '../helper/type_mapping' );
-var _ = require('lodash');
-
-/**
- * Different parts of the code express "preferences" for which Elasticsearch types are going to be searched
- * This method decides how to combine all the preferences.
- *
- * @param {Array} clean_types
- * @returns {Array}
- */
-module.exports = function calculate_types(clean_types) {
-  //Check that at least one preference of types is defined
-  if (!clean_types || !(clean_types.from_layers || clean_types.from_sources || clean_types.from_text_parser)) {
-    throw new Error('clean_types should not be null or undefined');
-  }
-
-  /* the layers and source parameters are cumulative:
-   * perform a set intersection of their specified types
-   */
-  if (clean_types.from_layers || clean_types.from_sources) {
-    var types = type_mapping.types;
-
-    if (clean_types.from_layers) {
-      types = _.intersection(types, clean_types.from_layers);
-    }
-
-    if (clean_types.from_sources) {
-      types = _.intersection(types, clean_types.from_sources);
-    }
-
-    return types;
-  }
-
-  /*
-   * Type restrictions requested by the address parser should only be used
-   * if both the source and layers parameters are empty, so do this last
-   */
-  if (clean_types.from_text_parser) {
-    return clean_types.from_text_parser;
-  }
-
-  throw new Error('no types specified');
-};
diff --git a/middleware/_types.js b/middleware/_types.js
index 3e604f7b..ccabdab9 100644
--- a/middleware/_types.js
+++ b/middleware/_types.js
@@ -1,43 +1,15 @@
-var types_helper = require( '../helper/types' );
-
 /**
- * Validate the types specified to be searched.
+ * Take the layers specified by the layers parameter and use them to set the
+ * list of Elasticsearch types to filter.
  *
- * Elasticsearch interprets an empty array of types as "search anything" rather
- * than "search nothing", so in the case of an empty array, return an error
- * message instead of searching at all.
+ * This has to be done outside the layers sanitizer since it doesn't know that
+ * the layers property is eventualy used to choose the _type.
  */
 function middleware(req, res, next) {
   req.clean = req.clean || {};
 
-  if (req.clean.hasOwnProperty('types')) {
-
-    try {
-      var types = types_helper(req.clean.types);
-
-      if ((types instanceof Array) && types.length === 0) {
-        var err = 'You have specified both the `sources` and `layers` ' +
-          'parameters in a combination that will return no results.';
-        req.errors.push( err );
-      }
-
-      else {
-        req.clean.type = types;
-      }
-
-    }
-
-    // @todo: refactor this flow, it is confusing as `types_helper()` can throw
-    // with an error "clean_types should not be null or undefined" which is
-    // not returned to the user yet the return value CAN trigger a user error.
-    // I would have liked to throw for BOTH cases and then handle the users errors
-    // inside the 'catch' but this is not possible.
-    // also: why are we deleting things from $clean?
-    catch (err) {
-      // this means there were no types specified
-      delete req.clean.types;
-    }
-
+  if (req.clean.hasOwnProperty('layers')) {
+    req.clean.type = req.clean.layers;
   }
 
   next();
diff --git a/query/search.js b/query/search.js
index 764cf999..d75e3f4a 100644
--- a/query/search.js
+++ b/query/search.js
@@ -37,7 +37,7 @@ query.score( peliasQuery.view.admin('neighborhood') );
 // non-scoring hard filters
 query.filter( peliasQuery.view.boundary_circle );
 query.filter( peliasQuery.view.boundary_rect );
-
+query.filter( peliasQuery.view.sources );
 // --------------------------------
 
 /**
@@ -51,6 +51,8 @@ function generateQuery( clean ){
   // input text
   vs.var( 'input:name', clean.text );
 
+  vs.var( 'sources', clean.sources);
+
   // size
   if( clean.querySize ) {
     vs.var( 'size', clean.querySize );
@@ -119,7 +121,9 @@ function generateQuery( clean ){
     textParser( clean.parsed_text, vs );
   }
 
-  return query.render( vs );
+  var q = query.render( vs );
+  //console.log(JSON.stringify(q, null, 2));
+  return q;
 }
 
 // return diagonal distance in km, with min=1
diff --git a/sanitiser/_ids.js b/sanitiser/_ids.js
index 47c95ad6..5f34fae5 100644
--- a/sanitiser/_ids.js
+++ b/sanitiser/_ids.js
@@ -45,17 +45,10 @@ function sanitizeId(rawId, messages) {
     return;
   }
 
-  //TODO: remove this once we have a better set of layers for Geonames
-  var types;
-  if (source === 'gn' || source === 'geonames') {
-    types = ['geoname'];
-  } else {
-    types = type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type(source, layer);
-  }
-
   return {
+    source: source,
+    layer: layer,
     id: id,
-    types: types
   };
 }
 
