Chosing the right drinking fountain or water cooler

February 28th 2024

Chosing the right drinking fountain or water machine to fit your business needs. 

Chosing the right water drinking fountain can be refreshing, pun very much intended !

It can also be quite stressful and just plain confusing, if you take in account all the different types and brands of driking fountain or water coolers, such as Oasis, Elkay, Haws to name just a few; it can be a bit overwhelming if it’s your first time shopping for such. 

One does not shop for a water cooler or a drinking fouhntain every week, it’s safe to say it’s a long term investment, an important one, thus you’ll want to be sure of your final choice. 

Here are a few pointers to help you figure out which drinking fountain or water cooler would be the best for your business :

1. TYPE :

Drinking fountains or water coolers come in many different models and configurations possible:  simple, double, triple, adult or/and children, manual activation or entirely automatic with motion censor activation, wall mounted or free standing, bottle fed or water supply line connected? Do you need to add a bottle filling station to further discourage the use of single use plastic bottle? Think about your immediate needs but also, long term down the line.

2. WATER :

Do you need filtered water? Do you need a water cooler? Would you like to also be able to offer hot water ?

Or go a step further and offer sparkling water with a water cooler like the Picolla from Blupura? Some like the KUPA flavor fountain can even offer different flavors to add to water, including benefial additifs like electrolytes and allow the user to create custom made beverage personalised to the user’s desire. With so many options, do your homework and evaluate all the possibilities before you make your final choice. 

 

3. DRINKING FOUNTAIN LOCATION :

Think about the drinking fountain set up, where you want it to be location. Mesure the space you planned for it, whether it’s counter top water cooler or wall mounted drinking fountain. You will want a space that will allow easy access if you want to encourage people to use it. Once measured, you can start looking at models that will fit well within the space planned for it. If you plan to have it connected directly to a water supply line, plan ahead and look for a space where water lines are easily accessible, same for electrical. All this will help you better determinate which water fountain or water cooler be a good fit. 

4. DURABILITY :

Water drinking fountain or water cooler can be made with different material and components, like stainless steel, ceramic or special anti-bacterial alloy and much more. Take it all in account depending what the equipement will be used for, because material and components influence how the drinking fountain will fair in time, especially if you are looking at an outdoor drinking fountain where it will be exposed to all kind of weather conditions. 

5. MAINTENANCE :

No one wants a fountain that will be difficult to clean, especially not in a business setting. Look for models that have easy access to parts that need to be clean or service. The newest models are designed to reduce mildew and  bacteria growth so it keeps the cleaning to a minimum. Make sure the company you buy from is reliable and propose good repair and maintenance service, reliability is key.  

6. BUDGET :

Before establishing a budget for such purchase, it is paramount that you first get a good idea of what cost can be. Now that you have done your due dilligence and have a better idea of what you need, check both, the most expansive that corresponds to your needs and the cheapest also, so you have a good idea of the price range for what you are looking for. If you need to sacrifice something, you’ll have a better idea of what, once you know what they cost. It will be easier to set a reasonable and realist budget so you aren’t just pouring money down the drain! 

If your business requires more than one drinking fountain or water cooler, remember you can usually negociate volume pricing.

While these points will certainly help you get your head around shopping for a drinking fountain, these are but just a few tips. Don’t hesitate to contact us and talk to one of our specialists to discuss your needs and requirements, so your investment in a water drinking fountain is the best one for your business. 

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