This is an excellent product that does EXACTLY what it says it will do. However, just because it does remove so many contaminants doesn''t necessarily mean your water''s going to taste awesome. There are other factors that go into the taste of water. For instance, I find that Poland Springs water registers about 20-25 on the meter and personally it tastes better to me than my local tap water once it''s been run through this filter and registers 0.
With that said, my tap water definitely tastes much better than it does at its natural reading of about 250! It really is hard to drink when it''s unfiltered, but when it''s filtered it''s a pleasure to drink. Not perfect according to my personal taste, but definitely perfectly drinkable.
I wanted to address a few points others have made:
1. The time it takes to filter yes, it does take awhile to filter. To fill the bottle, you have to fill the top part TWICE and let it filter through. I timed it tonight and it takes about 10-12 minutes to filter one round. So to fill the bottle would take between 20-25 minutes total. Well, once you know this you can usually plan around it. I fill the top once and usually just let it sit while go off and do other things. I try to remember to come back anytime after about 15 minutes and fill it again.
Also, keep in mind that the reason it does take so long is because it''s doing such a thorough job of filtering your water! If it didn''t take as long it wouldn''t be getting your water so clean.
2. One reviewer complained that after about 4 weeks his water began to taste fishy. He also said he didn''t want to change the filter when the TDS meter read 6. He said he was willing to let it go to 150. But the ZeroWater documentation that comes with the filter specifically states that if you don''t change it at just about 6, that the water will begin to taste funny. I called them and asked why and they told me that because at 6 the filter is so full of contaminants that it just starts making newly filtered water taste funny. Because at that point the water is not only going through the filter, but it''s also going through all the contaminants in the filter!
Makes sense. So all the reports you''ve read about water tasting funny are true. But that''s what happens when you use the filter too long. I too thought I wouldn''t mind the TDS (total dissolved solids) level going higher than 6. Because my favorite water Poland Springs was around 25. So I thought I could go to 25. But sure enough the water started tasting ever so slightly funny at 6. I actually let it go to 9 but by that time it really didn''t taste good so I changed the filter. It didn''t taste fishy as some have reported, but it definitely tasted a little funky. The company says that what happens after a TDS level of 6 is reached will vary from water system to water system. For me it might taste funky while for someone else it might taste fishy. It all depends on what''s in your water system to start with and the combination of contaminants that are trapped in the filter.
The good news was that by that point I had already used the filter for about 5 weeks! So that came in at about 60% of what I would have paid for bottled water! So it did save a little money! But the best part is no more carrying heavy cartons of water around! And no more having a thousand little bottles to throw out each week!
By the way when you read some of the reviews that state the filter didn''t last very long that doesn''t really tell you anything unless you know several factors. One, you''d have to know how many people were drinking from it and how much they used. Two, you''d have to know what the TDS level of the water they''re filtering is. If they tell you the filter only lasted 2 weeks and it''s feeding four people and their TDS level is 400, then they''re actually getting really good mileage out of it!
So for your info, my review covers the use of just one person who consumes 1 full Zerowater container a day. And the TDS level of the water I''m filtering is about 250. So if you know the TDS of your water, and how much you would consume, you can compare. If yours is 125 then you could expect to get twice as much use out of each filter.
3. Size of the container and filtering time. The container holds about half a gallon of water. For one person this should be enough for the whole day. For two people or more it seems it would start to be a bit of a hassle keeping it filled. But for one person it''s fine.
One reviewer complained that the size of the filter itself was too big and displaces too much water in the container causing it not to hold as much water as it could. Well, all that is true. However, what he didn''t figure is that the filter has to be large in order to get the TDS level to 0! The little Brita & Pur filters are much smaller, but they do basically nothing! They filter out maybe 25% of the contaminants. This filters out ALL of the dissolved solids. And it''s just the physics of filtering. The larger the filter, the more contaminants it will filter out. People have been really unrealistic and un-knowledgeable in a lot of these reviews.
Due to the physics of filtering, the filter has to be large and therefore the time it takes the water to run through it will be long. And that explains the complaints of some that it''s slow to filter. It''s slow because it''s doing such a thorough job.
As to the complaints that the container should hold more water... I agree. It would be nice if it was larger and held more water. And it probably could be a little bit larger. But at its current size I''ve already seen a few complaints that it''s too big for some refrigerators! If it was any larger it really would be too big. People would start to complain that it takes up all the space in their refrigerators!