diff --git a/sanitiser/_sources_and_layers.js b/sanitiser/_sources_and_layers.js
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..229fd855
--- /dev/null
+++ b/sanitiser/_sources_and_layers.js
@@ -0,0 +1,32 @@
+var _ = require( 'lodash' );
+var type_mapping = require( '../helper/type_mapping' );
+function sanitize( raw, clean ){
+  var messages = { errors: [], warnings: [] };
+
+  var possible_errors = [];
+  var at_least_one_valid_combination = false;
+
+  if (clean.layers && clean.sources) {
+    clean.sources.forEach(function(source) {
+      var layers_for_source = type_mapping.layers_by_source[source];
+      clean.layers.forEach(function(layer) {
+        if (_.includes(layers_for_source, layer)) {
+          at_least_one_valid_combination = true;
+        } else {
+          var message = 'You have specified both the `sources` and `layers`' +
+            'parameters in a combination that will return no results: the ' +
+            source + ' source has nothing in the ' + layer + ' layer';
+          possible_errors.push(message);
+        }
+      });
+    });
+
+    if (!at_least_one_valid_combination) {
+      messages.errors = possible_errors;
+    }
+  }
+
+  return messages;
+}
+
+module.exports = sanitize;
diff --git a/sanitiser/_targets.js b/sanitiser/_targets.js
index 81e345b6..c77fa52c 100644
--- a/sanitiser/_targets.js
+++ b/sanitiser/_targets.js
@@ -1,25 +1,27 @@
-
 var _ = require('lodash'),
     check = require('check-types');
 
+function getValidKeys(mapping) {
+  return _.uniq(Object.keys(mapping)).join(',');
+}
+
 function setup( paramName, targetMap ) {
   return function( raw, clean ){
     return sanitize( raw, clean, {
       paramName: paramName,
       targetMap: targetMap,
-      targetMapKeysString: Object.keys(targetMap).join(',')
+      targetMapKeysString: getValidKeys(targetMap)
     });
   };
 }
 
 function sanitize( raw, clean, opts ) {
+  // TODO: remove this next line
+  var propertyName = opts.paramName;//opts.paramName.slice(0,-1);
 
   // error & warning messages
   var messages = { errors: [], warnings: [] };
 
-  // init clean.types
-  clean.types = clean.types || {};
-
   // the string of targets (comma delimeted)
   var targetsString = raw[opts.paramName];
 
@@ -51,19 +53,13 @@ function sanitize( raw, clean, opts ) {
 
       // only set types value when no error occured
       if( !messages.errors.length ){
-
-        // store the values under a new key as 'clean.types.from_*'
-        var typesKey = 'from_' + opts.paramName;
-
-        // ?
-        clean.types[typesKey] = targets.reduce(function(acc, target) {
+        clean[propertyName] = targets.reduce(function(acc, target) {
           return acc.concat(opts.targetMap[target]);
         }, []);
 
         // dedupe in case aliases expanded to common things or user typed in duplicates
-        clean.types[typesKey] = _.unique(clean.types[typesKey]);
+        clean[propertyName] = _.unique(clean[propertyName]);
       }
-
     }
   }
 
diff --git a/sanitiser/_text.js b/sanitiser/_text.js
index 824c7a87..ab6a213d 100644
--- a/sanitiser/_text.js
+++ b/sanitiser/_text.js
@@ -23,10 +23,6 @@ function sanitize( raw, clean ){
     if (check.assigned(parsed_text)) {
       clean.parsed_text = parsed_text;
     }
-
-    // try to set layers from query parser results
-    clean.types = clean.layers || {};
-    clean.types.from_text_parser = text_parser.get_layers(clean.text);
   }
 
   return messages;
diff --git a/sanitiser/reverse.js b/sanitiser/reverse.js
index 154fd3d9..ccc4efa8 100644
--- a/sanitiser/reverse.js
+++ b/sanitiser/reverse.js
@@ -3,8 +3,9 @@ var type_mapping = require('../helper/type_mapping');
 var sanitizeAll = require('../sanitiser/sanitizeAll'),
     sanitizers = {
       singleScalarParameters: require('../sanitiser/_single_scalar_parameters'),
-      layers: require('../sanitiser/_targets')('layers', type_mapping.layer_with_aliases_to_type),
-      sources: require('../sanitiser/_targets')('sources', type_mapping.source_to_type),
+      layers: require('../sanitiser/_targets')('layers', type_mapping.layer_mapping),
+      sources: require('../sanitiser/_targets')('sources', type_mapping.source_mapping),
+      sources_and_layers: require('../sanitiser/_sources_and_layers'),
       size: require('../sanitiser/_size'),
       private: require('../sanitiser/_flag_bool')('private', false),
       geo_reverse: require('../sanitiser/_geo_reverse'),
diff --git a/sanitiser/search.js b/sanitiser/search.js
index cc596b26..62dea217 100644
--- a/sanitiser/search.js
+++ b/sanitiser/search.js
@@ -5,8 +5,9 @@ var sanitizeAll = require('../sanitiser/sanitizeAll'),
       singleScalarParameters: require('../sanitiser/_single_scalar_parameters'),
       text: require('../sanitiser/_text'),
       size: require('../sanitiser/_size'),
-      layers: require('../sanitiser/_targets')('layers', type_mapping.layer_with_aliases_to_type),
-      sources: require('../sanitiser/_targets')('sources', type_mapping.source_to_type),
+      layers: require('../sanitiser/_targets')('layers', type_mapping.layer_mapping),
+      sources: require('../sanitiser/_targets')('sources', type_mapping.source_mapping),
+      sources_and_layers: require('../sanitiser/_sources_and_layers'),
       private: require('../sanitiser/_flag_bool')('private', false),
       geo_search: require('../sanitiser/_geo_search'),
       boundary_country: require('../sanitiser/_boundary_country'),
diff --git a/service/mget.js b/service/mget.js
index a878e8cb..f5480f43 100644
--- a/service/mget.js
+++ b/service/mget.js
@@ -24,6 +24,7 @@ function service( backend, query, cb ){
 
