4 Gallon Water Cooler Filter Purifier - Save $$$ - Place on Cooler - Transform Tap Water to Healthy Mineral Drinking Water

I was tired of purchasing bottled water and our tap water has a very high mineral content and tastes bad. So in an effort to get my family to drink more water, I purchased the Zen water cooler filter purifier for a water cooler. It is amazing. The water tastes good and we drink gallons more water than we ever did. Even our 3 year old has his cup and will go fill it up when he needs a drink. I recommend this to everyone I know. However, this ISN'T a filter that you just throw all the pieces together and you are ready to go. There were a few things that I didn't prepare for: 1. The directions aren't really clear, and it might take extra time to figure everything out (but it is worth it) 2. Getting the bottle to fit a standard water cooler is tricky, but it will fit. We ended up pulling out the entire no spill aparatus to get ours to work. 3. Each part of the filter needs preparation. The ceramic filter needs soaked, the 4 part filter needs water ran through it, and the rocks for the bottom filter need boiled. 4. They also recommend that you run several full bottles through the system before you drink it. Yes, you want to do that. I also wished I had ran water through the 4 part filter for longer than the recommended 15 minutes. On the upside: 1. The price is reasonable for an excellent product 2. Once you get everything put together, you do not have to do one thing to it except add tap water. 3. You do not have to change filters often. We have had ours for a little over six months and are just getting ready to change out the ceramic filter for the first time (and we have nasty tap water). 4. Filters are reasonably priced 5. No more buying water bottles or bulky water cooler jugs Update 12/9/12: Still very happy with our purchase, hundreds of gallons later.

I did a bit of research before I ordered this system - and I have tried to answer questions that I had here. Hope this helps! I have had my water delivered to me for the last 3 years. I used to drink a lot of diet soda, crystal light etc - and my new personal trainer told me he wants me to start drinking a gallon of water per day. A gallon! What!? Above and beyond the fact I feel like a walking water bed, I realized I would have to up my water delivery to at least 5-6 x 5 gallons a month - which is probably the norm for a family. But for a single person - that is a lot of darn water - and about $50 a month too! (the tap water in Las Vegas is NASTY!) So I did a bit of research and happened upon this Zen water system. $89 - but that would pay for itself if it worked and tasted good etc, right? So I ordered it. It came within 2-3 days. It is easy to set up but you do have to boil the mineral stones for 15 mins and run water through the filters etc for 15 mins. It wasn't until I had finished boiling my rocks (tee hee) that I realized I had mistakenly ordered the DISPENSER model and not the COUNTER TOP one that I had thought I had ordered. I decided to run to the store and buy a ceramic crock dispenser and stand and make do with the dispenser model. 1. I have already done all the boiling. 2. I really have no room on my counter for it anyway so I would have had to go buy a table/stand eventually anyway. The crock and stand cost about $75.00. So even with the additional expense, in 3 months this system will definitely pay for itself - providing the water tastes good. So on day one, I filled the thing up and yes, it is very slow - but isn't that to be expected? The water is making its way through a rock and sediment filtration system. Eventually it will erode a path through it and will start to trickle quicker. My first glass tasted a bit "stoney" shall we say - I don't know how else to describe it, lol. You could taste the mineral stones. So I dumped it out and started again - and the taste is not as strong and definitely getting better the more I drink and the longer water is running through it etc. Right now the water has a slight taste - not a bad one though - just different. I foresee that taste diminishing with time. The water is definitely soft and sort of silky. I am a fussy water drinker and this is definitely drinkable (I am on day 2 at time of writing) A few hours after I set the whole thing up and the crock was filled to the brim, it began to leak. In other words, the floating device at the bottom (the part that is in the crock) was not functioning properly. Ever 'jiggled' a toilet handle because the floating device inside was playing up? I did the same thing. I jiggled the thingy (floating thing) and put the system back on the crock - and have had no leaks and the compartment above the crock is half full now. When I saw I had mistakenly ordered the dispenser model. I scoured the reviews to see what type of dispenser/cooler this would work with. There was not a lot if info. One person said it worked with their ceramic crock - so that is what I got. When I ran to the store I looked at all types of dispensers - and it would work with an electric one if you are able to remove the insert that the bottle slots onto. If you cannot take that part out of your dispenser - it will not fit. I have posted (or plan to post) a photo of my ceramic crock/Zen system - and just be aware that it fits comfortably onto the crock BUT it is not super secure - especially when the system is not full of water. Once it is full and has a bit of weight added to it, it feels more stable. I suppose you could find a rubber ring or something to place around the mouth of the crock to provide more purchase for your system. I only point this out if you have kids or large dogs. Mine is in a corner and is quite stable. Anyway, it is still early days yet and if I change my mind about the system as I live with it longer, I will update this post. Giving it 4 stars for now - may up it to 5 with time. UPDATE: Had this system for about 2 weeks now - and I LOVE it! I have upped my rating to 5. The water tastes dee-lish and this is going to save me heaps of money if it lasts the test of time. I have had no problem sticking to the gallon of water a day requirement as laid out by my gym.

