Review: Drinkpod Ultra Premium Alkaline Water Filter Pitcher
Written by: Gene Fitzgerald // Expert Fact-Checking: Buddhini Dolapihilla, MBSS // Last Updated: Nov 01, 2023
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The Drinkpod Ultra Premium Alkaline Water Filter Pitcher claims to increase water pH providing alkaline drinking water. Plus, there are a few other interesting things to learn about it.
Let’s examine this pitcher’s features, pros, and cons, and see if it’s a good buy.
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Drinkpod Ultra Premium Alkaline Water Filter Pitcher |
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| Price: | $$ |
| Filter Process: | Sediment Filtration, GAC, Ion Exchange, Mineral and Ceramic Balls |
| Filter Life: | 92.5 Gallons |
| Total Storage Volume: | 14.8 Cups |
| Annual Cost: | ~$76.50 |
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Overall Rating: 3.5/5.0 ⓘRating based on filtration performance, filter life, price and yearly cost, NSF testing/certification, customer support, product warranty, our testing/experience, user feedback, and other factors.
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Drinkpod Ultra Premium Alkaline Water Filter Pitcher – All Specs
- Model: PitcherPOD 1XL
- Last Price: $52.00
- Annual Maintenance Cost: ~$76.50
- Filter Media/Process: Sediment Filtration, GAC, Ion Exchange, Mineral and Ceramic Balls
- Filtering Capacity: 92.5 gal or 60 Days
- Total Storage Volume: 14.8 Cups
- Filtered Water Capacity: 8.5 Cups
- Warranty: 1 Year
Drinkpod Ultra Premium Alkaline – Key Features
As the name implies, the Drinkpod Ultra Premium Alkaline Water Filter Pitcher is an alkaline water filter. It’s designed for use on tap water and claims to remove harmful contaminants, improve water taste and odor, and increase water pH.
It treats water using an 8-stage filter process (3 stages of filter media and 5 types of ceramic/mineral balls for raising pH and remineralization):
- Polypropylene micro-mesh: This traps particles and sediment.
- Coconut-based GAC (granular activated carbon): This absorbs chlorine taste and odor, chloramine, heavy metals like lead, organic chemicals, and more.
- Ion Exchange Resin: This stage removes dissolved metals, salts, and minerals like fluoride.
- Far-Infrared balls
- Maifan balls
- Zeolite balls
- Ceramic ORP balls
- Tourmaline balls
The balls in the filter are used to raise water pH to up to 10, mineralize the water (with minerals like calcium, potassium, magnesium, and selenium), and make water rich in antioxidants (the balls achieve this by increasing negative oxidation-reduction potential of the water to between -100 and -200 mv).
The filter media are also silver-infused to help reduce germ contamination.
The Drinkpod Ultra has a total storage volume of 14.8 cups which is enough for family use. It comes in four colors: blue, black, white, and orange.
Each Drinkpod filter cartridge has a lifespan of 92.5 gallons (350 liters) or 60 days. Annual maintenance costs are around $76.50.
Drinkpod Alkaline Water Pitcher Pros
Some of the health benefits associated with the Drinkpod Ultra Premium Alkaline Water Pitcher are that it enhances your energy levels and immune system and that you will hydrate faster and more effectively – all thanks to it providing alkaline drinking water.
Other benefits are that the pitcher is BPA-free, it fits in most refrigerators, and there’s a 1-year full warranty.
What Contaminants Are Being Removed?
The company behind the Drinkpod Ultra Premium says that it removes sediment, chlorine/chloramine, organic chemicals, dissolved salts, heavy metals like lead, and minerals like fluoride. However, no contaminant reduction rates are available online.
Installation
The Drinkpod pitcher is easy to set up and use. Follow these simple steps:
Please consider these instructions as a general guideline. Always make sure to check and follow your user manual before getting started.
- Take out the lid by pulling up on both sides.
- Wash the pitcher, lid, and reservoir with a soft sponge and mild liquid soap (do not wash in a dishwasher). Rinse the components and let them dry.
