Costs of a water cooler?

Question

How expensive is it to maintain a water cooler (the sort that you'd find in an office?) E.g., how much electricity does it use, and how much is it per jug to replace? Thanks!

Answer 1

It depends if you're purchasing a cooler, or renting one from a water company.  Here are the pros and cons of either option.

If you purchase a cooler-- your basic water cooler will run you about $129.99, and a premium model is more along the lines of $199.99.  Depending on the brand of the cooler, your warranty will range anywhere from 90 days to 2 years.  Coolers require very basic upkeep.  To clean a cooler, all you need to do is to take the bottle off and pour very hot water into the reservoir.  Let it sit for a while, and it will sterilize the cooler.  The other things that can go wrong are the cooler freezing up, or boiling.  Sometimes leaks can happen too-- but if you notice one, take the bottle off and make sure it wasn't actually the bottle.

To rent a cooler can be anywhere from 5.99/month to 21.99 for a premium model.  While you are paying more in the long run, renting means that you are ALWAYS under warranty.  While you can clean the cooler if you want, if you're renting you can just have them exchange out the cooler for a clean one.  If anything ever goes wrong with it while renting, you're taken care of with no extra fees.

As for the bottles of water themselves-- it depends if you're looking for just purified water, or spring water.  In the store, a 5-gallon of spring water will run you about 5.99, and purified water might be around 4.99.  There's also a $5 or $10 deposit on the bottle, kind of like an inflated version of the deposit you pay on a soda bottle.  When you return it, you get it back.

If you don't want to lug the bottles yourself, you can search for water delivery services in your area via Google.com.  It doesn't cost much more to go with a delivery service, and it's really worth the convenience.

Answer 2

It uses a negligible amount of electricity so long that it is located in a contolled eviroment(in the a/c).Less than 8.00$a month.The cost is a couple of bucks per jug to refill.