To ask whether Sodastream is any good these days?

[walkingtheplank]

In an effort to reduce plastic usage, we're thinking of getting a Sodastream, mainly to make sparkling water.
Does the sparkling water taste OK and what are the syrups like - I recall them being rather disgusting when I was a kid, especially the Cola one.

Any insight would be good as they're quite expensive and will take up worktop space.

No idea what they're like now, but remember a friend and I ruining her parents' when we were children, we put milk in it. Do not do that, fizzy slightly sour milk is rancid and you will never get the milk taint out of the machine...

I've had mine for about a month now and I'm really liking it. I used to glug my way through about 2 two-litre plastic water bottles a day, and the waste started to really alarm me.

I use chilled water from the fridge in mine. Tastes just like you'd get from a bottle.

^ Ought to have added, I only use mine for sparkling water so I can't comment on the syrups.

Mine is just for sparking water, it’s good, I’m drinking it now. You have to change the gas obviously, but that’s fine.

Not tried syrups.

I've had one eighteen months and use it everyday as I had so much plastic waste. Absolutely love it sparkling water taste just the same 

I love it! Used to drink a lot of sparkling water and hated the waste. I haven’t used the syrup though.

I got one for Mother's Day and I LOVE it. I was drinking a ton of Diet Coke, worrying about all the aspartame, was filling up the recycling with a trillion bottles.....now I have two soda stream bottles in my fridge and have all the bubbles I want minus the rest. You can make your drink really bubbly too - way more bubbly than Diet Coke which goes flat fast.

Now, I don't use the syrups - I use flavoured water drops and it took me a bit to land on one I liked. I've found a fruit punch one that works a treat.

I do wish the had a glass bottle option. Also, because I use lots of carbonation I need to swap out the tank fairly regularly so that is an expense and inconvenience as I cant buy the carbonation but at the supermarket.

I love mine too. Only use it for sparkling water and use PLJ or high juice squash with it. Use cold water from the fridge. As you say, we were getting through bottles of cheap sparkling water and wanted to cut down on plastic usage.

Same as everyone else says - had it for several years, only make sparkling water. It tastes great and saves loads of plastic. It also saves the environmental impact of driving bottles of water from the factory to the supermarket to home. Water is very heavy so a lot of fuel is used in these deliveries.

I have been known to stick a bottle of white wine through ours

Had ours about 5 years and it’s brilliant and still going very strong. We got it primarily for tonic and it’s great. DH likes some of the other syrups too.

Saves loads of money and plastic waste. Get one!

Sodastream's factory is actively complicit in Israel's policy of displacing the indigenous Bedouin-Palestinian citizens of Israel in the Naqab (Negev). The company has mistreated and discriminated against Palestinian workers. That's a lot of pain and suffering for a few bubbles.

electronicintifada.net/content/new-sodastream-factory-could-help-destroy-bedouin-agriculture/13182

We love ours, great for a quick drink without having loads of bottles in. We use normal double strength squash.

Î love my Sodastream - use it for sparkling water and I can choose how much gas I put in exactly

I wouldn’t get one as their factory is in the occupied territory.

I love mine. I don’t use the syrups but my 19yo does and he likes most of them.

The only thing I will say is consider the glass bottle one if it’s not always you doing the dishes. My plastic bottle ones got put in the dishwasher all the time and it melts them I had to replace them lots now I have the glass ones it’s better, just don’t let your son try and brew mead in them they explode

I wouldn’t get one as their factory is in the occupied territory

I thought they moved in 2015 after a pressure campaign by BDS?

I bought one a while ago as they were reduced and about to sell out. Then read reviews saying the drinks tasted of plastic, so it went back. Maybe that was why they were reduced.

There had been issues with plastic kettles, and other kitchen appliances at the time and in some cases the taste and smell never went so having been caught out already I wasn't going to try it again. Am often tempted to get one though.

Does anyone just put juice in?

We just put cordials or full juice in the fizzy water, never bought a syrup

I love mine. I also just use it for sparkling water. I've never tried the syrups. I add the sparkling water to juice for a drink.

I used one for a year or so around 5 years ago to reduce plastic waste. Ended up giving it away. Only wanted it for sparkling water but I could never get the right fizz - most I could get was a badoit-like small fizz nothing like I wanted. Have managed to live with flat refrigerated filter water since but do have a bottle of sparkling as a treat once a month or so - miss it - used to drink at least 2 litres a day.

We have had ours for years, and love it. We do go through it, so it is expensive, but saves us on plastic. We mainly just use it for sparking water, but occasionally add squash, and it is really lovely! Always use chilled water though.

Thanks everyone - I wasn't expecting such a great response.

We would mostly use it for bottled water so good to read it's palatable. Does anyone use the Cola syrup as I am a bit of a Diet Coke addict?

Re the Israel/Palestinian issue - I am fully aware of that but the article linked to here is 4 years old. Since then the contentious factory has been closed down - at the loss of hundreds of Palestinian jobs so not sure it was actually a win.