Home Carbonating Water and the Environment

The negative ecological effect caused by transport vehicles and their exhaust fumes.

Water that is transported and sold all around the world is usually in plastic bottles and even tastes the same.

The water that is present all over the world simply evaporates and falls back on earth in the form of rain. While water in our own tap hardly costs anything, the water industry has managed to supply the same water in bottles at exorbitant rates.

Although we have the same water in our taps, we still end up buying water from stores just because we are deceived to think that bottled water is superior.

Enormous energy wastage

In addition to paying a higher price for bottled water, we also end up contributing towards increasing greenhouse gases that take a toll on the environment by… 

  • The process involving the manufacture and transportation of not only bottles but also labels, pallets, capsules and cartons.
  • Transporting bottles from the factory warehouses to various wholesalers that re-pack them and further transport it to many retailers including supermarkets.
  • Customers that now need to drive up to these retailers to buy such water to drink it and then discard the empty plastic bottles. The empty bottles have to be transported to landfills and are often burnt, which in turn releases deadly toxic fumes.

This entire process of manufacturing, transporting and burning plastic bottles affects the atmosphere inversely by releasing toxic fumes and contributing negatively to the green house effect. At the end of the day you have only purchased water that is simply available in your own home tap, and which is anyway regularly checked for quality.

A soda machine does not consume electricity and hence requires no energy. The machine too can last for years on end even as the canisters and empty bottles are simply reused again and again. Anyway, only 30grams of sparkling water flavor is all that is needed to flavor 15 liters if carbonated water.

As you have seen from the above, bottled water is simply too energy inefficient when compared with home carbonated water.

Raw materials required for bottled water.

Bottled water requires disposable bottles, labels, cartons, capsules and labels that just waste the meager resources at out disposal, while even disposable bottles have a short span of life. Water from natural springs is also vanishing at an alarming rate.

Creation of garbage

You can surely put an end to most of you garbage as carbonation can be done using the same machine and bottle for almost around 10 years, and you might only need to purchase aroma bottles from time to time. Compare that with bottled water where you sincerely have to dispose each bottle in garbage bags. These bottles are then stored until they are re-distributed or simply burnt, which in turn releases toxic gas into the atmosphere.

Article source: https://mysodawater.com/home-carbonating-water-and-the-environment/

Home Carbonating Soda Machine by Sodastream

You can carbonate your own mineral water with Sodastream. An Englishman by the name of “Guy Gilbrey” invented the Sodastream systems in 1903 and this home carbonating system became very famous in the 70’s and 80’s. Sodastream faced a lot of competition from soft drink manufacturers that came up with low-priced drinks in PET bottles of 1.5 liters. However, Sodastream bounced back with a combination of many factors:

  • People became much more health conscious and wanted to avoid excess sugar.
  • Rather than buying costly pre-carbonated drinks or readymade soft drinks, one could easily make carbonated water at home at a very low cost.
  • Some processes used by soft drink manufacturers are not good for the environment. A lot of water is used up by soft drink manufacturers that could easily be utilized in a better way. A lot of Carbon dioxide is released in the air by trucks that transport the soft drinks from the manufacturer to the retailer. Bottles are also not effectively recycled by some countries.
  • No need to recycle plastic bottles as carbonated water is made right at home.
  • As more and more people become obese across western countries, many people have started looking at healthier alternatives.
  • When compared to a soft drink bottle that costs $1 or even more, carbonated water works out to be a cheaper choice at just a few cents per liter.

 Many carbonation machines including Sodastream have now come of age. It makes more sense to carbonate water at home than to buy carbonated drinks at the store. You do not have to lug heavy bottles or cans from the store and return them when they are empty. In addition, you help save the environment and the low price of carbonic acid too helps you save money. The biggest advantage is the wide range of fruity flavors and aromas made by Aromhuset that you can use with many soda machines including Sodastream or even with carbonated water that you may have purchased.

Flavored carbonated water has reached new heights due to the efforts of many Swedish producers. Simply put, flavored carbonated water tastes refreshingly better than the unflavored variety. You now have a choice of carbonating water at home and can also decide on the level of carbonic acid to be added to the water depending on your tastes. While there are many different flavors to choose from, children usually prefer Toffee, Strawberry and Banana. As regular sodas contain around 10% sugar (for example, 150 grams of sugar are present in a 1.5 liter soda bottle) you can simply imagine the health benefits that you can get by switching to carbonated water made at home.

You can also create your own custom-flavors such as “apple and lemon” or “passion-fruit and blackcurrant” by mixing flavors. You can try out hundreds of combinations if you get tired of stock flavors. Anyway, you will never tire of the original flavors due to the wide choice available. Even if you are on a low-carbohydrate diet, or Atkins diet, or GI diet or even if you suffer from diabetes, you can still enjoy the different flavors of this low-cost drink. Sodastream has 3 to 4 different models including their Jet Limited Edition.

Sodastream Jet
Sodastream Design
Sodastream Jet Limited Edition
Sodastream Pure

The Sodastream Design is one outstanding machine since its design is unique and its features are simply superb, thus ranking it above other Sodastream machines. This machine also allows you to mix the right level of carbon dioxide so as to suit your specific tastes.   

Sodastream has one more similar machine known as SodaMaster that it sells in some countries, which does not have carbonic acid containers. This machine sells only because it is priced low. The cartridges used in Sodastream machines are constructed out of aluminum and are known as Alco2Jet and carbonic acid is transported in them. These containers can be attached to all Sodastream machines.

You should preferably keep two containers of Alco2Jet so that while one container is being used the other one can be re-filled. This will ensure that even if one container is being re-filled the other one will still allow you to enjoy flavored carbonated water.

Carbonating your water with Sodastream

You can easily carbonate plain drinking water to get fresh mineral water. Aromhuset’s wide range of flavors and aromas that are available in 30ml bottles can now be used to give flavor to around 15 liters of your carbonated water. This size is perfect for your home needs and you will never get tired of the wonderful taste.

Article source: https://mysodawater.com/home-carbonating-soda-machine-by-sodastream/

Soda Water

Joseph Priestly was the chemist who invented soda water

Soda water has become a million dollar industry. It has gained fan following around the world. There are so many variants you can find which are popular among people of all ages. You would surely be interested in knowing “who invented soda water?” It was Joseph Priestly who gave this gift to us. The first instance of soda water or carbonated water is the mineral water found naturally.
Scientists wondered what made water bubble. Initially it was thought that the medicinal properties in water were the cause. Further research however showed it to be caused due to carbon dioxide that is mixed with water when it flows from several layers of minerals in the ground.

Joseph Priestly worked with a church initially but later his interest grew in experimenting. He was considered an unorthodox philosopher. He was the first chemist to prove that oxygen was essential for combustion. He has to his credit the discovery of ammonia, sulfur dioxide, nitrous oxide and rubber pencil eraser.

Joseph Priestly noted in 1772 that air on top of a beer vat could be injected into water. He had already noted earlier that mice suspended in this air died. However, he went ahead and decided to flavor water with it. He offered it to his friends as a pleasant drink. It was loved by most because of its tangy and refreshing taste.

The process of mixing the gas which is carbon dioxide gas to water is carbonation. That’s how carbonated water was discovered. Priestly was introduced in French Academy of Sciences for this invention. In 1772 Priestly published a paper “Impregnating water with Fixed Air”. In it he described how dripping oil of vitriol (i.e. sulfuric acid) on chalk produced carbon dioxide gas. He also mentions dissolving the gas into an agitated bowl of water.

In 1771 it was Torbern Bergman who independently tried to create carbonated water from chalk and sulfuric acid to get effervescence like natural spring water. At that time mineral water was considered to be beneficial to health.

In 18th century a Hungarian, Anyos Jedlik invented the consumable soda water. He was the one who built the first carbonated water factory in Budapest. Since then soda water or carbonated water is being made by passing pressurized carbon dioxide through water.

The name soda water came into use around 1798 and was in use in the US until the World War II. It was also called as two cents plain during the Great Depression as it was the cheapest drink available at the fountain. In 1819 Samuel Fahnestock patented the first soda fountain. In 1835 the first bottled soda water was available in US. Later in 1886 and 1898 came the very popular Coca-Cola and Pepsi-cola brands respectively.

