I've had the Cat Mate Pet Fountain for almost a year now and I love it. My cat won't drink from anything else. It is much easier to keep clean than the PetMate Fresh Flow model it replaced. One of my favorite features is that the water goes through the filter before it goes through the pump. Ya think?
My least favorite feature is the filter itself. It's a blue plastic cartridge filled with carbon gravel and layers of polyester-type filter. It works great, but needs cleaned about once a week to keep the slime away. The main problem with the filter is that when you need a new one, you have to replace the entire plastic assembly! What an unnecessarily wasteful expense. I tried squeezing my leftover PetMate filters into the plastic case until I ran out of them. Then I Googled in vain for a filter hack. I found a few discontinued products people had tried, but that wasn't going to help me.
At some point in my search I came across aquarium and pond filter supplies. It was worth a risk. These seemed to be the same basic materials, designed to keep water clean enough to keep fish alive: It ought to be good enough for my cat.
Amazingly, I hit the jackpot on my first trial! I ordered cut-to-fit polyester and carbon filter pads from Amazon.com, thinking I'd find a way to squeeze them into the leftover blue cartridge. The carbon sheet is actually much thicker and more rigid than I expected, and can be used without the plastic case! Because it's cut-to-fit, this should work for a wide variety of pet fountains.How to make filters for pet drinking fountains
You will need: empty Cat Mate filter cartridge
rotary cutter and self-healing mat
straight edge
scissors
Fold the polyester pad in half lengthwise, or as we teachers say, "hot dog" style. Use the empty cartridge to measure and mark a strip the width of the filter. Cut through both layers with your rotary cutter. Measure and mark the lengths, and cut.
Use a couple of the polyester pieces to measure a strip of the carbon fiber. This material is much thicker than the rotary cutter blade, so it didn't cut all the way through. I finished the job with my scissors.
The polyester pad is machine washable and can even be bleached if you then treat it with a dechlorinator. Most manufacturers recommend using vinegar to clean pet fountains and cycle through your pump.
And there we have yet another amazing use for vinegar! Can I buy stock in the stuff?
Update: I noticed the filter was working so well, by the time it needed cleaning, the pump was actually struggling to find water. I think I'll take out the second layer of polyester after all. It'd be better to let a little gunk go through the pump than burn it up completely.
You have a very nice content about pet water fountain. I want also to have like this because I don't want my pets to drink anywhere. So if they have like this I can ensure that the water they drink was clean right? So thank you so much for posting your blog. Keep on sharing!
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I would like to say thanks, This was nice tips about pet drinking fountains. Really i like it. Thanks ...
ReplyDeleteThe pumps cannot 'burn up', they are loose-core impellers, without brushes, and no matter how far they 'slow down' they can never actually burn up... one of the manufacturer's better, and more high-quality design choices. If you prefer two layers of polyester, feel free. any pump slowing is generally due to hard water build-up.
ReplyDeleteHi Jane:
ReplyDeleteI just read your "how to" article and have a few comments. I have had this cat fountain for many years now and my cats have always liked it. I have to clean it every 2-3 weeks as dust, dirt particles, car hair all collect in it.
So, first, the filter is only part of the problem. Yes they are expensive to buy new. I use mine repeatedly by OPENING the blue filter with the side tabs, being careful not to spill the charcoal pellets. These can be replaced from time to time if you wish by buy a bag of these charcoal pellets. The white filter can be now be removed washed easily by hand with soap, no chlorine. Rinse thoroughly so the cats don't taste any soap residue. Reassemble. Your idea of occasionally replacing this white filter with a cut to fit is a good one. Your "black sand" is debris from the black pad. Did you rinse it before installing?
Point 2. The motor must be cleaned too, at the very least on the outside where debris will clog up the water intake to the motor and make the entire fountain run slower. That's what causes the gurgling sound, assuming the water level is not too low. This is even more important than the blue filter. I clean the inside of the motor too which is easy to disassemble after pulling the front cover off it. The impeller blade is removed by a quick jerking motion as it is magnetic. I clean every thing with a Q-tip, thin cloth and a knife tip to reach the smaller areas. Also clean the tube where the water bubbles up to the top of any debris/slime. This will give the cats better water quality. Obviously the entire fountain is wiped over as it too collects "slime". No soap needed.