Due to the necessary size of the filter, there is a rather large water displacement in the storage container that causes it to hold less water than it otherwise would.
I get around this problem by pouring all the water into an insulated stainless steel pitcher that I got from Starbucks a few years ago. This works great because the pitcher holds the exact same amount the Zerowater container holds. And the pitcher keeps the water cold all day. So while I''m pouring water out of the pitcher into a glass all day, the new fresh container of Zerowater is cooling down in the refrigerator. By the time I''m ready for another pitcher, the Zerowater is nice and cold and ready to go. I fill up the pitcher, and then I fill up the Zerowater container. Works out pretty well.
I read the reviews here before buying and they''re pretty accurate...both the good and not so good. ON THE PLUS SIDE, the Zero does a great job purifying. And it comes with a digital water tester, which has been very helpful. I used the tester to compare the Zero water with my unfiltered tap water, with my old Brita and with a friend''s Pur. The Zero won hands down. Capacity hasn''t been a problem for our small family though, for four or more, it might not do as well. The Zero also has a small tap with a push button to let you pour the already-filtered water while waiting for the rest to come through. The feature is a nice idea.
ON THE DOWN SIDE, Zero is taller than standard pitchers 11" high instead of 10" like my old Brita. The extra inch means I can''t put it on the top shelf of my fridge. It''s worth measuring first. The filter price is also steeper than Brita or Pur but it works better too, so it''s a tradeoff that makes sense. The push-button tap on my first Zero broke after about 50 uses and once it broke, water just leaked out. I had to replace the whole pitcher and no longer use that feature. But the thing that has most disappointed is that the filters don''t always let all of the water through. I''ve found this problem in about 1 out of every 3 filters. Even when I fill it up and leave it over nite, some of the water remains in the top compartment in the morning, despite having lots of room left in the pitcher. It''s happened with new filters from several different lots, so I can''t blame it on anything obvious. It''s why I lowered my rating from 4-stars to 3. I''ll raise it back up if the consistency improves.
I hope the Zero Water folks take some of the Amazon reviewers'' good suggestions into account for their next model. This one shows good potential but needs to get the bugs out before it gets my full recommendation.
Buy ZeroWater ZD-013 8-Cup Pitcher Now
Most of us have had water filtration systems; either the under sink, mounts to faucet, or most commmonly, the filter-in-pitcher system. I saw this on a late night infomercial and was hooked. I will keep this review short and sweet:
Pluses: Nice attractive color, Spigot and valve ON the pitcher so no need to remove the pitcher from the fridge everytime you want some water, Zero-water meter is included (and can be stored IN the pitcher)
Minuses: Capacity could be greater. Filter is so massive that you go through the filtered water QUICKLY, especially if you have a larger family;
AND...the #1 drawback: This pitcher filters VERY SLOWLY. I am used to other Brita-type units and this is the slowest I''ve ever seen. Often when the pitcher is over half-full, and I fill the top reservoir, it doesn''t drain completely after 3-4 HOURS. I have to keep a 1/2 gallon bottle in the refrigerator filled with cold filtered water since this filters so slowly.
So, great concept, water is fantastic, but pitcher filters way too slowly if you have a family larger than 2-3.
Read Best Reviews of ZeroWater ZD-013 8-Cup Pitcher Here
I purchased this as a replacement for a PUR pitcher that did not remove all the taste from my heavily treated city water. The good news is that this pitcher makes great tasting water. It really does taste as good as bottled water, like the advertising says. The bad news is that the pitcher itself is an ergonomic disaster. For starters, it is too tall to fit in my refrigerator. Second, the reservoirs are not the same size, so one must fill the top part a couple of times to get a full pitcher. It is also too easy to spill unfiltered water down the spout to the filtered water. It just does not work very well, which is really a bummer as the filter itself does an outstanding job. Back to the drawing board Zerowater!
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Great product. I was looking for something that would remove flouride that didn''t involve tapping into a water line like reverse osmosis does. I was excited when I found this product and decided to give it a try. The water tastes great and I had no trouble getting a zero TDS reading on the first try. The dispenser at the bottom of the handle allows you to get water from the pitcher without having to even remove it from the fridge very handy. The water does take a bit longer going through the filter than the Brita ones but not unbearably so. I''d highly recommend this product to anyone looking for a easy way to get cleaner water than what you can get from just a carbon filter.
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