- Put the reservoir back in the pitcher. Note: The highest part of the reservoir must face the front of the pitcher.
- Next, prepare and install the filter. First, wash your hands, remove the filter from its package, and soak it upright in cold or room-temperature water for 10 minutes. Then, rinse the filter under running water for 10 seconds. Finally, fit the filter into the reservoir firmly.
- Reattach the lid.
- Fill the pitcher with cold or room-temperature water. Discard the first two filtered pitchers.
To enjoy the best results with your pitcher, ensure that the water level is above the bottom at all times (this will help keep the filter moist). Also, put the pitcher in the refrigerator or in any other cool location. If the water in the pitcher has been untouched for several days, throw it out and refill a new pitcher.
The Package (Parts)
- Pitcher with Reservoir
- Filter Cartridge
- Lid
Maintenance
Annual filter maintenance costs around $76.5, which is pretty good. Maintaining the pitcher is pretty simple, too. Here’s how to replace the filter:
- Pull the old filter out of the pitcher.
- Wash your hands, then take the new filter out of its package.
- Soak the filter upright in cold water for 10 minutes, then rinse it under running water for 10 seconds (don’t rinse under hot water).
- Fit the filter back in the reservoir and make sure it fits in snugly. Reattach the lid and fill the pitcher with cold water.
- Discard the first two pitchers of filtered water.
- Your pitcher is now ready for use.
NOTE: Don’t use harsh cleaners or abrasive pads on the pitcher. Don’t clean any part of the pitcher in your dishwasher.
Manual
Here is a link to the official manual:
NSF and Other Certifications
The Drinkpod Ultra has no NSF testing or certifications.
Earlier Product Versions
An earlier version of the Drinkpod Ultra Premium Alkaline Water Pitcher is the Drinkpod Alkaline Water Filter Pitcher which is an older version. The only difference between the two is the jug shape, plus the fill lid on the top looks different. However, both versions use the same filter cartridge.
Drinkpod Water Pitcher Cons
Drinkpod’s major selling point is it providing “alkaline water”. Unfortunately, there’s no scientific research backing alkaline water benefits. It’s mostly just anecdotal evidence and unverified claims.
Also, the Drinkpod water filter pitcher has no NSF testing or certifications for contaminant reduction whatsoever. It doesn’t help that the company website doesn’t convey a lot of trust either. Plus, the product information on the website is extremely limited, and we don’t think that’s a good sign.
The pitcher’s design also gives us some room for concern. About 50% of the space reserved for filter media is used up by the balls (ceramic balls, mineral balls, etc.). In other words, there’s not a whole lot of room for the actual filtration media that takes out harmful contaminants. We don’t expect very powerful filtration.
Finally, we saw complaints about the pitcher’s material being too fragile.
Drinkpod Ultra Premium Alkaline Review: Our Verdict + Best for
We doubt the Drinkpod Ultra Premium Alkaline Water Pitcher can be used to remove more serious contamination. But if your tap water is generally clean and all you want is improve its taste and you are into alkaline drinking water, then it could make a decent choice. Biggest con is certainly the lack of NSF testing/certification. Considering the price, we give it 3.5 stars.
Our Rating in Detail:
- Filtration Performance: 3.0/5.0
- Filter Capacity (Life): 4.5/5.0
- Purchase Price: 4.0/5.0
- Annual Cost: 5.0/5.0
- Overall: 3.5/5.0
Comparison to Other Water Filter Pitchers
Let’s compare the Drinkpod Ultra Premium to two competitors: the Seychelle Gen 2 Dual pH20 Water Filter Pitcher (another alkaline pitcher) and the Clearly Filtered Pitcher (not an alkaline pitcher).
Clearly Filtered |
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| Price: | $$$ |
| Filter Process: | Carbon + Composite Shell |
| Filter Capacity: | 100 gal |
| Total Storage Volume: | 17 Cups |
| Annually: | ~$150 |
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Overall Rating: 5.0/5.0 ⓘRating based on filtration performance, filter life, price and yearly cost, NSF testing/certification, customer support, product warranty, our testing/experience, user feedback, and other factors.
