Tom's Guide Verdict
The PetSafe Drinkwell Water Fountain won’t prevent water from getting on your floor, but it comes close.
Pros
- +
Large bowl
- +
Reduces spilled water on floor
- +
Easy to know when to add water
Cons
- -
A bit fussy to clean
- -
Doesn’t completely prevent splashes
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Can the PetSafe Drinkwell water fountain keep my dog from splashing water all over the floor? That was the biggest question I had when installing this $65 water fountain. When we moved into our house, my wife and I had two cats. But when we adopted Hunter, an 8-year-old lab/beagle mix, we found that the water fountain that worked perfectly well for our feline friends was completely inadequate for our 65-pound canine.
In fact, we tried two different water fountains, but with both, Hunter’s lapping would cause a good amount of water to splash out of the bowl and onto the surrounding wood floor. I tried placing successively larger mats underneath the fountain, but water kept splashing out and seeping under the mats, to the point where the wood became warped. I resorted to ripping up the floorboards and installing tile, but knew that this wasn’t a great solution to the sloshing. Enter the PetSafe Drinkwell.
PetSafe Drinkwell 2 Gallon Pet Fountain: Price and availability
The Drinkwell 2-gallon model costs $64.95; Petsafe sells a 1-gallon model for $44.95, and a half-gallon model for $34.95.
Replacement foam filters cost $4.99 for a pack of two; replacement carbon filters cost about $5 for a pack of four. Each filter should last 2-4 weeks, according to the company.
PetSafe Drinkwell 2 Gallon Pet Fountain: Setup
Unlike our previous water fountains, the Drinkwell has a few more parts, which made the setup process a bit longer. First, the water pump has to be seated in the bottom of the bin, with a porous foam filter surrounding it. This filter does the heavy work of keeping hair out of the pump, and does a very good job at that.
Next, you place the carbon filter on top of the pump, and above that, a tube for the water to flow to the top of a small tower. At the top of the tower is a smaller holding area with a small cutout for the water to cascade down into the bowl.
Assembling everything isn’t difficult, but there are definitely more steps to change a filter and clean the bowl than with other pet fountains.
PetSafe Drinkwell 2 Gallon Pet Fountain: Performance
Long story short: Hunter is still a slobberer, and water still gets out of the bowl. However, I’ve learned that by keeping the water level in the fountain about two inches below the top rim, far less water ends up on the floor than before. The Drinkwell also has two small cutouts where it meets the floor, so presumably any water that gets underneath can evaporate. I’d still recommend placing it on a mat if you’re worried about the floor underneath.
Because you can see how much water is in the tank, it’s also a lot easier to know when you need to add water to the fountain. This was one of the problems we had with our previous water fountain; there was no way to know if it was low until we heard the pump wheezing away.
PetSafe Drinkwell 2 Gallon Pet Fountain: Verdict
Will the PetSafe Drinkwell 2 Gallon Pet Fountain cure all your watery messes? Sadly, in my case it did not. But, it made those messes far less severe than before. Maybe that’s the best you can hope for.
