What Are Water Dispensers?
Water dispensers are used in offices, schools, homes, restaurants and hospitals for storing water and delivering it on demand directly into a glass or other container. Two basic types of water dispensers are manufactured and are available in different brands and price ranges. The common feature for all water dispensers, however, is that they save energy by reducing the amount of times refrigerator doors are opened. Does this Spark an idea?
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Floor-Standing Water Dispensers
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Floor-standing water dispensers provide water by means of a large bottle that holds several liters of water. Water bottles are replaced with new bottles when they are empty. Floor-standing water dispensers are usually plugged into a receptacle to allow easy access to hot and cold water. They are common in offices but are also found in homes. Some floor-standing water dispensers have a bottom cooler for storing nonperishables, yet others have bottles that are loaded in the bottom rather than on top of the dispenser.
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Countertop Water Dispensers
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Countertop water dispensers, also known as tabletop water dispensers, are smaller than floor-standing dispensers, so they don't take up as much room, making them ideal when space is an issue. They serve the same purpose as floor-standing dispensers except they can be conveniently moved from one location to another because of their size. Some countertop water dispensers, however, do not have hot and cold water, but rather are placed on the counter to provide water at room temperature or placed in the refrigerator.
Materials
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Water dispensers are made using different materials. Brass, chrome or satin nickel, also known as brushed nickel, is commonly used to make water dispenser faucets. Stainless steel, glass or bronze, which is similar to brass, is often used in manufacturing storage tanks for water dispensers because they resist corrosion. Polystyrene is one of the most common materials used to make water dispensers and is used with stainless steel as an insulator.
Brands
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Some brands of water dispensers include Avanti, Brita, Pur, Haier, Whynter, Vitapur, Igloo and GE. Each of these brands manufactures countertop and floor-standing water dispensers. However, brands such as Brita and Pur manufacture water dispensers with a filter, but don't provide the function of choosing between hot and cold water. Water dispensers can be bought in most stores that sell home appliances and in some office supply stores.
Cost
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Water dispensers can cost as little as $19.99 and as much as $249.95. The price of a water dispenser is based on its features such as size, the ability to dispense hot and cold water, the capacity of water storage, ease of cleaning, the presence of a hot-water safety guard and the materials that the water dispenser is made of.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit "A dog rising out of the water??" is Copyrighted by Flickr user: Snap® (Third Eye) under the Creative Commons Attribution license.
