Water cooler
Encyclopedia
Machine
A machine manages power to accomplish a task, examples include, a mechanical system, a computing system, an electronic system, and a molecular machine. In common usage, the meaning is that of a device having parts that perform or assist in performing any type of work...
that cools and dispenses water
Water
Water is a chemical substance with the chemical formula H2O. A water molecule contains one oxygen and two hydrogen atoms connected by covalent bonds. Water is a liquid at ambient conditions, but it often co-exists on Earth with its solid state, ice, and gaseous state . Water also exists in a...
. They are generally broken up in two categories: bottleless and bottled water coolers. Bottleless water coolers are hooked up to a water supply
Water supply
Water supply is the provision of water by public utilities, commercial organisations, community endeavours or by individuals, usually via a system of pumps and pipes...
, while bottled water coolers require delivery (or self pick up) of water in large bottles from vendors.
The most common form of the watercooler is wall mounted and connected to the building's water supply for a continuous supply of water and electricity
Electricity
Electricity is a general term encompassing a variety of phenomena resulting from the presence and flow of electric charge. These include many easily recognizable phenomena, such as lightning, static electricity, and the flow of electrical current in an electrical wire...
to run a refrigeration
Refrigeration
Refrigeration is a process in which work is done to move heat from one location to another. This work is traditionally done by mechanical work, but can also be done by magnetism, laser or other means...
unit to cool the incoming water, and to the building's waste disposal system to dispose of unused water. Some versions are freestanding floor models, which are becoming more popular in countries where it is not common to drink water straight from the tap
Tap (valve)
A tap is a valve controlling release of liquids or gas. In the British Isles and most of the Commonwealth, the word is used for any everyday type of valve, particularly the fittings that control water supply to bathtubs and sinks. In the U.S., the term "tap" is more often used for beer taps,...
.
Chilled water
Chilled water is a commodity often used to cool a building's air and equipment, especially in situations where many individual rooms must be controlled separately, such as a hotel...
so the user does not have to wait for chilled water. Water is delivered by turning or pressing a button on a spring-loaded valve located on the top of the unit, that turns off the water when released. Some devices also offer a large button on the front or side. Water is delivered in a stream
Stream
A stream is a body of water with a current, confined within a bed and stream banks. Depending on its locale or certain characteristics, a stream may be referred to as a branch, brook, beck, burn, creek, "crick", gill , kill, lick, rill, river, syke, bayou, rivulet, streamage, wash, run or...
that arches up allowing the user to drink directly from the top of the stream of water. These devices usually dispense water directly from the municipal water supply, without treatment
Water treatment
Water treatment describes those processes used to make water more acceptable for a desired end-use. These can include use as drinking water, industrial processes, medical and many other uses. The goal of all water treatment process is to remove existing contaminants in the water, or reduce the...
or filtering.
A newer, free-standing design involves bottles of water, usually treated in some way, placed spout-down into the dispensing machine. To install the bottle, the bottle is tipped upside down and set onto the dispenser, a probe punctures the cap of the bottle and allows the water to flow into the machine's internal reservoir. These machines come in different sizes and vary from table units, intended for occasional use to floor-mounted units intended for heavier use. Bottled Water normally is delivered to the household or business on a regular basis, where empty bottles are exchanged for full ones. Commonly a cup dispenser can be mounted to the side of the unit to keep disposable paper or plastic cups handy for use. The bottle size varies with the size of the unit with the larger versions in the US using 5 gallons (18.9 l) bottles. This is also the most common size elsewhere, labelled as 18.9 litres in countries that use the metric system
Metric system
The metric system is an international decimalised system of measurement. France was first to adopt a metric system, in 1799, and a metric system is now the official system of measurement, used in almost every country in the world...
. Some units offer a refrigeration function to chill the water. These units do not have a place to dump excess water, only offering a small basin
Sink
A sink is a bowl-shaped plumbing fixture used for washing hands, for dishwashing or other purposes. Sinks generally have taps that supply hot and cold water and may include a spray feature to be used for faster rinsing...
to catch minor spills. On the front, a lever or push button dispenses the water into a cup held beneath the spigot. When the water container is empty, it is lifted off the top of the dispenser, and automatically seals to prevent any excess water still in the bottle from leaking.
These gravity-powered systems have a device to dispense water in a controlled manner. Some versions also have a second dispenser that delivers room temperature water or even heated water that can be used for tea
Tea
Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by adding cured leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant to hot water. The term also refers to the plant itself. After water, tea is the most widely consumed beverage in the world...
, hot chocolate
Hot chocolate
Hot chocolate is a heated beverage typically consisting of shaved chocolate, melted chocolate or cocoa powder, heated milk or water, and sugar...
, or instant coffee
Instant coffee
Instant coffee, also called soluble coffee and coffee powder, is a beverage derived from brewed coffee beans. Instant coffee is commercially prepared by either freeze-drying or spray drying, after which it can be rehydrated...
. The water in the alternate hot tap
Tap (valve)
A tap is a valve controlling release of liquids or gas. In the British Isles and most of the Commonwealth, the word is used for any everyday type of valve, particularly the fittings that control water supply to bathtubs and sinks. In the U.S., the term "tap" is more often used for beer taps,...
is generally heated with a heating element
Heating element
A heating element converts electricity into heat through the process of Joule heating. Electric current through the element encounters resistance, resulting in heating of the element....
and a hot tank (much like the traditional hot water heaters used in residential homes). Additionally, the hot tap is usually equipped with a push-in safety valve
Safety valve
A safety valve is a valve mechanism for the automatic release of a substance from a boiler, pressure vessel, or other system when the pressure or temperature exceeds preset limits....
to prevent burns from an accidental or inadvertent pressing of the lever.
Table top or kitchen worktop versions are available which utilise readily available five liter water bottles from supermarkets. For example the one by design house Warwick Design shown. These coolers use air pumps to push the water into the cooling chamber and Peltier devices to chill the water. A new development within the water cooler market is the advent of countertop appliances which are connected to the mains and provide an instant supply of not only chilled water but also boiling hot and hot water. An example of this new technology is the T6 water dispenser. It filters tap water through a double extruded activated carbon block and a 11 watt computer controlled Ultraviolet
Ultraviolet
Ultraviolet light is electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength shorter than that of visible light, but longer than X-rays, in the range 10 nm to 400 nm, and energies from 3 eV to 124 eV...
(UV) lamp.