I'm a big fan of Faucet-style water ionizers. I, like most people, appreciate having one less appliance taking up space on their countertop and like the convenience of a simple ionized water faucet on their sink.  If you are considering purchasing an under the counter or "faucet style" water ionizer there are a few things you should know before making your final decision.  This article is based on experiences from customers who bought this type of water ionizer and some of the surprises they ran into.

POWER

This sounds like a "no-brainer"... of course you'll need to plug the unit in somewhere and many kitchens do have an outlet available under the sink that is used to power a garbage disposal.  But it's not always that simple.  That little switch on the wall next to the sink - you know, the one you use to turn your garbage disposal off and on?  What many people (just like me!) don't fully realize is that "on/off" switch controls the power to the outlet below the sink.  This means that unless the switch is flipped to the "on" position you won't have power to your water ionizer.   If this is how your garbage disposal outlet is wired you'll only be able to run your water ionizer when the garbage disposal is on!  I called around the country and doing some price checks on having an additional outlet installed under the sink.  In most areas, electricians charged around $150 to add an outlet.  For me, that was a reasonable price for the convenience of having the unit under the sink and a nice faucet to dispense ionized water.  If you have a dishwasher it's plugged in under the sink as well - if you have access to that outlet you can plug your under the sink water ionizer in there and avoid the cost of an electrician.

INSTALLATION

Don't panic!  Just because your under the counter unit has a few hoses to connect doesn't mean you can't do it yourself!  Most customers find that they can do the installation themselves in about 30 minutes.  If you do decide to call a plumber, he (or she!) should be able to do the installation in 30 minutes or less.  The installation only requires putting a T-adapter in the cold water line, running it to the unit, then connecting the hoses from the unit itself to the faucet.  Another no brainer but don't forget... you'll need to have a hole on your sink for the faucet.  Many people with a sink sprayer will just remove the sprayer and replace it with their water ionizer faucet.

FAUCET CONVERSION KITS

Jupiter sells a double-spout faucet conversion kit designed for use with the Melody countertop water ionizer.  The kit sells for around $200 and comes in a number of modern and traditional finishes.  The double spout allows you to get alkaline ionized water based on your setting selection from the main spout and the acid water is released from the smaller lower spout - just like the faucets that come with the true under the counter water ionizers.  Convenient.  The one thing to remember if you decide to go with this type of "faucet conversion" is that you will need to access the unit under the counter to change your settings.  Most people leave their water ionizers at one setting most of the time.  With the Melody Faucet Conversion Kit you will need to change the settings under the sink if you want to change to "filtered water," or a higher or lower alkaline setting.  The Jupiter Melody will always default back to the last setting used so you'll want to make sure you adjust the level back to your preferred setting before walking away!  For Water Ionizer Authority's line of Faucet Style under the counter water ionizers please click here.

To check out the Jupiter Melody Faucet Conversion kit and the finish options available, click here.