Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

The dispenser looks and works as described so far. It was easy to set up and runs relatively quietly. I am using a 4 gallon bottle and had no trouble fitting it to the machine. With one exception, the manual describes setup and operation clearly and accurately. The one informational exception is the self-cleaning function, for which a simple direction is given for activating the cleaning cycle, but nothing about what to expect after you do so. I found nothing in the manual to indicate how long the self-cleaning cycle lasts, whether or not you can use the dispenser while the cycle is running, or what, if anything, the user has to do once it ends. Given the dearth of info about this feature, I feel that I might as well have bought a machine without it and saved some money. Update: I e-mailed a copy of this review to Avalon on a Sunday night and asked for a comment from them. I received the following response the next morning: "Our manuals do need a lot of updating and we are actually in the process of doing that now. We apologize for the lack of information but I would be more than happy to provide you with more information about the self cleaning feature. I have included some steps about the self clean feature below. Once the cleaning is complete there is nothing required of the user, it will begin functioning as normal on its own. Activating Self-Cleaning Function It is recommended that the self-cleaning feature be used once a week to sanitize the tanks and water lines. To activate, press the stand alone self-cleaning switch and hold in the on position for 5 seconds and release. The switch will immediately go back into the off position. The first green indicator light, also the power light, will begin to blink. This indicates the self-cleaning cycle is underway. Ozone will be produced and injected into the water system, it will kill bacteria and bio-films typically found in water dispensers. By the end of the cleaning cycle the ozone will convert into harmless oxygen and will be emitted into the air. When the self-cleaning cycle is complete the first indicator light will stop blinking and will be steady on as it is also the power light. Caution: This self-cleaning cycle will take 90 minutes to complete. During this time do not dispense and drink the water. We recommend you do this during a period of time when the unit will not be in use for example overnight. During the cycle you may smell some of the ozone, this is normal. I hope this helps answer your questions but if there is anything else that you have questions about please don't hesitate to ask, we are more than happy to help." I was very impressed with the speed and thoroughness of Avalon Support and I now have no second thoughts about the purchase. [The above response has been posted here with Avalon's knowledge and approval.]