Pioneer Fountain Big Max- Stainless Steel

MILD WATER FLOW FOUNTAIN & SUPER SILENT PUMP!IMPORTANT EDIT: The pump might require weekly maintenance from debris & hard water deposits & other! If your pump doesn't work, it could be just in stasis & ready to come back alive. There is an important video to watch!(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYyTFv_u3Sw)Someone said he still has his pump in working order after 7 years!This product indeed arrived VERY QUICKLY even with free shipping! It could not have come soon enough! I was desperate to get it as soon as possible. Excellent packing. Only two simple main pieces of stainless steel--not 18/10 steel but stainless steel nonetheless--you can quickly wash with soap & they are even dishwater safe. Always wash before use--I don't think they say that, but when humans are concerned, washing new products you use to drink or eat from is always recommended. The instructions are inadequate. Read them however because safety comes first. Once that is done, you have just a few simple components that have to be placed in order & in their place. There is a plastic container (top & bottom piece) that contains both the tiny pump & filter. Rinse the filter as required in the instructions, place it in the self evident place in this plastic component, place the pump in the grooves set for the pump so that the water spout aligns with the water spout opening for the plastic container & then the water spout of the fountain--align align align--putting in the pump in the right place is a piece of cake--super easy--you can't mess up once you got it the first time because the grooves hold it in the right place--just align. The container that has the pump & filter has a specific holding place on the floor of the main fountain piece--you can't miss it--subtle but still clear. Place it as exactly in its place as possible with the suction cups. It might take a few seconds to figure it all out, but it is SUPER EASY. Put the electric cord in the groove designed for the cord & pull the cord thru the opening of the bowl & out. You secure both the pump & the container that holds it by the little suction cups underneath. Don't worry, the suction cups will hold it ALL because the water flow is gentle--IT IS DESIGNED FOR EASY REMOVAL & CLEANING. I goofed because I was in a hurry & tired. I had it all perfectly aligned & plugged it in the socket before I added water! I IMMEDIATELY unplugged it once I heard a strange noise--ha ha, but in the meantime, the vibrations got the pump loose, & nothing worked. I said, "I should have listened to those negative people!" but I aligned it all again & BINGO! WATER came out & it was all good immediately--it does say wait a minute or two for water to come out. When it is all aligned & set up perfectly, DON'T forget to add water BEFORE YOU PLUG IT IN!!! It would be best to wash the fountain first--the steel components. I was REALLY surprised to notice how silent the pump is!The water flow in the main basin is super gentle. You can see the clear bubbling movement of the water coming out of the hole & top basin & the cascade, but the movement in the bowl itself is extremely gentle--BUT IT IS THERE! There is no way to regulate the water flow. However, if you are looking for a stronger flow of water in the main bowl itself, this might not be for you. I highly recommend this because it is safe steel & not some dangerous toxic plastic that is not human grade safe & gets germy. This is super easy to clean & set up & clean & set up all over again. Once you do it, you can do it again even more quickly. I guess they don't have adequate instructions just because it is too easy to set up. (?!) But again have you ever gotten a product with good instructions? I will update this review later. I have two main concerns: 1) that my kitty drinks water--she needs to drink water & 2) the pump: A few reviewers had their pump die too soon. The cord is not that long so I had to use an extension, but be 100% SURE to keep plug away from the water! SAFETY AT A 100% LEVEL.When I received the fountain, I told my kitty she got a present! This fountain is an inviting bowl--AND for my 8 lb kitty, it is HUGE--it is like having her own private pond & so far 1st day this "pond" has already gotten my kitty's attention . . .Next day: My kitty's interest has increased from yesterday & I saw her by the water bowl after supper. I did not see her drinking, but she was there! Time will tell if this bowl will be a success.October 17, 2015: I have noticed an increase in pee pee production. My little kitty had her first UTI & hopefully the last. She was not drinking enough water even if I put spring water in her bowl. I smelled the bowl yesterday & found it to be a bit fishy smelling which proved she was drinking from it, & I decided not to wait for a full week to wash it. Washing it was simple, no plastic complications, no places where germs can hide once washed, no brushes needed--no extra expenses for complicated cleaning. I used regular dish soap, some white vinegar & some baking soda. I put the plastic container back in its place & once the suction cups cling to the bottom, you can still slide the container to align with the rest of the pieces without detaching it from the bottom--really easy!!! All was easy, simple & I am still happy. Even if the pump fails, I won't get rid of the $55 steel fountain that I can use again & again & again. There is a tiny lever on the edge of plastic container. Press this lever IN & the container will pop open. I don't know how difficult it is to get a new plastic container, but I have no desire to find out . . . So far so GOOD! GOOD RESULTS up until now. The flow of water is delicate, but it works & the simple elegant steel design is hygienic. My kitty seems to treasure this fountain as her own private pond. It is NOT too big for her--she feels she deserves it & appreciates it!UPDATE OCTOBER 19, 2015: My kitty LOVES the new fountain & she seems to have abandoned her old water bowl--which I will keep there anyway just in case . . .* I called Whisker City re: a plastic fountain they had--I inquired if the plastic was human-grade safe. It has been well over a week that I have not gotten a response by phone or by e-mail. Go figure! The plastic used for "pets" might just be ashtray quality if not otherwise clearly stated. PBA free does not mean there are no toxins in the plastic & if the plastic does not say PBA free, you can probably figure it might just be ashtray quality plastic & you give this to your family members?

