B00EPEAM2S

I purchased this SodaStream used, so it did not come with any of the flavors. All that came in the box was the water bottle and the SodaStream, so that is all that I will review.

Pros:
1. Easy to use. Since it was used, it didn’t include any direction booklet, but the directions were written on top of the machine, and I had no difficulty getting it to work.
2. Air tight! During carbonation I couldn’t hear or see any signs of leaking between the bottle and the machine. I didn’t see any water leaking or hear any hissing, so it looks like all the CO2 is going directly in the bottle. The next step would be a soap bubble test to verify this.
3. You control the amount of carbonation based on how long you push down on the machine. If you let go at the first LED, it’s low carbonation, 2nd LED gives you medium carbonation, and the 3rd LED gives you high carbonation. I tried at all 3 LEDs and got the expected level of carbonation all 3 times.

CONs
1. New ones are expensive and you can read up on the cost/benefit analysis in some of the other reviews. If you want to make soda cheaper, then you may not want to invest in this product. If you want to have carbonated water available at your convenience, then this is perfect. I fall in the latter category, so it’s worth it for me. I like to make my own fruity flavorings :).

To mitigate some of the cost of the proprietary CO2 canisters, I took advantage of my homebrewing equipment. Standard kegging equipment includes a 5lb CO2 canister, which is A LOT bigger than the tiny proprietary canisters that SodaStream wants you to buy. I can’t quanitfy how much larger because my CO2 is measured in weight, and SodaStream measures in volume. Anyway, these are expensive up front (around $80), but refills are about $15-20 at the local welding shop (yes, this is food safe. It’s meant for beer kegs). Then, I went on eBay and found someone selling a hose with the right connectors on it (this was about $60). This set up also worked like a champ! Pictures are attached. You could probably put the hose and connectors together for a cheaper price (the proprietary side is about $20-50 depending on where you buy), but I wanted to go with something I knew would work.

Buying a used Soda Stream and the connectors put me out about $100. It’ll take me about a year to get my money back, but considering how frequently I use it, and the convenience, I’m extremely happy with my purchase.

Just set up my Soda stream source and it works beautifully. Replaced provided CO2 canister with a 5 lb CO2 tank from Airgas and connecting hose and fittings from CO2 doctor. I also bought some extra bottles and flavoring with pump dispenser.
The savings and convenience of a separate tank far outweigh the initial extra cost.

I’m not sure I’m being fair, but they lack a definition for what constitutes normal. I like to taste the fizz of Seltzer, which is my purpose for drinking it, so I pressurize the water up to the 3 star position. They claim 55 bottles, but I only achieved 35 1 liter bottles, and I’m being liberal. It works well for making Seltzer. The CO2 cartridges cost $14.69 after trade-in at the store (you must take it in for replacement). So $14.69 / 35 = $ .42 per liter. I guess that’s still a pretty good value. You be the judge.

Source Home Metal 3 Piece Sparkling Water Maker Starter Set Color: Red

The LED didn’t light up the first time I used this product. Result: over-carbonated water. Maybe I was doing something wrong? The next day I tried it again, going a little slower. Same result. I had absolutely no idea when to stop pressing down. So… a little Googling led me to a video of how to replace the battery. After unscrewing two screws, and prying off the cover what I found was a big mess. The battery had leaked acid all over the plastic mount and etched it away until the battery holder was just hanging by wires. It had fallen back into the machine. See the pictures I provided. Very poor showing, SodaStream. Quite disappointed.

That being said, I give 5 Stars to both Amazon Customer Service and the third-party seller Dave Parkers. I had the return processed and on it’s way back within a few hours, and on a holiday weekend!

Buyer Beware: Cannot be Returned Even if Arriving Damaged

The product is faulty – does not fizz my water – and now the return policy says I can’t return it even though it’s less than 14days. Great.

There are comments on here that the unit leaks/sprays during use. That happened to me the first time I used it. The answer is simply to NOT hold the bottle tightly against the unit (pushing upward). Just put it in and push it back into place. If you push up on the bottle, air cannot escape and it leaks/sprays over the top. I mastered it quickly and really like this product. The reason for not giving it 5 stars is because the soda seams to lose its bubbles in about 24 hours regardless how tight the top is screwed on.

I gave this to my husband for Christmas so we’ve had it less than a month. It worked great with the first co2 tank that came in the box. When I put in a new co2 tank, somehow all of the gas leaked out. Plus before it all leaked out I was able to make another bottle of carbonated water, but it wasn’t fizzy at all, but it did taste like it was carbonated. maybe it was my fault for not tightening it enough. So I got a new tank. Made sure it was tightened enough. I attempt to make another bottle of carbonated water and it’s flat even though I pressed the top down until the third level of carbonation lit up. I’ve been searching for answers online and no luck. Tried to call customer service but they’re not open on the weekend. Eh. I don’t recommend.