I purchased this model for the water cooler. I checked out several head to head tests, and Zen was second only to the expensive Berkey systems. I chose Zen for the price and added benefit of sitting on my water cooler. However, it does not fit. And it won't fit no matter what you do.. the tan plastic cup at the bottom of the large tank is way too big for the dispenser. I have a standard cooler that used the 5 gallon plastic jugs we all are familiar with. So I wasted my money. The only thing I can do is jury rig a drain and hose from the counter to an empty 5 gallon water jug. When it fills, you can then put that on the cooler. So this is a great idea that has lousy engineering. Instead of a neat clean system for drinking water, you'll have a contraption that looks like it was put together by Ralph Cramden and some duct tape. Buy a Berkey. UPDATE: It took about a week of trying but I found a solution to turn this unit into a functional counter top filter. I tried the hardware stores but they were mostly the hard PVC type hoses and attachments. I went to a beer and wine making store. They have taps meant to be put onto brewing pails. I had to carefully file the Zen filter unit's bottom hole so it would accept the tap. I then used a soft plastic food grade syphon hose from the store - it was a small enough diameter to fit inside the tap's opening. I sealed the hose and tap connections with a wee bit of silicone. I then set the Zen unit on wooden off cuts of boards, so the tap could be operated freely and reached from the front. It's not pretty but it is a functional solution. I can fill a 5 gallon water cooler jug in 2 days. So if you have 2 or three jugs you can stay ahead in supply of fresh filtered water. The water is very good, no funny taste or smell. The top filter will change color though, but this is accumulations of algae and rust in your water pipes. It's unsightly, but at least you aren't drinking it anymore!

This is a cool filter. I found it easy to set up. I gave it a cleaning and got the filter all ready in no time. It works as said and the thing is nice to have. I was paying close to $30.00 a month for bottles water home delivery. three bottles at a time. With this unit it pays for it self the first use. It comes with the filter that last about 6 months and coast about $14.95 to replace. So in no time I will save money have clean water and not have to pick up a heavy bottle aging. Now people might wonder is it hard to put it together. No not at all. You remove the parts two filters one long type other round. You screw the float thing to the bottom tank. Put ring on top of bottom tank. Screw round filter inside top tank. Then screw long filter under the top of the top tank. Set top thank on the middle ring. Then fill the top unit with clean water let it do its thing and you have drinking water. Also remove the bottle support from your water cooler.

I used this water filtering system for a good 3 years. It can be a little awkward to handle when you are putting it together or cleaning it. When I first got it, my brother was helping me and he dropped the top part which caused the ceramic dome to break. I was able to reattach it and it still seemed to filter everything just fine. It obviously filters very well as after just a little bit of use, you can see a distinct discoloration around the ceramic dome. I live in an area with city water that is high in rust, so I was glad to see a good portion of that being filtered out by the dome. It doesn't filter exceptionally fast, but so long as you remember to fill it with water the night before, you will have plenty of good, clean water in the morning. Oh, I noticed a problem with leaking in two situations. The first is when you first start filtering and the second is if you ever let the water level in the water cooler that you put this filter on run too low. It seems like the filter filtered water too slowly in these conditions to cause air to get trapped adequately in the float under the filter. One these occasions, I would wake up in the morning with my floor covered in water. If that happens to you, just lift up the whole filter and ensure that the float is above the surface of the water, then put the whole filter back down on the water cooler. Should work just fine then.