We've had a Drinkwell Platinum at least 4 or 5 years. Kitty loves it, which is the only reason we still have it.The slime factor is disgusting. It really does take 25 - 30 minutes to clean it well using big and little brushes, sponges, and bleach in all the crannies and taking apart and cleaning the pump each time. It seems to be worse in the really hot months. No matter how clean it feels, I worry about Kitty getting sick from the stuff lurking where I can't reach. This week I cleaned it really well on Monday and by Wednesday the slime was back.Not to worry. The new Big Max STAINLESS STEEL - FITS IN THE DISHWASHER - EASY TO HAND WASH - NO NOOKS OR CRANNIES - fountain arrived yesterday.It was simple to assemble and Kitty checked it out right away. She isn't as excited about it as the old one, but today she is drinking from the top. Don't know if she's found the little water fall yet. The Big Max is so quiet I don't hear her drinking anymore so I don't notice when she's there. We could tell from across the room when the cat was at her Drinkwell, whether we could see her or not. Now that the fountain noise is gone I don't miss it at all.I noticed that the stainless steel bowl seems to be keeping the water cooler, too.All the Amazon reviews were helpful as was the youtube video from Pioneer Pet on how to clean the Big Max pump.Someone said it was hard to open the clam shell pump housing. It's not. Just hold the bottom and squeeze the top front to back where it says to. Just push the top back a bit in front to disengage from the bottom and it lifts off. Easy if you know what to expect.I also took the pump apart - same process as the Drinkwell, and even though it's smaller it has the same 4 pieces. Quik enough to clean if the rest of the fountain parts fit in the dishwasher. (And they do! HURRAY!!!!!)Will update the post later on Kitty's customer satisfaction, but the MOM satisfaction is very high regarding ease of use AND peace of mind about clean water and Kitty's health.Another thing to mention is that we also bought two for my parents' town cats and farm cats. How many days can it run without adding water? The idea was for my folks to be able to travel between the two locations for a few days without having a cat sitter. Will take some monitoring, but the instructions say to keep the fountain filled to within 1/2" from the top of the bowl. This may not be the solution for water for 4 days away... I'm sure they'll keep the old standby bowls handy until we know for sure what to expect.Finally, we had the 3 fountains delivered in one order. The first one I opened had a 1" steel cylinder rolling around that we couldn't find accounted for in the assembly instructions. It was a piece called a riser that the cord was supposed to lace through from inside to outside of the bowl. It didn't make sense how it was supposed to fit in...didn't screw on or plug in.When we finally opened the other fountains, we discovered the risers were welded to the back of the bottom bowl and the first one had broken off at the weld during shipping. Amazon arranged for next day UPS pick up and worked through their easy return/refund policy. I had to re-order the 3rd fountain because it was from another seller and shipped through Amazon, but other than taking some web time and a few phone calls, that process was relatively easy as well.The farm kitties are happy with their fresh water fountain, which is an upgrade from a plastic coffee can. The city kitties will have to wait for the next delivery.As for our Drinkwell Platinum, it's trash. I'm sure Kitty will get over it.UPDATE HERE:We've had the new bowl about 10 days. Kitty made the switch really quickly and drinks from the top of the spillway. No problemas. She dances around waiting for me to plug in the Big Max as soon as I set it down for her, so it's obvious Kitty's Customer Satisfaction is high.The stainless does keep the water cooler, but by the end of the first week there was the beginning of slime. Took all of 4 minutes to clean both pans by hand and take apart the pump and put it all back together. Almost too good to be true, but it really is that easy and quick.Drinkwell Platinum users, make the switch. You won't regret it. The only thing I regret is that I paid nearly $100 for the Platinum when it first came out. OUCH.Couldn't be happier with the Big Max. AND am appreciating the QUIET fountain. Wish I'd made the switch a long time ago.UPDATE 7/6/14: Kitty and I still love the fountain. The cat always drinks more from the fountain than she will from a regular bowl. I know she's healthier because if it.Whenever the power has been off or the fountain unplugged, once we have electricity again the pump motor hums but the little yellow fan inside won't start spinning on its own. A light poke with a toothpick to the yellow blades will start it running again. Other than that little quirk, all is well. It would be easy to think it's broken if you didn't know the trick.10/29/19 After 15 months between cats, I plugged in the Big Max yesterday after running it through the dishwasher. Fired right up and Hunter used it immediately. BTW, the 2 Big Max's I gave the folks are still running after all these years! Gotta say that was money well spent.