I’m a big fan of sparkling water. I’m also a big fan of the idea that my children and grandchildren will have a decent planet to grow up on. So here’s the problem. Sparkling water typically comes in plastic bottles. Simply put, plastic bottles suck. The solution is my beloved Sodastream which injects CO2 into tap water to create sparkling water. Living in Dublin brings another problem to the fore. The water in Dublin tastes horrendous. I’ve found a solution to this problem too. I bought an eco-friendly water jug called Phox and here’s why I love it.
What Is Phox?
Phox is, quite simply, is a water jug. If it were to do nothing else, it would achieve holding and pouring 2.2 litres of water. Now, if it was just that I wouldn’t be talking about it. There’s a bit of eco-friendly science about this water jug that sets it aside from the competition.
If you have a water filtration jug in your home, there’s a massive chance it’s been designed and built by Brita. Brita is a world leader in the production of water filtration jugs. While they’ve made strides to be more eco-friendly, these traditional-style water filters lead to more than 100 million plastic cartridges ending up in landfills every year. Phox estimates that their eco-friendly water jug has a carbon footprint 70% smaller than the Brita style water jugs.
The Phox water jug has been designed with the reduction of waste in mind. Instead of replacing the filter after every usage cycle is complete, you change the contents of the filter.
How Does The Phox Jug Work?
Phox, in essence, works the same as all water filtration jugs. You fill the jug from a tap and the tap water passes through minerals. This process removes contaminants from the water making it taste and smell less unpleasant. Phox is different because unlikely many water jugs, you empty the minerals required to filter your water into a reusable container inside the jug from a small package. This process dramatically reduces the waste that ends up in a landfill.
Phox offers two different filtration packs:
- Clean Pack
- Alkaline Pack
I’ve only tested the clean pack so far. Given the water in Dublin is so horrible straight from the tap, I just wanted to make our tap water taste nicer. The ultimate goal was to make my own sparkling water and stop buying bottled water. The clean pack can also softens water and makes for a better cup of tea or coffee.
I’m going to try out the alkaline pack too. This pack removes the stink from water but also helps with heartburn.
Is Phox Really An Eco-Friendly Water Jug?
Throughout my review, and I will review this in a minute, I struggled with one element of Phox. A lot of the calculations on carbon footprint and manufacturing are based on the product being used in the UK. It’s not great knowing I have to get my filter packs shipped from the UK. Now that I’ve tested the jug out, I’m going to order at least a year’s supply of filtration packs to reduce on shipping.
Still, even though the jug had to be shipped to Ireland, its manufacturing doesn’t change. To reduce their carbon footprint, Phox found UK companies to supply as many raw materials as possible. All of this second generation Phox jug’s manufacturing, packaging, design and distribution are completed within an 80-kilometre radius of Phox HQ in Glasgow.
At the end of the day, I’m confident that this approach is better than relying on store-bought water in plastic bottles.
Life With The Phox Jug
There’s been some debate over whether or not water jugs are a good idea. For me, given the number of times we’ve seen water quality make the news in Ireland due to declining quality, it’s a no brainer type purchase.
I’m just about to replace my second filter. Each filter lasts for 45 days so I’ve been using the Phox for nearly three months. The first glass of water left me shocked at how effective the Phox is at making Dublin water completely drinkable. I don’t think twice about drinking it. We no longer buy bottled water and are keeping the Sodastream busy.
One massive positive of the jug is just how fast it filters a full reservoir of water. In just 5 minutes you’ll have lovely clean tap water to drink. The Phox team have cleverly created an app that reminds you to change your filter contents. They even send you an email to remind you too. I need things like this in my life.
When it came to ordering my replacement filtration packs, there was some snag with customs. Now that I think of it, the jug itself was slow to arrive because it was coming from the UK, but it did arrive. I’ve since spotted that Amazon stocks the Phox filtration packs. Considering Amazon is about to open a fulfilment centre in Ireland next year, this should make this whole process a lot easier than buying directly from Phox.
I, again, have to call the people of Phox very clever. Once your filtration pack does land, it’ll arrive in a letterbox friendly package. This means your postie is a lot less likely to have a failed delivery, further reducing carbon footprints.
Flaws Of The Phox Jug
While ordering from the UK isn’t ideal, the jug itself isn’t perfect either. Perhaps the biggest flaw of the design is the large circumference of the glass container. It’s so large that it doesn’t fit in my fridge door, something Brita has always been sure to think of. If you overfill the reservoir it won’t filter down into the glass container. I’ve had many occasions where this happens and then when pouring water, unfiltered water leaks from the reservoir.
It’s also a very tall jug. This means anything at all in the sink can make the jug tough to refill. Typically, I use a small kitchen jug to refill it. An easy solution really.
Despite these little snags, I have nothing but positive recommendations if you’re thinking of buying yourself a Phox.
Phox Eco-friendly Water Jug: The Verdict
Let’s recap. I bought this jug from the UK, had various delays in getting it through customs and hit further snags getting my refils. There are some little annoyances about its design too, so how do I feel about the Phox in general? Well, to be honest, I love it. I can’t quite put my finger on why I love it but despite the flaws, it’s a great solution to the problems I was having. Also, during the buying process when I hit snags, their customer care was great.
The Phox nails the two most important things I was after in a water jug. I wanted an eco-friendly alternative to a Brita water jug and I wanted tastier water. Is it the perfect solution? Maybe not, but it solved my problems perfectly.
You can buy the Phox eco-friendly water jug directly from Phox’s website. The jug, with a year’s supply of filtration materials, costs about €80.
