We recently mentioned the Brita 35540 Ultramax Dispenser in our article comparing pitcher filters. Brita and Pur are the two brand names that most people think of when it comes to water purification and one of Brita’s most popular items is the Brita 35530 Ultramax Dispenser. So how does this model stack up to its competitors? Is it worth the $30+ price tag? How well does it filter and purify water? How well does it remove contaminants?
No reason to beat around the bush here. The Brita 35530 Ultramax is not a great product. Sure, it will remove most of the contaminants from your water, including chlorine, and it will make your water taste and smell better. It also has a great electronic reminder so that you know exactly when it’s time to replace a filter. This lets you get the most out of each filter while ensuring that you are still purifying your water.
However, the brita filter is not as effective as its PUR counterparts when it comes to removing impurities, contaminants, and chemicals. Also, many people notice that pieces of black charcoal can occasionally become dislodged from the brita filter and they can end up in the lower half of the container.
Perhaps the most flawed aspect of this product is the spigot design. It is prone to leaking and it’s also poorly located. When the water gets down to a certain level, the spigot is too high for the water despite the fact that there may be a significant amount of filtered water left to drink. Tilting the dispenser makes the water more accessible, but even still, it’s hard to get all the water out. In any case, you shouldn’t have to do this if the product had been well designed. You have to wonder what kind of quality control and product testing this thing went through before it hit the market.
Another point lost for the Brita filter is the bulky size. Pur makes a product with a similar volume, but it is slim and easily fits in a refrigerator with plenty of room to spare. The same cannot be said for this particular Brita filter. Yes, it holds a lot of water, but it also takes up a lot of room.
If you are interested in a quality pitcher and dispenser style of filter, check out our PUR DS-1800Z 2-Stage Water Dispenser review. This has been a much more reliable product for us. The design is excellent and the functionality is superb. It’s more effective as a filter, holds a similar capacity, is priced more affordably and it does not have problems with leaking or inaccessible water. When it comes to pour through filters, this is our all star.
If you have a particular pour through dispenser filter that you are a big fan of, please share it with us in the comments. Also, if you have found that our review of this Brita dispenser does not align with yours, please tell us about your own experience. We would love to think that this product is better than the performance it offered us.
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