Hack SodaStream to Get Cheaper and Tastier Bubbles

Early in the pandemic, when people were desperately looking for toilet paper, I complained about a much less important asset: SodaStream canisters. They became unobtainable, and the frothy liquid I was addicted to was replaced by dull tap water.

Turns out you don’t need replacement canisters, you just need what’s in them: carbon dioxide. In particular, you need liquid CO₂, and there are cheaper and more environmentally friendly ways to get it.

While some have found ways to refill these canisters through a convoluted process involving a paintball , there’s a really simple solution: get a real CO₂ tank.

Enter: airgas

You can purchase any size of CO₂ tank, but most people will want to start with a small 20 gallon tank. It takes up more space than your Sodastream alone, but you can hide it in a closet, under a table, or behind a door. I docked mine under a tea and drink station, and yes, I can hear you judging me for having a drinking station, over the internet.

Getting your hands on a tank is as easy as calling Airgas , driving your car and buying it. You will buy the tank itself and the CO₂ it contains. In the future, you’ll simply return the tank and refill it, which turns out to be inexpensive.

How inexpensive? The tank itself cost me about $170 and included the first batch of CO₂. Three years later, no refueling was required, but refueling will cost about $40. You throw it in the car and pull up to the door. The whole process takes about twenty minutes.

Sure, the tank is expensive, but cushion that. I changed a new SodaStream canister every six weeks. Even with the exchange price of $15, that’s still $360 over three years, not $170.

Connecting your new tank

You will need to purchase a kit to connect the SodaStream to your new tank, and while you can assemble it yourself, you don’t need to. You can buy a hose adapter on Amazon from a variety of sellers for less than $40.

To set it up, remove the canister from the Sodastream, screw in one side of the adapter, and attach the other to the new tank.

From now on, when you place a bottle of water in the SodaStream, you open the valve on the reservoir for a second or two as you press down on the SodaStream to create bubbles and then re-tighten it. To get very sparkling water, all you need is a quick, two-second burst of CO₂.

The water will taste a little brighter and cleaner, and most people prefer it. Of course I know.

You can also go to the next logical step, which will skip the SodaStream entirely and just get the CO₂ directly from the tank . You can order ten gallons of diet cola syrup , put up a few bar stools, and hire a temperamental waiter who is constantly looking for someone to pick up his shift so he can call back. Really commit.

Or, you know, just make your SodaStream a little more efficient and be done with it.