Soda Club

[Agur's Wish]

I don't know i this has been posted before but a life saver on our Diet Pepsi loving boat has been the soda club machine. It's a compact machine that holds CO2 cartridges and you order whatever flavor mixes you like. They come with reusable bottles so there's no trash to mess with. Our friends that use tonic water swear by it. The only problem is getting the CO2 cartridges back and forth to the states since you can't fly them. We usually find a friend that's coming by boat to bring them. Down in the islands they are a real money saver and trash saver. Check it out at www.sodaclub.com Sorry, no alcoholic mixes yet.

First Mate Mary
A First Mate's Rules of The Road

[rebel heart]

Thanks for the recommendation; I was looking for someone who had some experience with this.

[AnchorageGuy]

Here is someone that has used it at

BlueJacket: 2007 Cruising Schedule and New Boat Projects, USA

and

BlueJacket: Deltaville, VA and Final Thoughts on this Season, USA

[Hud3]

We used it while in the States and were very happy with the product, the service and the lower cost. But they can't ship the CO2 cylinders overseas, so we're now back to buying carbonated beverages.

[Pblais]

Friends had one for 7 years in Venezuela. I need to ask how they got the cartridges. I think the system they have uses an exchange where you trade them in for a full one. Boaters World here carries them. They make a lot on one cartridge. You have not been able to fly on the plane with them since almost forever and before all the new 9/11 rules. You could obviously carry a lot of them in a small space.

[Hud3]

We did the exchange thing while in the States. They sent the filled bottles in sturdy shipping containers, which we used to return the empties. It was by ground transport, though. I don't think the airlines will handle them.

[Pblais]

I don't think the airlines will handle them.

Nope. Not since the plane crash in FL. You can transport inflatable PFD's and some quanities of spray can products. That is about all they allow in luggage. I need to ask my friend how they got the cartridges.

[Lodesman]

Originally Posted by Agur's Wish

The only problem is getting the CO2 cartridges back and forth to the states since you can't fly them.

Any reason you couldn't get the cartridge refilled locally, at a gas-supply service?

[Ex-Calif]

Almost every thread here gets my brain working...

So how was carbonated water made before God invented CO2 canisters.

Turns out a fellow named Joseph Priestly had one method that didn't require compressed CO2.

"Priestly later developed a method for using sulfuric acid on chalk to produce carbon dioxide gas and then spreading this to bowls of flat water. - wisegeek.com"

Anyone interested in storing sulphuric acid and chalk on their boat? How about shipping a gallon or so to the Carribean?

[MidLandOne]

If desperate one could nick a little sulphuric acid out of the batteries - always knew there was a major advantage to flooded batteries .

[Sunspot Baby]

We have heard other cruisers raving about the Soda Club. We have been getting by without soda and buying tonic as we went. This year we have a Soda Club machine for our 6 month cruise to the Bahamas.

Any of you experienced users have recommendations on how many CO2 cartridges and jars of mix/syrup to take?

We tested the new unit here at the house and are pleased with the diet cola mix. We are diet Coke drinkers generally and found the mix to be a reasonable substitute.

George

[JusDreaming]

[quote=Sunspot Baby;216091]We have heard other cruisers raving about the Soda Club. We have been getting by without soda and buying tonic as we went. This year we have a Soda Club machine for our 6 month cruise to the Bahamas.

Any of you experienced users have recommendations on how many CO2 cartridges and jars of mix/syrup to take?

We tested the new unit here at the house and are pleased with the diet cola mix. We are diet Coke drinkers generally and found the mix to be a reasonable substitute.


We drink a lot of cokes,coke addicts, and it takes us three bottles of gas for 6 months. We found that a little less of both gas and syrup suited our taste a bit better

[Agur's Wish]

We agree with Denny and Diane. Better to have too much than not enough since it is almost impossible to get the CO2 containers down there. Now if they just made a Jack Daniels mix.

[philip van praag]

by the sound of what you are all saying there is a simular product in the uk called soda streem was verry popular for a time not so much now.
but the cartrage used are not maid only for the product
nearly all products that use a presure gas cylinder are used in other things
you need to look around
in my case i found the same co2 cylinder used in the welding industry allso used in co2 supply to fish tanks to help aquatic plants grow
try serching web sites for gas supplyers to industry !
well thats my 2pence worth hope it helps

[cabo_sailor]

Has anyone tried using a normal seltzer bottle? They take the much smaller CO2 cartridges such as those used on a pellet pistol or some small life jackets.
This is what I'm referring to:

Nobody Knows Anything » Seltzer wars