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Seychelle Gen 2 Dual pH2O |
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| Price: | $$$ |
| Filter Process: | Activated Carbon, Ion Exchange, Mineralization |
| Filter Capacity: | 150 gal |
| Storage Volume: | 8 Cups |
| Annually: | ~$120-180 |
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Overall Rating: 4.5/5.0 ⓘRating based on filtration performance, filter life, price and yearly cost, NSF testing/certification, customer support, product warranty, our testing/experience, user feedback, and other factors.
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Drinkpod Ultra Premium |
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| Price: | $$ |
| Filter Process: | Sediment Filtration, GAC, Ion Exchange, Mineral and Ceramic Balls |
| Filter Capacity: | 92.5 gal |
| Total Storage Volume: | 14.8 Cups |
| Annually: | ~$76.50 |
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Overall Rating: 3.5/5.0 ⓘRating based on filtration performance, filter life, price and yearly cost, NSF testing/certification, customer support, product warranty, our testing/experience, user feedback, and other factors.
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The Seychelle Gen 2 Dual pH2O increases water alkalinity up to 9.5 through mineralization. It also filters water using activated carbon and ion exchange resin. The Seychelles’ contaminant reduction rates were independently tested against NSF standards 42 and 53, and the results are pretty neat. Here are some:
- 90.91% chlorine
- ~99.8% of dozens of VOCs
- ~98-99% PFOA/PFOS
- ~90% arsenic
- ~95% aluminum
- 95-96% chromium
- 93.5-96% lead
- 98.6% fluoride
- 97.7% nitrate
- 85.5% nitrite
Overall, the Seychelle pitcher is probably more powerful than the Drinkpod, but we can’t really say for sure since Drinkpod doesn’t provide any lab reports.
The Seychelle is also easy to maintain and has a lifespan of 150 gallons per cartridge — this is much more than the Drinkpod offers.
It’s made from non-BPA leaching plastics, and the filter cartridges are made in the USA.
Cons: It has a short 90-day warranty (Drinkpod has one year). Annual maintenance cost is also higher than with the Drinkpod (around $120-180). Filtered water capacity is also a bit low (only 8 cups). And there’s been some issues with filter cartridges clogging ahead of time.
Onto the Clearly Filtered Pitcher: The Clearly Filtered Pitcher is not an alkaline water pitcher, but it’s definitely a premium model. It’s been third-party tested against NSF standards 42, 53, and 401. This testing shows that the Clearly Filtered Pitcher can remove over 300 water contaminants. This is definitely the most testing we’ve ever seen for a water filter pitcher, and the contaminant reduction rates are really impressive — it completely beats the Drinkpod here.
The CF pitcher removes contaminants like semi-volatile compounds, DBPs, lead, pharmaceuticals, fluoride, chromium-6, chlorine, chloramine, arsenic, PFAS, and radiologicals.
Its filter life is also much longer than with the Drinkpod — a comfortable 100 gallons, or around four months.
The Clearly Filtered has a total storage of 17 cups and a 10-cup filtered volume. It also comes with a removable lid that simplifies the refilling process. All Clearly Filtered Pitchers are made from 100% BPA-free materials and built in the USA. Customers of Clearly Filtered get a limited lifetime warranty and a 30-day satisfaction guarantee — this throws Drinkpod out of the ring.
The only real downside of Clearly Filtered Pitchers is that they’re expensive to buy and maintain.
Bottom line: The Clearly Filtered Pitcher is far ahead of the others in terms of contaminant removal. The Seychelle pitcher comes second. It’s our favorite alkaline water filter pitcher, mainly because it has solid NSF testing. The Drinkpod doesn’t have any NSF testing or reduction rates to go by, so we’re skeptical about how many contaminants it can remove. We only recommend the Drinkpod if you’re working with a lower budget.
More Reviews:
This completes our review of the Drinkpod Ultra Premium Alkaline Water Filter Pitcher. If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to leave a comment below!
About the Author Gene Fitzgerald
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