| When I was a little boy, we moved from Brooklyn to Long Island, where
we could no longer get seltzer delivered to the house, and the only
thing available in the stores was club soda, which has salt added
(seltzer doesn't), and we didn't like the taste. So we got a 2-qt
seltzer maker. It worked very well, and saved a lot of money. It
tastes as good as the water you put into it, and generally no better
than store-bought seltzer. It was quite inconvenient, though, because
it takes several hours for the CO2 to dissolve in the water (the lower
the temp, the faster it dissolves). We could have bought another one,
because we were always running out, and it was a nuisance having to
wait (effectively until the next day) for the stuff to be ready again.
But two 2-qt jugs was too much space to lose in the fridge. When
seltzer became available in the stores, we stopped using it. They're
available in 1-qt sizes, though, which should be more convenient. I
assume that, if you use tap water, the significant cost advantage will
still be there.
When you add syrup to flavor it, you can really see a saving. I've
noticed, though, that flavored syrups are not as common and
inexpensive around here (MetroWest) as other, less-affluent parts of
the country. In Buffalo, for example, where my wife's family comes
from, there's a great selection of syrups at good prices, including
loganberry, which is really nice (not too sweet).
One point: if you're looking to save money, don't get a fancy one.
They don't work any better than the plain-jane models, and will take a
lot longer to pay for themselves.
I can also think of another advantage to these things: they don't
lose carbonation over 3 or 4 days the way an opened bottle of seltzer
does.
Finally, if you have kids, they generally will enjoy being in charge
of reloading the thing (though they may not be too reliable about it
:-).
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| I've had a 1 quart seltzer bottle for a while now. I've never waited after
charging up a new batch. I just shake up the bottle, and squirt. The
manufacturer suggests not using sugar based syrups in the bottle, as it tends
to gum up the works. I've always added flavors (usually lemon or lime juice,
maybe a little Tanqueray) directly to the glass. I bought mine a while ago
in Spags, and have seen them elsewhere since for about the same price. You
can't beat Spags for the CO2 cartridges, though. Be careful not to get the
nitrous oxide cartridges (they are for whipped cream and college parties).
I always use spring water in the bottle, since it is aluminum, and my tap water
is slightly acidic.
-JP
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| I was considering getting one myself, since I drink close to a case of seltzer
by myself in a week. My question is, are the CO2 cartridges good for only one
use (i.e., one cartridge per bottle)? Just how expensive are they, and how
much should I be looking to spend for the basic hardware?
ann
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| Yes, the cartridges are one-shot deals; after it has made one bottle of
seltzer (roughly a 2-qt. bottle) you just throw it away. I think the last
time we bought them we paid about $4.50 for a box of 10. It pays to shop
around because I've seen them sold for prices ranging from $3.75 to $5.50
for 10, and sometimes find them sold in boxes of 20. Most kitchen supply
stores have them, and lots of mail order catalogs.
For those wanting to buy one, we bought ours some years ago (5-8?) from
Hammacher Schlemmer (one of the many catalogs we receive by mail) and
haven't had any trouble in all this time. Of course I don't have one of
their catalogs on hand, and I honestly don't remember what they sell for;
best guess would be $30-50.
Have fun -- it isn't hard, isn't as expensive as "store-bought", and you
only need to wait about 5 minutes to use it after making it. We never buy
setzer in the store, the homemade kind seems to have finer bubbles and
we've come to prefer that by far.
Jan
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| Spag's is lots cheaper. The botles are about $23 and the charges are $2.50.
Of course, they don't always have them in stock. The Cook's Nook in
Lunenburg, Ma. does have them in stock, but for a bit more.
- JP
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| I ended up buying a seltzer maker at Spag's. It's made by Isi of
Austria, and cost $24.99. The C02 charges cost $2.69 for a box of 10.
I'm very happy with the quality of the maker and the seltzer it
produces. The bubbles are finer than what I was accustomed to with
store-bought seltzer. The process is very simple and convenient, and
saves a lot of time and effort. I now don't have to buy big, heavy
seltzer bottles and return the empties.
By the way, I did some price comparisons after I got the seltzer maker
at Spag's. Williams Sonoma in the Burlingtom Mall had the same model
for $37. The charges were $6.00 for a box of 10! That's more than
twice the price at Spag's.
Now I'm wondering where I can get flavor essences -- though a few drops
of lime juice works pretty well.
Joe
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| If you want, you can get bigger bubbles by getting more CO2 dissolved
in the water. If just letting it sit in the fridge longer doesn't work
(try a whole day to test), then maybe your water already has lots of
gases and/or minerals dissolved in it. In that case, you can try using
2 CO2 cartridges instead of one. The pressure won't hurt the thing
(unless the instructions warn against it). That will cost more to
make, though. Or, you could start with bottled water and use one CO2
cartridge. Almost any water should be fine. But that will also cost
more to make than using tap water.
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