   // query new backend
   backend().client.mget( cmd, function( err, data ){
+    console.log('service err: ' + err);
 
     // handle backend errors
     if( err ){ return cb( err ); }
diff --git a/test/unit/controller/place.js b/test/unit/controller/place.js
index e8a8c333..02522063 100644
--- a/test/unit/controller/place.js
+++ b/test/unit/controller/place.js
@@ -41,7 +41,7 @@ module.exports.tests.functional_success = function(test, common) {
 
   test('functional success', function(t) {
     var backend = mockBackend( 'client/mget/ok/1', function( cmd ){
-      t.deepEqual(cmd, { body: { docs: [ { _id: 123, _index: 'pelias', _type: 'a' } ] } }, 'correct backend command');
+      t.deepEqual(cmd, { body: { docs: [ { _id: 123, _index: 'pelias', _type: [ 'a' ] } ] } }, 'correct backend command');
     });
     var controller = setup( backend );
     var res = {
@@ -57,7 +57,7 @@ module.exports.tests.functional_success = function(test, common) {
         t.deepEqual(json.features, expected, 'values correctly mapped');
       }
     };
-    var req = { clean: { ids: [ {'id' : 123, types: [ 'a' ] } ] }, errors: [], warnings: [] };
+    var req = { clean: { ids: [ {'id' : 123, layers: [ 'a' ] } ] }, errors: [], warnings: [] };
     var next = function next() {
       t.equal(req.errors.length, 0, 'next was called without error');
       t.end();
@@ -70,10 +70,13 @@ module.exports.tests.functional_success = function(test, common) {
 module.exports.tests.functional_failure = function(test, common) {
   test('functional failure', function(t) {
     var backend = mockBackend( 'client/mget/fail/1', function( cmd ){
-      t.deepEqual(cmd, { body: { docs: [ { _id: 123, _index: 'pelias', _type: 'b' } ] } }, 'correct backend command');
+      var e = new Error('wtf is going on');
+      console.log(e.stack);
+      console.log('cmd: ' + JSON.stringify(cmd, null, 2));
+      t.deepEqual(cmd, { body: { docs: [ { _id: 123, _index: 'pelias', _type: ['b'] } ] } }, 'correct backend command');
     });
     var controller = setup( backend );
-    var req = { clean: { ids: [ {'id' : 123, types: [ 'b' ] } ] }, errors: [], warnings: [] };
+    var req = { clean: { ids: [ {'id' : 123, layers: [ 'b' ] } ] }, errors: [], warnings: [] };
     var next = function( message ){
       t.equal(req.errors[0],'a backend error occurred','error passed to errorHandler');
       t.end();
diff --git a/test/unit/helper/text_parser.js b/test/unit/helper/text_parser.js
index 3accf7b9..90b8fa52 100644
--- a/test/unit/helper/text_parser.js
+++ b/test/unit/helper/text_parser.js
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 var parser = require('../../../helper/text_parser');
 
 var type_mapping = require('../../../helper/type_mapping');
-var layers_map = type_mapping.layer_with_aliases_to_type;
+var layers_map = type_mapping.layer_mapping;
 
 module.exports.tests = {};
 
diff --git a/test/unit/helper/type_mapping.js b/test/unit/helper/type_mapping.js
index b44b00a9..39d9c564 100644
--- a/test/unit/helper/type_mapping.js
+++ b/test/unit/helper/type_mapping.js
@@ -4,132 +4,32 @@ var type_mapping = require('../../../helper/type_mapping');
 module.exports.tests = {};
 
 module.exports.tests.interfaces = function(test, common) {
-  test('types list', function(t) {
-    t.ok(check.array(type_mapping.types), 'is array');
-    t.ok(check.hasLength(type_mapping.types, 11), 'has correct number of elements');
+  test('basic layer mapping', function(t) {
+    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.layer_mapping.venue, ['venue']);
+    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.layer_mapping.address, ['address']);
     t.end();
   });
 
-  test('type to source mapping', function(t) {
-    t.ok(check.object(type_mapping.type_to_source), 'is object');
-    t.ok(check.hasLength(Object.keys(type_mapping.type_to_source), 11), 'has correct number of elements');
+  test('alias layer mapping', function(t) {
+    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.layer_mapping.coarse,
+                 [ 'continent', 'macrocountry', 'country', 'dependency',
+                   'region', 'locality', 'localadmin', 'county', 'macrohood',
+                   'neighbourhood', 'microhood', 'disputed', 'admin0',
+                   'admin1', 'admin2', 'neighborhood', 'locality', 'local_admin']);
     t.end();
   });
 
-  test('type to layer mapping', function(t) {
-    t.ok(check.object(type_mapping.type_to_layer), 'is object');
-    t.ok(check.hasLength(Object.keys(type_mapping.type_to_layer), 11), 'has correct number of elements');
+  test('basic source mapping', function(t) {
+    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_mapping.osm, ['openstreetmap']);
+    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_mapping.openaddresses, ['openaddresses']);
     t.end();
   });
 
-  test('source to type mapping', function(t) {
-    t.ok(check.object(type_mapping.source_to_type), 'is object');
-    t.ok(check.hasLength(Object.keys(type_mapping.source_to_type), 8), 'has correct number of elements');
+  test('alias source mapping', function(t) {
+    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_mapping.openstreetmap, ['openstreetmap']);
+    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_mapping.wof, ['whosonfirst']);
     t.end();
   });
-
-  test('layer to type mapping', function(t) {
-    t.ok(check.object(type_mapping.layer_to_type), 'is object');
-    t.equal(Object.keys(type_mapping.layer_to_type).length, 8, 'has correct number of elements');
-    t.end();
-  });
-
-  test('layer to type mapping (with aliases)', function(t) {
-    t.ok(check.object(type_mapping.layer_with_aliases_to_type), 'is object');
-    t.ok(check.hasLength(Object.keys(type_mapping.layer_with_aliases_to_type), 9), 'has correct number of elements');
-    t.end();
-  });
-
-  test('\'osm\' and \'openstreetmap\' sources should only successfully map to \'venue\' and \'address\' layers', function(t) {
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('osm', 'venue'), ['osmnode', 'osmway']);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('osm', 'address'), ['osmaddress']);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('osm', 'country'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('osm', 'region'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('osm', 'county'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('osm', 'locality'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('osm', 'localadmin'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('osm', 'neighbourhood'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('osm', 'coarse'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('openstreetmap', 'venue'), ['osmnode', 'osmway']);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('openstreetmap', 'address'), ['osmaddress']);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('openstreetmap', 'country'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('openstreetmap', 'region'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('openstreetmap', 'county'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('openstreetmap', 'locality'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('openstreetmap', 'localadmin'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('openstreetmap', 'neighbourhood'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('openstreetmap', 'coarse'), []);
-    t.end();
-  });
-
-  test('\'gn\' and \'geonames\' sources should only successfully map to \'venue\' layers', function(t) {
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('gn', 'venue'), ['geoname']);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('gn', 'address'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('gn', 'country'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('gn', 'region'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('gn', 'county'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('gn', 'locality'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('gn', 'localadmin'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('gn', 'neighbourhood'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('gn', 'coarse'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('geonames', 'venue'), ['geoname']);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('geonames', 'address'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('geonames', 'country'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('geonames', 'region'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('geonames', 'county'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('geonames', 'locality'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('geonames', 'localadmin'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('geonames', 'neighbourhood'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('geonames', 'coarse'), []);
-    t.end();
-  });
-
-  test('\'oa\' and \'openaddresses\' sources should only successfully map to \'address\' layer', function(t) {
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('oa', 'venue'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('oa', 'address'), ['openaddresses']);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('oa', 'country'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('oa', 'region'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('oa', 'county'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('oa', 'locality'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('oa', 'localadmin'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('oa', 'neighbourhood'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('oa', 'coarse'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('openaddresses', 'venue'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('openaddresses', 'address'), ['openaddresses']);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('openaddresses', 'country'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('openaddresses', 'region'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('openaddresses', 'county'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('openaddresses', 'locality'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('openaddresses', 'localadmin'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('openaddresses', 'neighbourhood'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('openaddresses', 'coarse'), []);
-    t.end();
-  });
-
-  test('\'qs\' and \'quattroshapes\' sources should only successfully map to \'address\' layer', function(t) {
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('qs', 'venue'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('qs', 'address'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('qs', 'country'), ['admin0']);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('qs', 'region'), ['admin1']);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('qs', 'county'), ['admin2']);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('qs', 'locality'), ['locality']);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('qs', 'localadmin'), ['local_admin']);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('qs', 'neighbourhood'), ['neighborhood']);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('qs', 'coarse'),
-      ['admin0','admin1','admin2','neighborhood','locality','local_admin']);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('quattroshapes', 'venue'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('quattroshapes', 'address'), []);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('quattroshapes', 'country'), ['admin0']);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('quattroshapes', 'region'), ['admin1']);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('quattroshapes', 'county'), ['admin2']);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('quattroshapes', 'locality'), ['locality']);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('quattroshapes', 'localadmin'), ['local_admin']);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('quattroshapes', 'neighbourhood'), ['neighborhood']);
-    t.deepEquals(type_mapping.source_and_layer_to_type('quattroshapes', 'coarse'),
-      ['admin0','admin1','admin2','neighborhood','locality','local_admin']);
-    t.end();
-  });
-
 };
 
 module.exports.all = function (tape, common) {
diff --git a/test/unit/helper/types.js b/test/unit/helper/types.js
deleted file mode 100644
index 4c68b46c..00000000
--- a/test/unit/helper/types.js
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,92 +0,0 @@
-var types = require('../../../helper/types');
-
-module.exports.tests = {};
-
-module.exports.tests.no_cleaned_types = function(test, common) {
-  test('no cleaned types', function(t) {
-    function testIt() {
-      types({});
-    }
-
-    t.throws(testIt, /clean_types should not be null or undefined/, 'no input should result in exception');
-
-    t.end();
-  });
-};
-
-module.exports.tests.address_parser = function(test, common) {
-  test('address parser specifies only admin layers', function(t) {
-    var cleaned_types = {
-      from_text_parser: ['admin0'] // simplified return value from address parser
-    };
-    var actual = types(cleaned_types);
-    var expected = ['admin0']; // simplified expected value for all admin layers
-    t.deepEqual(actual, expected, 'only layers specified by address parser returned');
-    t.end();
-  });
-};
-
-module.exports.tests.layers_parameter = function(test, common) {
-  test('layers parameter specifies only some layers', function(t) {
-    var cleaned_types = {
-      from_layers: ['geoname']
-    };
-    var actual = types(cleaned_types);
-    var expected = ['geoname'];
-    t.deepEqual(actual, expected, 'only types specified by layers parameter returned');
-    t.end();
-  });
-};
-
-module.exports.tests.layers_parameter_and_address_parser = function(test, common) {
-  test('layers parameter and address parser present', function(t) {
-    var cleaned_types = {
-      from_layers: ['geoname'],
-      from_text_parser: ['admin0'] // simplified return value from address parse
-    };
-    var actual = types(cleaned_types);
-    var expected = ['geoname'];
-    t.deepEqual(actual, expected, 'layers parameter overrides address parser completely');
-    t.end();
-  });
-};
-
-module.exports.tests.source_parameter = function(test, common) {
-  test('source parameter specified', function(t) {
-    var cleaned_types = {
-      from_sources: ['openaddresses']
-    };
-
-    var actual = types(cleaned_types);
-
-    var expected = ['openaddresses'];
-    t.deepEqual(actual, expected, 'type parameter set to types specified by source');
-    t.end();
-  });
-};
-
-module.exports.tests.source_and_layers_parameters = function(test, common) {
-  test('source and layers parameter both specified', function(t) {
-    var cleaned_types = {
-      from_sources: ['openaddresses'],
-      from_layers: ['osmaddress', 'openaddresses']
-    };
-
-    var actual = types(cleaned_types);
-
-    var expected = ['openaddresses'];
-    t.deepEqual(actual, expected, 'type set to intersection of source and layer types');
-    t.end();
-  });
-};
-
-module.exports.all = function (tape, common) {
-
-  function test(name, testFunction) {
-    return tape('types: ' + name, testFunction);
-  }
-
-  for( var testCase in module.exports.tests ){
-    module.exports.tests[testCase](test, common);
-  }
-};
diff --git a/test/unit/run.js b/test/unit/run.js
index 0510cda6..ea6b479b 100644
--- a/test/unit/run.js
+++ b/test/unit/run.js
@@ -11,7 +11,6 @@ var tests = [
   require('./helper/labelSchema'),
   require('./helper/text_parser'),
   require('./helper/type_mapping'),
-  require('./helper/types'),
   require('./helper/sizeCalculator'),
   require('./middleware/confidenceScore'),
   require('./middleware/confidenceScoreReverse'),
diff --git a/test/unit/sanitiser/_ids.js b/test/unit/sanitiser/_ids.js
index 98237180..64e749b0 100644
--- a/test/unit/sanitiser/_ids.js
+++ b/test/unit/sanitiser/_ids.js
@@ -94,60 +94,79 @@ module.exports.tests.valid_ids = function(test, common) {
   test('ids: valid input (openaddresses)', function(t) {
     var raw = { ids: 'openaddresses:address:20' };
     var clean = {};
-    var expected_ids = [{
-      id: '20',
-      types: [ 'openaddresses' ]
-    }];
 
     var messages = sanitize( raw, clean );
 
+    var expected_ids = [{
+      source: 'openaddresses',
+      layer: 'address',
+      id: '20',
+    }];
     t.deepEqual( messages.errors, [], ' no errors');
     t.deepEqual( clean.ids, expected_ids, 'single type value returned');
     t.end();
   });
 
   test('ids: valid input (osm)', function(t) {
-    var raw = { ids: 'osm:venue:500' };
+    var raw = { ids: 'openstreetmap:venue:node:500' };
     var clean = {};
     var expected_ids = [{
-      id: '500',
-      types: [ 'osmnode', 'osmway' ]
+      source: 'openstreetmap',
+      layer: 'venue',
+      id: 'node:500',
     }];
 
     var messages = sanitize( raw, clean );
 
     t.deepEqual( messages.errors, [], ' no errors');
-    t.deepEqual( clean.ids, expected_ids, 'osm could be two types, but that\'s ok');
+    t.deepEqual( clean.ids, expected_ids, 'osm has node: or way: in id field');
     t.end();
   });
 };
 
 module.exports.tests.multiple_ids = function(test, common) {
   test('multiple ids', function(t) {
-    var raw = { ids: 'geonames:venue:1,osm:venue:2' };
+    var raw = { ids: 'geonames:venue:1,openstreetmap:address:way:2' };
     var clean = {};
-    var expected_clean = { ids: [ { id: '1', types: [ 'geoname' ] }, { id: '2', types: [ 'osmnode', 'osmway' ] } ] };
 
     var messages = sanitize( raw, clean);
 
+    var expected_ids = [ {
+      source: 'geonames',
+      layer: 'venue',
+      id: '1'
+    }, {
+      source: 'openstreetmap',
+      layer: 'address',
+      id: 'way:2'
+    } ];
+
     t.deepEqual( messages.errors, [], 'no errors' );
     t.deepEqual( messages.warnings, [], 'no warnings' );
-    t.deepEqual(clean, expected_clean, 'clean set correctly');
+    t.deepEqual(clean.ids, expected_ids, 'clean set correctly');
     t.end();
   });
 };
 
 module.exports.tests.de_dupe = function(test, common) {
   test('duplicate ids', function(t) {
-    var expected_clean = { ids: [ { id: '1', types: [ 'geoname' ] }, { id: '2', types: [ 'osmnode', 'osmway' ] } ] };
-    var raw = { ids: 'geonames:venue:1,osm:venue:2,geonames:venue:1' };
+    var raw = { ids: 'geonames:venue:1,openstreetmap:venue:node:2,geonames:venue:1' };
     var clean = {};
 
     var messages = sanitize( raw, clean );
 