If your motor ever stops working, they can be bought separately. Look for numbers/info on it to get the same one.I think these fountains are getting harder to find.
Hope this helps someone in some small way.
Charcoal is used to filter out impurities, just like your "Brita" filter jug. I'm sure (like me) most cats aren't too bothered about drinking purified water over normal tap water, so the charcoal probably isn't all that useful. If you replace the water at least once a week then it should never get into a bad enough state for the charcoal to make a difference. (And have you ever held a Cat Mate filter up to the light to see how little charcoal is inside?!).
ReplyDeleteWhat's more important is that you have something to prevent hairs and other debris from reaching the pump. I simply use an old Cat Mate blue filter case (with the original filter medium removed), open it up then clamp it shut over a piece of "weed stop" (geotextile) fabric. It's quick, costs next to nothing, and does the job!
I agree with you about the charcoal. If you look at the back of the blue filter, there's maybe a dozen pieces of charcoal. I have been reusing the same filter, putting very little soap on a toothbrush and lightly scrubbing the filter material, then thoroughly rinsing it. I wash the complete unit, disassembling the pump and washing the entire fountain every 2 to 3 weeks. There's always hair and debris at the black pumps' water entry point. Your idea sounds good too. Thanks for the idea.
ReplyDeleteHi there. interesting to find this because I am finding that these filters are so expensive and what's worse is they last maybe two weeks. I have been trying to find out what the white pellets are in the filter. Other than that I think I can make my own with the reusing the plastic ummmm what is that called "shell" that holds the charcoal and those white pellets. And I wonder if any of your followers would know if I actually need those. What's your take on it? Thank you so much for your blog btw.
ReplyDeleteThe white stuff is ion exchange resin. It softens the water.
DeleteThanks for all the useful tips!
ReplyDeleteGood column. I've had the Cat Mate Fountain for a couple of months, have one cat, and not happy with specks of charcoal winding up in the water. This is after less than two weeks with the same filter. Why is that happening? The filter goes in only one way, so I know I'm not putting it in wrong. First I was changing filter every 3 weeks, now every two. Soon it will be every week. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteUpdate. I bought a sheet of white filter material and a bag of charcoal to renew my filters. I just make sure I keep all the blue plastic "cages" I have. I now throw out the white filter and the charcoal, wash the blue cage, cut a new 2"x4" white filer, add the amount of charcoal I feel is needed. I think I will put the charcoal in the cage & rinse it thoroughly as some charcoal debris will come out, then add the white filter material. I keep two "refurbished" ones on hand now, ready to go. Change filter, water, complete clean about once 4+ weeks as needed.
ReplyDeleteIt is very informative and enjoyable article. love to read it.
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I do not use the charcoal filter. It removes the small chlorine residual left in drinking water at the treatment plant. The purpose of the chlorine residual is to remove biological contamination that comes in later (from cat spit maybe?). Some confirmation of this is that filters like Brita which remove chlorine among other things ask you to store the water in the frig to prevent stuff growing in there with no chlorine. My cat would not like her fountain in the frig.... Once a week I take it completely apart (including pump parts)and wash with Clorox, detergent, and brushes and rinse thoroughly--very clean. I add fresh water every evening as the level goes down, thereby adding more chlorine if the residual has been used up. Not a bad idea to use some other kind of filter other than charcoal to remove other bits of dirt and dead ants that might get in there.
ReplyDeleteHow thick is the "sandwich" and each of the layers? Also, the poly pad is discontinued; do you know an alternative?
ReplyDeleteSearch aquarium polishing filter pad. They can be cut to size needed.
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As we keep filling up our beautiful planet with single-use plastic, I try to finds ways to reduce and reuse. This is along the lines of what I was thinking of doing to reuse the Cat Mate filters! Thank you for posting your findings!
ReplyDeleteUnfiltered tap water will significantly reduce your pet's time on earth. And can cause many problems such as kidney & bladder disease. Stick with the charcoal. Chlorine, bleaches, ( rubber band residue) etc. are great for cleaning and what not , but not for drinking!
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