Any organization that we sign with as an affiliate is usually an organization we believe in, or at least patronize. We’ve signed up as an affiliate for Soda Club because we own their product and we like it…it is as simple as that.

Soda Club offers a kit for complete soda making. It consists of two components. One is a CO2 injector which turns regular water into carbonated water, and the other is the variety of syrups they offer.

They sell three different soda makers. The Fountainjet, the Edition 1, and the Penguin. The Fountainjet and the Edition 1 are very similar. The major difference is that the Fountainjet is white and the Edition 1 and black and silver. They both use the same heavy-duty plastic bottles. The more expensive Penguin uses 620ml glass carafes. All three offer a three year warranty.

We bought the basic model…the Fountainjet.

Flavor-wise…all of the regular flavors are sweetened with a mix of sugar and Splenda. The diet flavors use Splenda. Compared to commercial brands, they have less sodium and caffeine than their counterparts. They are also kosher, for those of you who are Jewish. Regular flavors include: Apple Peach, Cola, Cranberry Raspberry, Cream, Fountain Mist(Mountain Dew), Ginger Ale, Grape, Lemon Line(Sprite), Orange, Orange Mango, Pete’s Choice(Dr. Pepper), Pink Grapefruit, Root Beer, Tonic, and Vanilla Cola. It also offers an energy drink and a variety of diet flavors including: Diet Caffeine-Free Cola, Diet Cola, Diet Cream, Diet Fountain Mist(Mountain Dew), Diet Ginger Ale, Diet Lemon Lime(Sprite), Diet Orange, Diet Pete’s Choice(Dr. Pepper), Diet Pink Grapefruit(Fresca), Diet Root Beer, Diet Tonic, and Diet Vanilla Cola.

If you don’t like their flavors, you can always make your own. Their offerings are at least as good as generic soda brands. And our favorite advantage…no lugging soda bottles from the store then having to lug a bag of empties to the curb on recycling day.

Just so you don’t think we are being biased, we offer this review by Gizmodo. Essentially, the system is easy, supplies are inexpensive to mail order, and it is so cool to say you make your own soda. The idea is catching on.

We believe in the Big Three environmental principles – REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE…but we don’t always go as far as we’d like to. Sure…we’ve championed the replacement of Compact Fluorescent lightbulbs in the building(and we mean to write more on that). But when we go to stores, we still get plastic shopping bags.

Of course, we don’t recall seeing paper bags offered at any of the places we frequented in the last month…not even the supermarket. Ireland, among other countries, actually mandated a 15 cent charge for any plastic bag given out. That reduced usage by ninety percent.

An estimated 500 billion to 1 trillion plastic bags are used worldwide. Billions end up as litter each year. According to the EPA, over 380 billion of plastic bags, sacks, and wraps are used in the U.S. each year. The Wall Street Journal estimates 100 billion plastic shopping bags, while the American Forest and Paper Association estimated in 1999 the US used only 10 billion paper grocery bags…a much smaller number by comparison.

To do our part, we visited Reusable Bags. Even Al Gore referenced them in An Inconvenient Truth. Not only are they merchandisers of reusable technology, but they are environmental activists. They even have an advocacy line of merchandise with their slogan…”Plastic Bags Blow – BYOB – Bring Your Own Bags.”

We purchased some of their ultracompact shopping bags. These bags fold up into a little pouch you can fit in your pocket so you can keep it in your car, or on your person and use it when you shop, then return it to its pouch for next time. Their bags come in various materials…nylon, canvas, nylon mesh. They also offer reusable bottles…to avoid the continual wasting of plastic water bottles…sandwich bags, lunch sacks, etc. Have a look.