Anybody making their own carbonated water?

[Dario]

I just saw a very interesting video on Youtube entitled "Why You should Drink Carbonated Water" made by renowned physician Dr. Eric Berg. I had researched about this years ago and I remember that this is an expensive affair. Are there any of our members who make their own carbonated water? Please let us know how you do it. Thank you.

 

[moogradod]

We used to make our own carbonated water while we were in Switzerland. But there, normal Tap-Water has a superior quality. So what you need is very good mineral water. Which is expensive in Thailand. Then on top comes the machine and the CO2 cylinders that you need to exchange all the time. They argue that you do not have to carry around ready made carbonated water. But this is not true for Thailand since you cannot use Tap-Water here. And the most downside: The water you get is maybe not as much carbonated as you want it to be. So better buy it here ready made. We prefer Singa-Soda Water.

[Dario]

Just now, moogradod said:

We used to make our own carbonated water while we were in Switzerland. But there, normal Tap-Water has a superior quality. So what you need is very good mineral water. Which is expensive in Thailand. Then on top comes the machine and the CO2 cylinders that you need to exchange all the time. They argue that you do not have to carry around ready made carbonated water. But this is not true for Thailand since you cannot use Tap-Water here. And the most downside: The water you get is maybe not as much carbonated as you want it to be. So better buy it here ready made. We prefer Singa-Soda Water.

 

What you say about Swiss tap water is very true, I knowit very well, because I was born and grew up in Swtzerland. A question: is Singha carbonated water (CO2)? Maybe a stupid question. But whatever, Singha, Leo or others made in Thailand are very strong for my taste. But if they are carbonated water like San Pellegrino or Perrier (both very expensive) than those would be the best solution, I think. If they're strong, they can be dilluted with some additional water.

[moogradod]

9 minutes ago, Dario said:

 

What you say about Swiss tap water is very true, I knowit very well, because I was born and grew up in Swtzerland. A question: is Singha carbonated water (CO2)? Maybe a stupid question. But whatever, Singha, Leo or others made in Thailand are very strong for my taste. But if they are carbonated water like San Pellegrino or Perrier (both very expensive) than those would be the best solution, I think. If they're strong, they can be dilluted with some additional water.

The carbonated part is the fun part IMHO, the more carbonated the better. But this is me. Rock Water is as well quite carbonated but tastes inferior to Singa I think. I would say that Singa is carbonated water - but someone please correct me if this is not the case. At least to my taste Singa tastes superiour. For still water we exclusively use Mont Fleur.

 

San Pellegrino is actually "bottled at source", so you get the real original imported product. I have my doubt if this is true for Perrier - they state something as "captured at source", which could mean import in big ships and then carbonated and bottled in Thailand. But this is just a guess, I am not sure about that.

[MichaelHunt]

I buy the 18.9 liter bottles of plain drinking water from Sprinkle, then I add four bottles of Singha soda water to it, or sometimes one big bottle of San Pellegrino. I just find the water more palatable when there is some soda water in it. I hope that there are also some health benefits.

 

I recently saw a video saying that drinking carbonated water is unhealthy. I was skeptical about that, but I was glad to see the above-linked video that says it's healthy. Thanks for sharing it, Dario!

 

 

[Dario]

3 minutes ago, MichaelHunt said:

I recently saw a video saying that drinking carbonated water is unhealthy. I was skeptical about that, but I was glad to see the above-linked video that says it's healthy. Thanks for sharing it, Dario!

My pleasure. I have learned a lot from Dr. Eric Berg. Have a look at his videos, there are countless. I'm extremely health concious, because I have diabetes type 2 since about 20 years. 

[Dario]

OK, looks like everybody is drinking soda. Got that.

[moogradod]

37 minutes ago, Dario said:

OK, looks like everybody is drinking soda. Got that.

Carbonated water is the same as Soda Water, Sparkling Water, Fizzy Water, Club Soda or Seltzer Water. I have that wisdom from Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbonated_water

 

TOPS in Central Festival Pattaya has a very large selection of waters of all kinds around the world. A question of taste and money. Some are very expensive, Singha Soda is only 12 THB per bottle (maybe even less in the big pack) but I am not sure if it contains many minerals (if any) which water should if you drink this exclusively over a long period. Mont Fleur (still water) shoud at least have minerals (although they do not declare it). St. Pellegrino has a long list on the bottle.

 

 

Edited May 13, 2023 by moogradod

[treetops]

On 5/13/2023 at 4:58 AM, Dario said:

I just saw a very interesting video on Youtube entitled "Why You should Drink Carbonated Water" made by renowned physician Dr. Eric Berg.

Not everyone thinks as highly of him as you appear to.

 

https://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Eric_Berg

 

Anti vaxer

Scientologist

Conspiracy theorist

 

Allegedly.

[torturedsole]

15 minutes ago, treetops said:

Not everyone thinks as highly of him as you appear to.

 

https://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Eric_Berg

 

Anti vaxer

Scientologist

Conspiracy theorist

 

Allegedly.

... and RationalWiki is a reliable source?

[treetops]

4 minutes ago, torturedsole said:

... and RationalWiki is a reliable source?

I have no idea hence I didn't express an opinion.  Just put it out there for debate.  The wiki itself has links to it's sources but again I have no idea of their reliability.

[Myran]

20 minutes ago, torturedsole said:

... and RationalWiki is a reliable source?

No, it's a summary. The sources are listed at the bottom of the article.

[torturedsole]

1 minute ago, Myran said:

No, it's a summary. The sources are listed at the bottom of the article.

