Breville Aqua Fountain > Reviews (6)

---------Just a little background…….--------------

…….there's got to be an easier way…….i remember muttering half way across my local supermarket car park with a trolley that was so heavy it needed power steering to move it. OK, it had been a particularly bad day, my trolley had one of those dodgy wheels where you just find yourself turning left all the time and end up embarrassingly going around in circles while trying to stay cool and collected. Just previous to that, the same day, a lady had reversed into my car door and left me with something to remember her car by (don't even get me started on that one, trust me!). I'm generally a happy tolerant kind of person, but today it was stretched…..to the absolute limit……

Anyway, the point of all this is that it occurred to me that part of the reason why the trolley was so heavy was the amount of bottled water in it, it resembled a well on wheels. With frequent gym trips, a generally active way of life and through health advice, substantial amounts of water are consumed in a week. We're advised to drink around 2 litres a day, and ideally more if exercising.

I first came across the Breville Aqua Fountain because my friend has one. She said that days of carting litres of bottled water home in the supermarket trolley had gone. I was intrigued…..

---------Why not just out a tap?------------

To be honest I always used to drink tap water, and still think in theory there's nothing wrong with that. But once you've started to drink bottled water, you do kind of notice the taste of chlorine in tap water more. Also, I always remember reading an article that described how tap water could contain chlorine, lime scale, maybe even particles of lead and other metals in it.

------OK, so how does the Breville Aqua Fountain Work?-------

Right, the actually chiller is Breville, however it uses Brita Maxtra Filters. These filters are claimed to have the ability for removal of chlorine, lime scale, organic impurities and some metals such as lead and copper.

It was extremely easy to set-up and the instructions were clear. It's ready to just 'plug in and go'. No fiddly plumbing-in or anything.

The aqua fountain has two 'chamber' like compartments in the top. You simply lift up the large lid on the top chamber and pour tap water into the top chamber. This then filters through the Brita Maxtra filter, removing impurities along the way, and filters through to the second chamber below it. Once in this second 'lower' chamber, it is then possible for the water to be chilled down to 8 deg Celsius. Once the flip-lid is closed, the water is kind of air-tight so very hygienic too. I've found that to chill a litre of water, it would generally take around 2/3 hours.

---------and capacity……..?---------------
I understand that the stainless steel aqua fountain that I own has a capacity for 3 litres, 1 litre is chilled and filtered.

---------So the waters in, how do you get it out?----------
This is the good bit…..there's a kind of lever you put your glass against to push it back towards the machine.

This then dispenses the chilled filtered water into your glass. It's reasonably fast, with no spills or drips.

--------Looks-----------
I'm kind of attracted to the minimalistic, minimum clutter style of kitchen, so this fits in perfectly. The chillers are available in either stainless steel or white plastic. I opted for the stainless steel option. The piece de resistance has to be the blue illumination when its turned on. The blue lights up the upper chambers of the aqua fountain.

---------How easy is it to use?-----------
This is the really great thing, there's just one switch on the front of it to turn it on and off. It's a big switch so very easy to use. Once you press the switch it illuminates the kind of 'electric' blue in the top 'chamber'.

The Maxtra filters are good but need changing to ensure the water is filtered for optimum removal of potentially 'not nice' substances. To find out when the filter needs to be changed, on the top of the aqua fountain there is an indicator that is easy to understand. This indicates when it's recommended to be changed. I usually wash the chambers out at the same time too while its apart. Only one filter is used at a time.

Changing the filter is easy, you simply drain the fountain of water by either dispensing into your glass or by removing and emptying the chambers. The chambers just lift off, no clips to undo or anything. Then lift out the filter and slot in the new one. Easy. This only needs to be changed about once every 3 or 4 weeks.

-------Cost of it-----------
The Breville aqua fountain prices range quite dramatically actually, but it largely depends on the colour you choose. I've noticed a stainless steel one for £75.00 (from amazon), but a white one for around £57.00 (also from amazon). Cartridges are approximately £10.00 for 3, although I've noticed Argos currently have a 6 pack of Brita Maxtra Cartridges for £15.99.

--------In summary……-----------
Basically in summary this is an extremely useful freestanding water chiller and filter combined. It's hygienic and easy to use. It looks attractive and I've had no problems with it what so ever. From the experience that I have had, I would definitely recommend this product. Maybe this would make a good, even practical, Christmas present…..

Thanks for reading this review, I hope it helps.

~Sarah~