Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I did quite a bit of research before purchasing the ZeroWater ZD-023 Dispenser/ Filtration System. After 6 weeks of use, it performs like a champ, and I'm still on the first filter. I'd guess I've filtered something like 30 gallons, and it still reads 000 ppm on the included TDS meter. My water is from a private domestic well, untreated, and meters on average 220 from the tap. I compared bottled water from the supermarket. Their "spring water" metered at 065, the store "distilled" at 008. Nearby distributed water system treated water metered at 280. A local business imports their water in large jugs, and they allowed me to check it. "Drinking water" metered at 070; reverse osmosis distilled at 002. Minimum EPA standards are 500 ppm; New Mexico state requires no more than 1000. So there are some baselines. My ZeroWater system performed very well. The taste is fine. The most negative review here didn't mention quality of incoming water, so I found it less than helpful. Pros of the ZeroWater unit: * A limited-time $15 rebate made the larger unit far cheaper than the pitcher. Plus, nothing on Target's shelves (sorry, Amazon, this time I wanted to actually see and compare products) could match the price. * Quality of water after filtration, as mentioned. * A helpful 1-800-503-2939 customer service number. Two of my questions were answered in short order. * I was told all ZeroWater units take the same filter, so the part interchangeability is a plus. * Small numbers of filters run about $15 each. A gallon of store distilled runs about 96 cents with tax. With that math, the ZeroWater filter pays for itself at about a 16 gallon breakeven. I would guess you'd get at least 50% more from the filter, depending on your water, effectively bringing cost down down to 64 cents in this scenario. * The ZeroWater convenience factor is harder to measure. Put it this way: a gallon of water weighs about 8.3 pounds. Do you really enjoy hauling that from store to car, then car into home? * ZeroWater encourages recycling. There's a form on their website which you can print out, enclose with your shipped-back filter, which will then give you $10 toward purchase of other ZeroWater products. This includes new filters, of course. Your shipping cost is more than covered. * In winter, I use a fair amount of water in a vaporizer. In this application, using distilled water keeps the vaporizer clean, and avoids the need for de-scaling/ cleaning with the toxic chemicals the manufacturer recommends. Possible cons: * The spigot is a spring-operated design with an O-ring seal. I would guess this would be the only part which might fail, possibly creating a leak. However, I would also guess the spigot could be replaced a a reasonable cost from ZeroWater. I highly recommend this product. I have yet to be disappointed with any of its features. -- Mike M.