We've had this filtration system for two months and are very excited about it. Here's what we like about it: 1. Water tastes great - no more chlorine/fishy smell or off taste; in fact it has a "sweet" taste (not like candy sweet just clean sweet, it's hard to explain but it doesn't have that harsh metallic flavor or bite to the tounge that over filtered water tends to have) 2. It is super convenient - just fill the top container up with your own tap water when the water level is running low 3. It saves money and your back...don't have to haul or lift anymore heavy water jugs 4. It looks cool...very shallow but it's our opinion Costs to maintain: Replace every 6 months: multistage filter cartridge (currently from Amazon for $21.85) Replace yearly: Micro-Ceramic Filter Dome (currently from Amazon for $18.40) Replace every 3-5 years: Mineral Stones (currently from Amazon for $19.44) Initial set up and usage: 1. It's easy to assemble, make sure you follow the directions faithfully though 2. During our initial set up we emptied the mineral rocks into a colander and rinsed them for about 15 minutes as suggested by another reviewer, this really helped eliminate the dust and tiny rock fragments 3. Know that this unit ISN'T going to "click" into or sit down in the opening of your dispenser, it simply rests on the opening so it's important to make sure you have your dispenser set up out of the way where it won't get bumped...we have ours sitting in a corner where it's protected a bit more on either side. Also, it's super important that your dispenser is level and that the water container is level before you fill it up. Honestly we haven't had any problems with it but if you have children/dogs running around it might be a concern 4. Yes, like some have stated in other reviews of this product the initial filtration goes slowly so be prepared for that ahead of time...however, it will pick up speed the more you use it without compromising the quality of the water 5. DO pay attention to the water level of the bottom container...fill up the top portion only enough to fill the bottom or you may cause it to overflow Monthly cleaning: DO clean all the parts on a MONTHLY basis no matter how much or how little you use it as slime can occur from having water in a container for a lengthy amount of time. As far as the ceramic filter dome is concerned, it is hollow, that's what is required for it to filter the water, and as it collects the impurities from your tap water over time it will turn brown/orange. It all depends on how bad the tap water is and how long you wait in-between cleanings. All you have to do is gently scrub the ceramic filter dome under cool running water and it will turn white again. We use a scrub pad for non-stick pots and pans and it does the trick without removing too much of the ceramic. CAUTION - when cleaning the ceramic filter dome DON'T use the same pad that you use to clean your dishes with as the food particles will collect on the dome and turn your "filtered water" into a nasty science experiment...YUCK!

My daughter likes the taste of the water, it is very good. But my son-in-law had problems assembling it and it leaks. I would buy it again if I were an engineer.

After paying for bottled water for years, we decided to try a filtration system to save some money. While waiting for the Zen to arrive, we refilled our bottles a few times from the tap, and it reminded us of just how bad the Silicon Valley water tastes when you're used to filtered water. We have an older Oasis model EBA1K-005-P cooler that we used with the standard 5 gallon bottles from the 2 major players, and the Zen cooler fits and works perfectly on it. We've been using it for 3 months now with no problems, and are pleased with the taste of the water. Yes, it's a little slow to filter from top to bottom, but it's not enough of an issue for us to re-scrub the ceramic filter, which Zen claims will speed it up. It's already paid for itself, and we're looking forward to years of use.

Aveces se sale el Agua y se desperdicia, tarda mucho en Filtrar el Agua. Pero si ahoro en garrafones mucho

Great system, Best tasting water ever

Como hace un mes que no llega mi producto, no puedo hablar del mismo Pero mi sugerencia es que lo piensen antes de comprarlo, su vendedor no es serio y es muy difícil tratar con el.