Both equally dubious as each other.

[treetops]

7 minutes ago, torturedsole said:

Both equally dubious as each other.

Several of the sources referenced are from Berg's own website and youtube channel.  Does that make them dubious?

 

Another for example is dirtyscam.com which may not be as professional or open minded as others.

[Bangkok Barry]

When the big name soda water companies here are so cheap I'd not bother with making my own. Singha soda water suits me fine.

[gamb00ler]

On 5/13/2023 at 10:58 AM, Dario said:

I just saw a very interesting video on Youtube entitled "Why You should Drink Carbonated Water" made by renowned physician Dr. Eric Berg.

I think Dr. Eric Berg is on the other end of the spectrum from "renowned".  YouTube is renowned for accepting videos from anyone with an IQ above their age.

 

His chiropractic license was in jeopardy in Virginia because he "had made many therapeutic claims that were not supportable by reasonable scientific or medical evidence."  He signed a consent decree accepting a $1,500 fine, monitoring of his practice and promising to stop using and making unfounded claims about several of his "treatments".

 

Full details available at:

https://quackwatch.org/cases/board/chiro/berg/

[moogradod]

However dubious he might be at least in one aspect he was right: Soda-Water is good (tasty). That's not much but better than nothing. I do not care about the rest.

[torturedsole]

26 minutes ago, moogradod said:

However dubious he might be at least in one aspect he was right: Soda-Water is good (tasty). That's not much but better than nothing. I do not care about the rest.

It can't be any worse than Coca Cola and its toilet cleaning properties. It's just some bubbles, surely.

[Dario]

to gamb00ler: I should have marked "popular" instead of renowned. Sorry.

[moogradod]

On 5/23/2023 at 6:05 PM, ReillyHester said:

Drink vending machine:
The most common way to make sparkling water at home is with a soda maker or carbonator. These devices allow the addition of carbon dioxide (CO2) to enrich water with carbonation. Usually, you fill a reusable bottle with water, connect it to a sparkling water maker, press a button and the sparkling water is produced.

CO2 cylinder:
Carbonated water makers require a CO2 cylinder or cartridge to produce carbon dioxide. Cylinders are usually available from the company that makes the carbonated water maker. Once the bottle is empty, it may need to be replaced or refilled.

fragrance:
Once you have your sparkling water, you can enjoy it as is or add flavors to create your favorite drink. You can use fruit slices, herbs, or store-bought flavored syrups for extra flavor.

Bottle and Storage:

We recommend using BPA-free plastic or glass bottles to store sparkling water. Once carbonated, water can be transferred to these bottles to keep them carbonated.

Making sparkling water at home is more cost-effective than buying bottled soda, and you can also control the ingredients and flavors to your liking.

 

We used such a carbonator in Switzerland - and one of the well known and reputed brands. Here is my experience in reference to your post.

 

1. I doubt that it is cheaper than ready made Sparkling Water in bottles. It is not only the machine, it is the CO2 cylinder that needs to be replaced. Same Business Model than a PC printer where the buying cost does not matter, but the cost of the ink cartridges. Same as Nespresso where it is not the Coffee Machine but the Coffee Capsules that generate the profit. And in Thailand you may add the cost of the Mineral Water since here Tap-Water is not suitable. In Switzerland you may at least use Tap-Water which is at times better than the water sold in bottles.

 

2. You will not achieve a longer lasting CO2 content so that you may store what you produced. First of all you wont even achieve the same carbonation from the very beginning than it is present in small bottles that can buy in a supermarket. So if you prefer really carbonated water a carbonator is not it.

 

3. Add flavours: Same for ready made water and home carbonated water. One drawback as well It is not recommended to use juices such as Orange Juice as the base of your carbonation with a carbonator.

 

4. Very small probability but nevertheless present: A high pressure CO2 cylinder may be dangerous. It has happend that they did (although it is quite rare) explode.

 

My conclusion is that a carbonator is by far inferior in every aspect to a ready-made Soda from the supermarket. We use Singha-Soda water and it is perfect.

 

The only (tiny) argument that could have some weight is that you do not have to carry around heavy water bottles, but this may be only valid if you have no own car. And a 7/11 or Family Mart is always just around the corner here. Almost wherever you are. Depends if you are in Thailand or not.

 

Edited May 24, 2023 by moogradod

[phetphet]

You can buy soda water makers on Amazon. The most famous being Soda Stream. Usually comes with plastic bottles and small charging gas cylinders.

 

They have Soda Stream on Lazada, but the price seems expensive.

 

Getting replacement gas cylinders might be the difficult part. Not sure if allowed to post by air.

 

[Lite Beer]

On 5/24/2023 at 7:19 PM, phetphet said:

You can buy soda water makers on Amazon. The most famous being Soda Stream. Usually comes with plastic bottles and small charging gas cylinders.

 

They have Soda Stream on Lazada, but the price seems expensive.

 

Getting replacement gas cylinders might be the difficult part. Not sure if allowed to post by air.

 

Soda Stream expect you to return the empty gas bottles to Bangkok to refill.

Not very cost effective.

Best option is to buy an adapter and a large gas bottle.

You can then refill it at your local supplier at a fraction of the cost.

Something like this.

 

[DudleySquat]

I saw the same video and forgot it.  It is good advice, but I will likely forget it again unless I write it. 

[jerrymahoney]

When in USofA I often stay with friends in Vermont who use a  SodaStream.

 

They have an artesian spring on their property.

Edited May 26, 2023 by jerrymahoney