+    var expected_ids = [ {
+      source: 'geonames',
+      layer: 'venue',
+      id: '1'
+    }, {
+      source: 'openstreetmap',
+      layer: 'venue',
+      id: 'node:2'
+    } ];
     t.deepEqual( messages.errors, [], 'no errors' );
     t.deepEqual( messages.warnings, [], 'no warnings' );
-    t.deepEqual(clean, expected_clean, 'clean set correctly');
+    t.deepEqual(clean.ids, expected_ids, 'clean set correctly');
     t.end();
   });
 };
diff --git a/test/unit/sanitiser/_layers.js b/test/unit/sanitiser/_layers.js
index 16ca19ae..bd499fc7 100644
--- a/test/unit/sanitiser/_layers.js
+++ b/test/unit/sanitiser/_layers.js
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 var type_mapping = require('../../../helper/type_mapping');
 
-var sanitize = require('../../../sanitiser/_targets')('layers', type_mapping.layer_with_aliases_to_type);
+var sanitize = require('../../../sanitiser/_targets')('layers', type_mapping.layer_mapping);
 
 module.exports.tests = {};
 
@@ -25,95 +25,101 @@ module.exports.tests.sanitize_layers = function(test, common) {
   });
 
   test('venue (alias) layer', function(t) {
-    var venue_layers = ['geoname','osmnode','osmway'];
     var raw = { layers: 'venue' };
     var clean = {};
 
     sanitize(raw, clean);
 
-    t.deepEqual(clean.types.from_layers, venue_layers, 'venue layers set');
+    var venue_layers = ['venue'];
+    t.deepEqual(clean.layers, venue_layers, 'venue layers set');
     t.end();
   });
 
   test('coarse (alias) layer', function(t) {
-    var admin_layers = ['admin0','admin1','admin2','neighborhood','locality','local_admin'];
     var raw = { layers: 'coarse' };
     var clean = {};
 
     sanitize(raw, clean);
 
-    t.deepEqual(clean.types.from_layers, admin_layers, 'coarse layers set');
+    var admin_layers = [ 'continent', 'macrocountry', 'country', 'dependency',
+    'region', 'locality', 'localadmin', 'county', 'macrohood', 'neighbourhood',
+    'microhood', 'disputed', 'admin0', 'admin1', 'admin2', 'neighborhood', 'local_admin' ];
+
+    t.deepEqual(clean.layers, admin_layers, 'coarse layers set');
     t.end();
   });
 
-  test('address (alias) layer', function(t) {
-    var address_layers = ['osmaddress','openaddresses'];
+  test('address layer', function(t) {
     var raw = { layers: 'address' };
     var clean = {};
 
     sanitize(raw, clean);
 
-    t.deepEqual(clean.types.from_layers, address_layers, 'address layers set');
+    t.deepEqual(clean.layers, ['address'], 'address layer set');
     t.end();
   });
 
   test('venue alias layer plus regular layers', function(t) {
-    var venue_layers = ['geoname','osmnode','osmway'];
-    var reg_layers = ['admin0', 'admin1'];
     var raw = { layers: 'venue,country,region' };
     var clean = {};
 
     sanitize(raw, clean);
 
-    t.deepEqual(clean.types.from_layers, venue_layers.concat(reg_layers), 'venue + regular layers');
+    var expected_layers = ['venue', 'country', 'admin0', 'region', 'admin1'];
+    t.deepEqual(clean.layers, expected_layers, 'venue + regular layers');
     t.end();
   });
 
   test('coarse alias layer plus regular layers', function(t) {
-    var admin_layers = ['admin0','admin1','admin2','neighborhood','locality','local_admin'];
-    var reg_layers   = ['geoname', 'osmnode', 'osmway'];
-
-    var raw = { layers: 'coarse,venue,country' };
+    var raw = { layers: 'coarse,country' };
     var clean = {};
 
     sanitize(raw, clean);
 
-    t.deepEqual(clean.types.from_layers, admin_layers.concat(reg_layers), 'coarse + regular layers set');
+    var expected_layers = [ 'continent', 'macrocountry', 'country', 'dependency',
+    'region', 'locality', 'localadmin', 'county', 'macrohood', 'neighbourhood',
+    'microhood', 'disputed', 'admin0', 'admin1', 'admin2', 'neighborhood', 'local_admin' ];
+
+    t.deepEqual(clean.layers, expected_layers, 'coarse + regular layers set');
     t.end();
   });
 
   test('address alias layer plus regular layers', function(t) {
-    var address_layers = ['osmaddress','openaddresses'];
-    var reg_layers   = ['admin0', 'locality'];
-
     var raw = { layers: 'address,country,locality' };
     var clean = {};
 
     sanitize(raw, clean);
 
-    t.deepEqual(clean.types.from_layers, address_layers.concat(reg_layers), 'address + regular layers set');
+    var expected_layers = ['address', 'country', 'admin0', 'locality' ];
+    t.deepEqual(clean.layers, expected_layers, 'address + regular layers set');
     t.end();
   });
 
   test('alias layer plus regular layers (no duplicates)', function(t) {
-    var venue_layers = ['geoname','osmnode','osmway','admin0'];
     var raw = { layers: 'venue,country' };
     var clean = {};
 
     sanitize(raw, clean);
 