In the 1950’s, new terms, Sparkling water and Seltzer water came into use. The name Seltzer comes from the German town of Selters where naturally carbonated water is available and is commercially bottled and shipped around the world.

Over decades there have been several modification or additions to soda water that was invented by Joseph Priestley. What we enjoy now as soda water, sparkling water, seltzer water, tonic water, soft drinks and many more names is all thanks to his first attempt at creating the refreshing drink by passing carbon dioxide gas in agitated water.

Article source: https://mysodawater.com/

Why are home-made machines used? Just to lower the cost of carbonic acid.

Since most companies supply 5, 10 or even 15 kilos of carbonic acid for the same price, it works out to be almost free. In other words, you really pay mostly for the effort put in to re-fill the bottles along with a small mark-up. A 3-6 kilogram bottle that is normally used by restaurants and small businesses costs around 20 Euros to re-fill and this translates into just a few cents for each liter of carbonated drink that is produced.

 Carbonic acid bought by you for your soda machine is very cheap and costs around 10 Euros for each re-fill and the resultant average is even less than 20 cents a liter. You can quickly notice that when you compare it with soft drinks that you purchase, this method works out to be extremely cost-effective. On the other hand if you compare it with large acid bottles, 10 Euros for each re-fill or an excess of 20 Euros per kilogram of carbonic acid is surely very costly.

 Hence, many people realize that this pricing is too expensive and try to use larger canisters after making their own soda machines.

 Since soda machine manufacturers want to protect their golden goose at all costs, they make the customers sign various legal documents including contracts so as to retain their monopoly over re-filling their own bottles. Unfortunately, they could have instead increased the sale of their machines many times over if they simply allowed customers to re-fill their bottles anywhere they desired.

 In the 80’s Partyman in Malmo, Sweden used to provide re-fills free to customers that bought 3 bottles of aroma. These re-fills were supplied to Partyman by Sydbrand at nominal rates. Unfortunately for Sydbrand, they were sued by Sodastream that claimed infringement of their trademark and this resulted in several years of costly litigation.

 Even in present times, each soda machine manufacturer makes sure that their customers re-fill their branded canister only through them and use legal ways of preventing customers from rushing anywhere else, although it hardly takes more than 20 seconds to re-fill a bottle in any store. One business store tried the same method in Germany and got rewarded with an attack by Sodastream, which was also known as Soda Club in Germany.

 The legal battle was however lost by Soda Club or rather, Sodastream, which in a bid to stop minimum competition has actually opened the gates of fully free competition. If one goes by the present EU legislation then the result should be free and fair competition all over the EU countries. However, this can only happen when a company dares to take on the might of Sodastream or when authorities decide to take heed of complaints from consumers and take stern action against the company.

 This will entice people to shift from making their own soda-making contraptions at home and instead tempt them to use the superb machines presently available in the market including the Sodastream Design by Sodastream, or Wassermaxx. If carbonic acid is allowed to be re-filled from bigger bottles or by connecting big canisters right to their soda machines then the cost of the acid too will drop down.

Article source: https://mysodawater.com/why-are-home-made-machines-used-just-to-lower-the-cost-of-carbonic-acid/

Home Water Carbonating Machines Luxury Models

A wide range of carbonating machines with and without cooling systems is readily available to be fitted into your kitchen. Machines that do not sport a cooling system are usually insufficient in providing the right mix of carbonated water and rather than ending up disappointed, it is better to always test the machine or unit before making your choice.

Machines and units that sport cooling systems look very professional and also work excellently. Your cold water mains are hooked into the unit and the carbonated water is available on a continuous basis from a tap. Such machines use very little acid as the carbonation process is inline and the carbonic acid too remains in the water. The carbonation level can be easily set by you including setting it directly on the tap itself.

One outstanding feature regarding these machines or units is the facility to allow big canisters of carbonated dioxide to be directly connected to them. The result is an astonishingly low price of 4 cents per liter of sparkling water produced. Such a machine can easily back for itself within 4 years depending on your consumption and the model that you purchase. Aromhuset flavors that are supplied world wide from allfreightfree.com can easily be used to provide flavor to the carbonated water.

With an affordable price of 1,500 Euros for a luxury model, many people opt for such top units for their new kitchen. The kitchen value is also enhanced by the presence of a handle or a tap for supplying cold carbonated water and some customers buy such units only for that added luxury.

