POU Water Cooler vs. 5 Gallon Water Dispenser

People standing in line to use a water cooler

Last Updated: 8/6/2020

point of use (POU) water cooler differs greatly from its 5 gallon water dispenser predecessors in that the water is filtered on-site, right within the filtered water cooler itself. Water in a 5-gallon jug, on the other hand, is pre-filtered and bottled at an off-site manufacturing plant then delivered to a home or business. Like traditional water coolers, POU water coolers’ primary function is to provide easy access to clean, filtered water, with the bonus that it doesn’t require a bottle to refill the tank. A POU water cooler can also be referred to as a bottleless water cooler. You will see it called both in this article.

Quench POU water coolers offer a reliable, cost-effective, and environmentally friendly filtered drinking water solution. They free you from the hassles that come with a bottled water delivery service.

POU Water Coolers are Less Expensive

Bottling water is an expensive and inefficient process. Our research shows that the average company of 50 workers spends over $4,200 annually for a bottled water delivery service and $3,400 annually for a 5 gallon water dispenser service. In contrast, a bottleless water dispenser costs a company of 50 employees about $700 every year on average. That means you could add more bottleless water coolers to your office, and it would still be cheaper than a bottled water delivery service.

The Natural Resource Defense Council estimates that 90% of the cost of bottled water is not for the water in the bottle, but for other expenses – bottling, packaging, shipping, marketing, retailing, and of course profit! These costs are passed to you as well as the costs associated with the trucks, drivers, and fuel that delivers the bottled water to your office.

Bottleless water dispensers, on the other hand, are inexpensive and efficient, filtering the water you are already paying for. Quench bottleless water coolers eliminate bottled water costs, providing a virtually endless supply of clean, great-tasting filtered water for pennies a day. Typically, Quench customers save up to 50% more than those who pay for bottled water delivery services.

POU Water Coolers are More Convenient

Quench POU filtered water coolers are a more convenient alternative to traditional bottled water delivery services. Businesses with bottleless water dispensers don’t have to worry about tracking or managing their building’s water consumption, storing 5-gallon water jugs, or lifting 40-pound water jugs. Best of all, buildings that go bottleless don’t have to or worry about running out of filtered water. Quench POU filtered water coolers provide a virtually endless supply of clean, great-tasting filtered water.

POU Water Coolers are Cleaner

Even the cleanest tap water must travel through miles and miles of water infrastructure before it reaches your building. Corrosion of old water pipes leads to a build-up of oxidized heavy metals that can leach contaminants into the water.

Traditional 5 gallon water dispensers aren’t necessarily a cleaner alternative. Bottled water systems are “open” systems, meaning every time the jug is changed, the water in the bottle and the cooler reservoir are open to airborne toxins, like dirt and micro-organisms, which can contaminate your water.

Even worse, the reservoir often develops a coating of “biofilm” or a build-up of microbial matter that can break free and enter the water cooler (the “floaters” that sometimes appear in the jug water coolers). Biofilm is an acknowledged problem – the International Bottled Water Association (IBWA) recommends that bottled water coolers be thoroughly sanitized with an anti-microbial disinfectant (like bleach) at least every 3 months.

Quench POU filtered water coolers, on the other hand, provide a virtually endless supply of clean, great-tasting filtered water on-demand. No more worries about what could be in your pipes. Or what happens during flu season when a co-worker with not-so-clean hands grabs the neck of a new 5-gallon water jug? Or where the dust that collects the top of a stored bottle ends up?

Bottleless Water Coolers are Eco-Friendlier

Bottling water is not only expensive, it is wasteful of the planet’s resources. In one year, the manufacturing of plastic jugs, the bottling of water, and the bottled water delivery service:

  • Eats up 140 million kilowatt-hours of electricity
  • Burns 6 million gallons of fuel
  • Dumps 70 million pounds of plastic waste into landfills and waterways
  • Wastes millions of gallons of water

Quench research found that a standard Quench bottleless water cooler prevents approximately 150 5-gallon plastic water jugs – or 6,000 8 oz. single-use plastic water bottles – from ending up in landfills and waterways each year. 

Get a Quench Bottleless Water Cooler Today!

Switching out your 5 gallon water dispenser with a POU water cooler is a smart choice. It will save you time and money, not to mention bottleless water coolers are cleaner and better for the environment. It’s a win-win solution!

Check out Quench filtration advantages to learn more about why our POU water coolers will help upgrade your work environment.

When looking for a bottled water delivery service near you, consider a bottleless water cooler instead. Our Quench Water Experts are located across the United States. Therefore, clean, great-tasting filtered water is never far away. Head over to our local water experts page to find the nearest bottleless water dispenser.