-    t.deepEqual(clean.types.from_layers, venue_layers, 'venue layers found (no duplicates)');
+    var expected_layers = ['venue', 'country', 'admin0'];
+    t.deepEqual(clean.layers, expected_layers, 'venue layers found (no duplicates)');
     t.end();
   });
 
   test('multiple alias layers (no duplicates)', function(t) {
-    var alias_layers = ['geoname','osmnode','osmway','admin0','admin1','admin2','neighborhood','locality','local_admin'];
     var raw = { layers: 'venue,coarse' };
     var clean = {};
 
     sanitize(raw, clean);
 
-    t.deepEqual(clean.types.from_layers, alias_layers, 'all layers found (no duplicates)');
+    var coarse_layers = [ 'continent', 'macrocountry',
+      'country', 'dependency', 'region', 'locality', 'localadmin',
+      'county', 'macrohood', 'neighbourhood', 'microhood',
+      'disputed', 'admin0', 'admin1', 'admin2', 'neighborhood', 'local_admin'];
+
+    var venue_layers = [ 'venue' ];
+    var expected_layers = venue_layers.concat(coarse_layers);
+    t.deepEqual(clean.layers, expected_layers, 'all layers found (no duplicates)');
     t.end();
   });
 };
diff --git a/test/unit/sanitiser/_sources.js b/test/unit/sanitiser/_sources.js
index d2ef405f..61b2be90 100644
--- a/test/unit/sanitiser/_sources.js
+++ b/test/unit/sanitiser/_sources.js
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 var type_mapping = require('../../../helper/type_mapping');
-var sanitize = require( '../../../sanitiser/_targets' )('sources', type_mapping.source_to_type);
+var sanitize = require( '../../../sanitiser/_targets' )('sources', type_mapping.source_mapping);
 
 var success_messages = { error: false };
 
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ module.exports.tests.no_sources = function(test, common) {
 
     var messages = sanitize(req.query, req.clean);
 
-    t.deepEqual(req.clean.types, {}, 'clean.types should be empty object');
+    t.equal(req.clean.sources, undefined, 'no sources should be defined');
     t.deepEqual(messages.errors, [], 'no error returned');
     t.deepEqual(messages.warnings, [], 'no warnings returned');
     t.end();
@@ -29,11 +29,11 @@ module.exports.tests.no_sources = function(test, common) {
     };
 
     var expected_error = 'sources parameter cannot be an empty string. ' +
-       'Valid options: gn,geonames,oa,openaddresses,qs,quattroshapes,osm,openstreetmap';
+       'Valid options: osm,oa,gn,qs,wof,openstreetmap,openaddresses,geonames,quattroshapes,whosonfirst';
 
     var messages = sanitize(req.query, req.clean);
 
-    t.deepEqual(req.clean.types, {}, 'clean.types should be empty object');
+    t.equal(req.clean.sources, undefined, 'no sources should be defined');
     t.deepEqual(messages.errors.length, 1, 'error returned');
     t.deepEqual(messages.errors[0], expected_error, 'error returned');
     t.deepEqual(messages.warnings, [], 'no warnings returned');
@@ -52,27 +52,24 @@ module.exports.tests.valid_sources = function(test, common) {
 
     var messages = sanitize(req.query, req.clean);
 
-    t.deepEqual(req.clean.types, { from_sources: ['geoname'] }, 'clean.types should contain from_source entry with geonames');
+    t.deepEqual(req.clean.sources, ['geonames'], 'sources should contain geonames');
     t.deepEqual(messages.errors, [], 'no error returned');
     t.deepEqual(messages.warnings, [], 'no warnings returned');
 
     t.end();
   });
 
-  test('openstreetmap source', function(t) {
+  test('openstreetmap (abbreviated) source', function(t) {
     var req = {
       query: {
-        sources: 'openstreetmap'
+        sources: 'osm'
       },
       clean: { }
     };
-    var expected_types = {
-      from_sources: ['osmaddress', 'osmnode', 'osmway']
-    };
 
     var messages = sanitize(req.query, req.clean);
 
-    t.deepEqual(req.clean.types, expected_types, 'clean.types should contain from_source entry with multiple entries for openstreetmap');
+    t.deepEqual(req.clean.sources, ['openstreetmap'], 'abbreviation is expanded to full version');
     t.deepEqual(messages.errors, [], 'no error returned');
     t.deepEqual(messages.warnings, [], 'no warnings returned');
     t.end();
@@ -85,14 +82,11 @@ module.exports.tests.valid_sources = function(test, common) {
       },
       clean: { }
     };
-    var expected_types = {
-      from_sources: ['osmaddress', 'osmnode', 'osmway', 'openaddresses']
-    };
 
     var messages = sanitize(req.query, req.clean);
 