Here are some links that will lead you to various luxury models:

  • Soda Master
  • Beerbar
  • Selecta
  • Escova
  • Aquabar

Article source: https://mysodawater.com/home-water-carbonating-machines-luxury-models/

How to re-fill Smaller Home Carbonating Water Machine Carbon Dioxide Canisters from Bigger CO2 Bottles?

If you want information on how to re-fill at home, then visit https://www.bordsvatten.com/kolsyrefyllning/adapter-for-egen-kolsyrefyllning-kops-pa-internet-20/ and simply utilize the translation script provided on that page.

You can observe the carbon dioxide bottles to check the contents when they are usually full. For older models of Sodastream that are in grey colored canisters, it is 300 grams and for newer machines it is usually 425 grams. You will have to empty out the bottle totally and keep it in your freezer for some hours. Once you complete this process, then the smaller bottle should be attached to the larger bottle and weighed on a weighing scale before filling it to its correct weight.

You will require rubber hoses of a high quality as well as a matching valve along with couplings that can handle very high pressure. Anyway, hoses as well as couplings will be required even if you deicide to hook larger bottles directly to your machine.

A good business idea would be to retail these couplings to make your own wine stores. This will allow you to re-fill the bottles that you own or even get them re-filled by stores that re-fill fire extinguishers or carbonic acid used for pubs or fish tanks. You could also turn into a retailer for slightly bigger bottles and even for two to four kilogram re-fills.

Sodastream could be possibly challenged by someone. If one wants a luxury CO2 pump then it will cost around 4300 Euros while a basic model would cost around half. You could use any of these machines to re-fill a carbon dioxide canister within 20 seconds even as the customer waits. Such a business could easily be established without a very heavy investment and you could lease out re-filling machines while you spread out the cost over a year or more.

Other interesting links are:

https://soadahclub.vox.com/
https://www.teamonslaught.fsnet.co.uk/co2_info.htm#FILLL
https://www.kegman.net/refiller.html#all
https://www.kegman.net/5055.html
https://www.kegman.net/refiller.html#5055

Your business itself will not result in lowered prices. AGA owns Wassermaxx and Airliquide that also have their interests spread out in different markets. Even though all these manufacturers look after their own interests first, bottles supplied by one provider cannot be re-filled by another.

But, latest soda machines that incorporate cooling systems along with inline carbonation simply prevents any loss of carbon dioxide and this means that larger CO2 bottles ranging from 2 to 7 kg can easily be used. Buying these new machines thus makes much more sense than buying any flavored drink.

Smaller machines for restaurants can also be used at home. To achieve perfect carbonation you should make sure that the water is cold and it is for this reason that those machines that do not have a cooling system might soon vanish from the market. Even though machines that sport cooling systems are a bit costly, they can carbonate much better than soda machines and the cost of the carbonated water too is extremely reasonable. You can also order different flavors worldwide by logging on to allfreightfree.com.

Carbonated Seltzer Water | Carbonated Water S

Sodastream or Soda Club took a firm stand towards any third party that tried to re-fill any of their carbonic acid bottles in 2006 as they maintained that those bottles continued to be “their” property instead of belonging to the customer that had bought them.

 Unfortunately for them, their stand was rejected by German courts and this could be followed by other European countries too. This business too requires competition not only to lower prices but also to save the environment as bottles should actually be re-filled in any nearby store in a process that hardly lasts 20 seconds. Anyway, home-made sparkling water hardly costs anything as compared to carbonated water bought from stores or even readymade carbonated drinks. There is certainly scope for improvement in this regard.

 Some other interesting facts can be found at:

https://www.bundeskartellamt.de
April 13, 2006

Article source: https://mysodawater.com/how-to-re-fill-smaller-home-carbonating-water-machine-carbon-dioxide-canisters-from-bigger-co2-bottles/

Home Carbonated Water is Cheap to make and Better in taste

You can set the carbonation level to very low or very high. The same is true for the various aromas as you can mix it to suit your own palate.

 The Sparkling Water aromas series by Aromhuset has many products that simply leaves ordinary sodas from local stores far behind. You can also create new flavors by mixing various flavors and this is sure to be loved by kids that love raspberry, banana, and toffee, among other flavors.

