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[yellowtractor]

OK, a strange but serious question, all spiders, abecedarian philology, and UFO's aside.  I drink a lot of carbonated water, for various reasons (the number one being that I like it).  But I hate buying seltzer water at the supermarket, because of the waste in packaging; even with recycling the plastic bottles, it seems a shame.

I know there are various water carbonators on the market (try Googling "carbonated water maker") that one can purchase for home use.  Does anyone have any experience with such things?  Pros?  Cons?  Recommendations?

[svenc]

The iSi soda siphons are nice.  I have one and use it regularly.

[magistra]

How much does it cost?  Do you have to replace them ever?

Good thread, YT!  I've been saving up bottles for recycling -- I have to take them to the next town -- and it's rather astonishing how much diet coke and seltzer I go through in a month.  I have bottles everywhere.

[systeme_d_]

My dad loves seltzer water, so my parents have one.  It's a huge 2 liter size.  I googled and found the brand, which is Liss.

http://www.prairiemoon.biz/li2listsebo.html

[wegie]

It really depends on your home water supply. Our friends in Germany have glorious water that comes down from the Alps: just add bubbles. Here, we have London water, which tastes and smells of a variety of chemicals: unsurprisingly we buy Badoit and San Pellegrino by the truck load. On the plus side, courtesy of the local council, we have a large plastic bottle recycling bin in the back yard.

The only bits you have to replace in a carbonator are the C02 cartridges, which are good for about 60 to 80 litres of use. Extensive field testing with our friends' toddler has shown that the bottles used in the carbonator are pretty much indestructible.

[sympathetic]

I can't believe this is what gets me to delurk...

I have a SodaClub carbonator, and I absolutely love it.  You can check them out here:  http://www.sodaclubusa.com/zipcheck.asp

The SodaClub carbonator comes with reusable bottles, the cartridges will carbonate about 60 liters each, and the CO2 cartridges are also exchangable, cutting down on the waste even further.

Also, if you ever get the flavored seltzer, SodaClub also sells the essences to make that.  Just... beware the berry.

[prytania3]

Welcome to the fora, Sympathetic! Glad you delurked.

Back on topic. I had no idea you could buy these things for home use.

[spectacle]

Back on topic. I had no idea you could buy these things for home use.

Me neither!  And the amount I spend on store-bought seltzer is obscene.  I'm really excited about this.

[high_energy_photons]

We had one of these when I was a kid.  I loved being able to vary the amount of carbonation.  I used it to make sodas, using fruit concentrates.  Orange soda with real concentrate is astonishingly good.  We had ours for years, until we got tired of it.  It never broke, surprisingly.  The carbon dioxide cartridges lasted a long while, and the carbonated water was incredibly versatile.  I think it is a good investment if you drink a large amount of carbonated beverages of any kind.

[prof_smartypants]

I had one of the isi ones on my wedding registry (at williams sonoma), but no one bought it. I still covet it a little.

Are there some models that use cheaper CO2 cartridges than others?

[norvell]

You should move to Soda Springs, ID. You can go down the street to the well and dip your own. I remember driving through there on vacations as a kid and bringing Coolaid to mix with the natural soda water for a special travel-treat.

[svenc]

How much does it cost?  Do you have to replace them ever?

The iSi ones cost around $50 for a one liter one, and are nearly indestructible.  These are the style that require a small CO2 cartridge for every batch, however.  The cost is probably $.40 - $.50 cents per batch.

Some of the other systems mentioned here are pricier, but you use a larger multi-use CO2 container instead of the single-shot cartridges.

[collegekidsmom]

We used to buy a lot of seltzer, and drink it plain, mix it with juice, etc. We have saved a lot by filtering tap water through a Brita filter jug and then making it into seltzer. The only issue is with the honking sound the thing makes. It tastes the same, and now free seltzer made out of tap water. So easy-no problem-less carting all the bottles from the grocery store and throwing so much out in recycling. It's a good thing.

[biomancer]

I looked at several carbonation systems as my husband and I like to drink fruit juice cut with seltzer, but I was bothered that most came with plastic bottles that could not be sanitized adequately.   I recall that the SodaClub uses polycarbonate bottles (or did when I looked at it a year ago, which won't survive long if I run them through the sanitizing heat temperature of my dishwasher.  Does the iSi system use glass?

[wegie]

Biomancer, you need a Penguin!