-    t.deepEqual(req.clean.types, expected_types,
-                'clean.types should contain from_source entry with multiple entries for openstreetmap and openadresses');
+    t.deepEqual(req.clean.sources, ['openstreetmap', 'openaddresses'],
+                'clean.sources should contain openstreetmap and openadresses');
     t.deepEqual(messages.errors, [], 'no error returned');
     t.deepEqual(messages.warnings, [], 'no warnings returned');
     t.end();
@@ -109,7 +103,8 @@ module.exports.tests.invalid_sources = function(test, common) {
     };
     var expected_messages = {
       errors: [
-        '\'notasource\' is an invalid sources parameter. Valid options: gn,geonames,oa,openaddresses,qs,quattroshapes,osm,openstreetmap'
+        '\'notasource\' is an invalid sources parameter. ' +
+        'Valid options: osm,oa,gn,qs,wof,openstreetmap,openaddresses,geonames,quattroshapes,whosonfirst'
       ],
       warnings: []
     };
@@ -117,7 +112,7 @@ module.exports.tests.invalid_sources = function(test, common) {
     var messages = sanitize(req.query, req.clean);
 
     t.deepEqual(messages, expected_messages, 'error with message returned');
-    t.deepEqual(req.clean.types, { }, 'clean.types should remain empty');
+    t.equal(req.clean.sources, undefined, 'clean.sources should remain empty');
     t.end();
   });
 };
diff --git a/test/unit/sanitiser/_text.js b/test/unit/sanitiser/_text.js
index 8bc0710f..3868c86c 100644
--- a/test/unit/sanitiser/_text.js
+++ b/test/unit/sanitiser/_text.js
@@ -15,7 +15,6 @@ module.exports.tests.text_parser = function(test, common) {
 
     t.deepEquals(messages.errors, [], 'no errors');
     t.deepEquals(messages.warnings, [], 'no warnings');
-    t.equal(clean.types.from_text_parser, type_mapping.layer_with_aliases_to_type.coarse, 'coarse layers preferred');
 
     t.end();
   });
diff --git a/test/unit/sanitiser/place.js b/test/unit/sanitiser/place.js
index f7cda1e9..dd9d1645 100644
--- a/test/unit/sanitiser/place.js
+++ b/test/unit/sanitiser/place.js
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 var place  = require('../../../sanitiser/place'),
     sanitize = place.sanitize,
     middleware = place.middleware,
-    defaultClean = { ids: [ { id: '123', types: [ 'geoname' ] } ], private: false };
+    defaultClean = { ids: [ { source: 'geonames', layer: 'venue', id: '123' } ], private: false };
 
 // these are the default values you would expect when no input params are specified.
 module.exports.tests = {};
diff --git a/test/unit/sanitiser/reverse.js b/test/unit/sanitiser/reverse.js
index 4e727b5b..a55568e8 100644
--- a/test/unit/sanitiser/reverse.js
+++ b/test/unit/sanitiser/reverse.js
@@ -11,15 +11,13 @@ var reverse  = require('../../../sanitiser/reverse'),
                       'boundary.circle.lat': 0,
                       'boundary.circle.lon': 0,
                       'boundary.circle.radius': parseFloat(defaults['boundary:circle:radius']),
-                      types: {
-                      },
                       size: 10,
                       private: false
                     };
 
 // these are the default values you would expect when no input params are specified.
 // @todo: why is this different from $defaultClean?
-var emptyClean = { private: false, size: 10, types: {} };
+var emptyClean = { private: false, size: 10 };
 
 module.exports.tests = {};
 
@@ -38,7 +36,8 @@ module.exports.tests.interface = function(test, common) {
 
 module.exports.tests.sanitisers = function(test, common) {
   test('check sanitiser list', function (t) {
-    var expected = ['singleScalarParameters', 'layers', 'sources', 'size', 'private', 'geo_reverse', 'boundary_country'];
+    var expected = ['singleScalarParameters', 'layers', 'sources',
+      'sources_and_layers', 'size', 'private', 'geo_reverse', 'boundary_country'];
     t.deepEqual(Object.keys(reverse.sanitiser_list), expected);
     t.end();
   });
@@ -104,7 +103,7 @@ module.exports.tests.sanitize_lon = function(test, common) {
       var req = { query: { 'point.lat': 0, 'point.lon': lon } };
 
       // @todo: why is lat set?
-      var expected = { 'point.lat': 0, private: false, size: 10, types: {} };
+      var expected = { 'point.lat': 0, private: false, size: 10 };
       sanitize(req, function(){
         t.equal(req.errors[0], 'missing param \'point.lon\'', 'longitude is a required field');
         t.deepEqual(req.clean, expected, 'clean only has default values set');
diff --git a/test/unit/sanitiser/search.js b/test/unit/sanitiser/search.js
index b00160dd..d42d87f4 100644
--- a/test/unit/sanitiser/search.js
+++ b/test/unit/sanitiser/search.js
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ var extend = require('extend'),
     middleware = search.middleware,
     defaultError = 'invalid param \'text\': text length, must be >0';
 // these are the default values you would expect when no input params are specified.
-var emptyClean = { private: false, size: 10, types: {} };
+var emptyClean = { private: false, size: 10 };
 
 module.exports.tests = {};
 
@@ -24,7 +24,8 @@ module.exports.tests.interface = function(test, common) {
 
 module.exports.tests.sanitisers = function(test, common) {
   test('check sanitiser list', function (t) {
-    var expected = ['singleScalarParameters', 'text', 'size', 'layers', 'sources', 'private', 'geo_search', 'boundary_country' ];
+    var expected = ['singleScalarParameters', 'text', 'size', 'layers', 'sources',
+      'sources_and_layers', 'private', 'geo_search', 'boundary_country' ];
     t.deepEqual(Object.keys(search.sanitiser_list), expected);
     t.end();
   });