Although they are both top names in the boiling water office tap, there are some big differences between the boiling and chilled taps from Zip and Brita Vivreau which are not immediately obvious.

Before we look at those differences, it is important to point out that both of the products we will look at here are excellent quality, and very good value for money in a commercial environment.

 

Both companies come with unquestionable reputations – Zip has certainly been in the UK boiling water market for many years and has a market-leading position, and of course, everyone is aware of the experience and reputation of BRITA as the leader in the provision of filtered water products.

We’ll look at each of their models which are intended for a large office environment (i.e. more than 50 users, who don’t all require a hot drink at the same time but have reasonably even demand during the day).

These models we are comparing are capable of delivering both instant boiling water and instant chilled water – both of which are filtered by internal taste and odour filters.

The models are the Zip BC240/175G5 (H55705Z00UK), and the BRITA Vivreau Extra 85 C1HM C-Tap, and the main points to note are:

  1. Both of these taps can be situated over a sink, or away from the sink on its own drip tray which drains to waste: with Zip, this is an added cost extra but comes included as standard with the Brita.
  2. If you are in a hard water area, you will need some form of limescale protection – this is available on both models but is a chargeable option on the Zip (in the form of a replaceable filter) but included as standard on the BRITA Vivreau as an electromagnetic scale reducer which does not need replacing.
  3. Something which always needs careful consideration is whether the under-sink units will in fact fit into the space you have available (it is not uncommon for under-sink cupboards to be hacked around in various ways!). In terms of depth, the Zip is 520mm and the Vivreau cooler unit is a fair bit less at 473mm.
  4. Something which always needs careful consideration is whether the under-sink units will in fact fit into the space you have available (it is not uncommon for under-sink cupboards to be hacked around in various ways!). In terms of depth, the Zip is 470mm and the Vivreau is 320mm.
  5. The Brita taps come in 2 different heights: 260mm and 330mm to cope with taller flasks/jugs etc. The Zip one has an option of purchasing a shaft extension for this purpose, but even with this, it doesn’t offer anywhere near the Brita dispensing heights.
  6. The Brita has better hygiene credentials than the Zip, including a unique ‘thermal gate’ feature.
  7. The Brita also has the option of an easy access panel (effectively a remote control) which can be sited at a lower level for wheelchair users.
  8. The warranty on both products is an on-site warranty, so an engineer will come out and fix it with no need for the end user to uninstall it. Both brands offer a 24-month warranty.
     

Here’s a summary of these points, and some more detail on the measurements: