Find out how the Grohe Blue system works, how to install it and the benefits and costs of having sparkling water straight from your tap.
How to make sparkling water flow from the tap? How much does it cost?
Sparkling water straight from the tap is a luxury that until recently seemed unavailable to most of us. Thanks to technological advances, it is now possible and it doesn’t cost millions. It may not be as cheap as SodaStream-style saturators, but it’s still not a huge sum. The operational aspects are worse, but you’ll read about that later…
In this article, we will focus on the Grohe Blue system – what are the benefits of having it, how to install it and how much it costs. We also checked whether it is worth investing in such a solution, analyzing all the costs.
What is Grohe Blue?
Grohe Blue is a water filtration, cooling or carbonation system that allows you to obtain three types of water straight from the tap:
- still filtered water,
- lightly carbonated filtered water,
- highly carbonated filtered water.
There are smaller sets available on the market that only provide water filtration, but today we will focus on a variant that also allows you to cool and carbonate it. Such a setup consists of several devices:
- Grohe Blue faucet (battery),
- refrigerator,
- water filter,
- carbon dioxide (CO2) cylinder.
The cheapest set offering filtration, cooling and carbonation of water costs less than 7 thousand zlotys. (all prices that appear in the text come from MediaExpert).
How does Grohe Blue work?
The Grohe Blue system offers various functions:
- Water filtration – water from the water supply network flows through a special filter that removes impurities, chlorine, heavy metals and other undesirable substances, improving the taste and quality of the water.
- Water cooling – after filtration, the water is directed to the refrigerator, where it is cooled to the appropriate temperature.
- Carbonation of water – chilled water can be enriched with carbon dioxide (CO2) from a bottle, which allows you to obtain carbonated water. The user can choose the level of carbonation of the water – from slightly carbonated to highly carbonated.
- Water availability – after going through these processes, the water is available straight from the Grohe Blue tap. A special tap allows you to select the type of water with a button.
How to install Grohe Blue?
Installing a Grohe Blue system requires a few steps that you can perform yourself or with the help of a professional installer:
- Choosing an installation location – it is best to install the system in the kitchen, where there is easy access to water and space for a refrigerator. Make sure there is enough space under the sink to mount all the components.
- Preparing the water installation – Before starting the installation, turn off the water supply in the apartment. Then, according to the manufacturer’s instructions, connect the water pipes to the filtration unit.
- Tap installation – The Grohe Blue tap must be installed in place of a standard kitchen tap. This process may require dismantling the old tap and preparing a mounting hole.
- Connecting the refrigerator – the refrigerator, which also contains a filter and a carbon dioxide cartridge, must be connected to the water system and electricity supply.
- System configuration – Once the installation is complete, the system should be powered up and calibrated according to the manufacturer’s instructions. It is also a good idea to test the system to make sure everything is working properly.
Grohe Blue operating costs – CO2 cylinders and filters
Unfortunately, while the one-time cost of installing Grohe Blue is still bearable, if we consider that it is a one-time expense for years, the operation, i.e. regular replacement of filters and CO2 bottles, is worse. Here are our calculations.
Cost of a liter of filtered water
One of the main operating costs of a Grohe Blue system is filter replacement. The Grohe Blue S filter cartridge costs around PLN 369 and can filter up to 600 liters of water.. This means that the cost filtering one liter of water is about 61 cents. If the manufacturer’s data is not overstated, it does not look too bad, although solutions based on ordinary jugs are cheaper. Unfortunately, if we want to add bubbles to the water, the amount increases significantly. Compared to store bottles, it becomes completely unattractive…
Cost of a liter of sparkling and filtered water
A set of four CO2 cylinders costs around PLN 519. Each one is enough to carbonate 60 liters of water. In total, this makes 240 liters of carbonated water. This means that the cost of saturation of one liter of liquid with gas is approximately PLN 2.16. When we add up the costs of filtered water and carbonation, we get a cost of approx. 2.78 PLN. And this price can in no way compete with store-bought water…
The Grohe Blue system is an innovative solution that allows you to get fresh, chilled and sparkling water straight from the tap. Thanks to this, you can enjoy convenience and ecological benefits. However, the economic aspects are much worse and because of them I would not decide to use this solution in my own home.
Or maybe you have ways to pay less for Grohe Blue? Let us know in the comments!
photos: grohe.com