There are also other rarer flavors including absinthe and peppermint, which can freshen up your breath. In particular, absinthe has many natural herbs such as anise, wormwood and fennel and makes for superb after food.

 These flavors are much better than readymade sparkling water in terms of taste, quality and accuracy.

 You too can easily create carbonated sparkling water.

 There are many advantages in carbonating your personal sparkling water and flavoring it too.

  • All you need is just carbonic acid to get started.
  • Wide range of flavors.
  • You can set the carbonation level as per your tastes.
  • Taste levels can be set to suit your palate.
  • Much cheaper than readymade products.
  • Environmentally friendly.
  • The water supplied by local water works ensures high quality of water.
  • Excellent taste thanks to a quality product from Aromhuset.

A step up for producers including Sodastream and AGA.

To enjoy the complete benefits of owning a soda machine, aromas for sparkling water are a must. You will never get tired of trying out various flavors as you use them to create excellent carbonated sparkling water and this is one reason why people prefer to make carbonated water in their houses today. On one hand they get saddled with an expensive product that is not as good as the home-made version and on the other, they have to lug the water and the bottles.   

Carbonated water is also an excellent drink for diabetics that cannot drink any beverage that contains sugar. Diabetics can now enjoy a drink that not only tastes good but is also healthy and available in a variety of flavors and aromas.

Article source: https://mysodawater.com/home-carbonated-water-is-cheap-to-make-and-better-in-taste/

Why not simply ban the sale of bottled water from stores?

Authorities can just ban bottled water from stores or should at least display the effort and materials required to produce that bottled water along with the impact on the environment.

Total savings on using home carbonated water

Home carbonated water is very cheap to produce and you can easily make this water in your home or even your work place.

Instead of transporting 55 liters of water from your local supermarket, all you require is 1 kilo of carbonic acid, which translates into just one trip instead of multiple trips. People that have larger bottles will end up re-filling around once in a year or even less since carbonic acid is simply a preservative and can last for years to come.

Minimal trips will also need to be taken to your supermarket as if you keep 2 canisters of carbonic acid then you can easily re-fill the unused, empty canister on your next trip to your supermarket.

More room to spare, more time saved and fewer hassles. Whether you have a soda machine of SodaQuick, SodaFresh, Sodastream, Wassermaxx, Sodamaker or anyone else, you will end up saving a lot of time and hassle as you will not need to collect sacks of empty bottles and wait in line in order to recycle them.

Positive effect on the environment. You will certainly feel good that you are not a part of the problem that ends up in polluting the environment by simply transporting bottled water all around the world.

Article source: https://mysodawater.com/why-not-simply-ban-the-sale-of-bottled-water-from-stores/

Aromas used to flavor carbonated water

Aromas that flavor carbonated water as assessed by me.

 Sodastream Mywater is available in glass bottles of 100ml equipped with droppers, but these usually come with many problems such as…

  • The flow of the aroma liquid out of the bottle is very poor as it is quite thick.
  • You cannot squeeze the liquid out of the bottle since it is made of glass.
  • Alternatively, you can get rid of the dropper by using a knife and replace it with a syringe or keep the bottle in an inverted position for some time while waiting for the drops to emerge.
  • The taste of the liquid itself is very mild and even an increased dose is of no use.

 Although Sodastream Mywater Strawberry Lemon is quite all right, the taste resembles more of strawberry wine gum instead of a fruity flavor. Their best flavor is Sodastream lemon.

 Aromhuset aromas are a better alternative as they are available in PET bottles of 30 ml along with droppers. These are much better because…

  • As compared to Sodastream, their droppers are better made and work superbly.
  • You can extract even the last drop of fluid from the bottle by squeezing it.
  • One liter of water can be mixed by taking two-thirds of the capsule and this formula is easy to master. Once you mix around twenty to thirty liters, you will not even be required to calculate it.
  • I propose to sample the many flavors of Aromhuset aromas and come out with my views. I have already tried around half of their flavors and have found that banana, lemon, passion fruit, melon, apple, peach and blackcurrant are fantastic.

Article source: https://mysodawater.com/aromas-used-to-flavor-carbonated-water/