Cold water tank volume
The volume of the cold water tank provided in the device.
In this case, it means a tank for water specially cooled by the device (see "Water supply"). The volume of the tank is the maximum amount of cold water that the cooler can dispense in one run, without interruption or with minimal interruptions. When this amount is exhausted, you will have to wait until the water in the tank cools down again to a sufficient degree; the waiting time depends on the cooling capacity (see below). At the same time, the volume of cold water tanks in modern devices is usually several litres, and it is extremely rare to drain this entire volume; usually, small portions of 200-300 mL are required. Therefore, this tank plays the role of a buffer — when the user drains the next portion of water, water from a bottle or a water mains is added to the tank; such an admixture does not particularly affect the temperature in the tank, however, for an additional guarantee, the cooling system immediately turns on. Thus, if consumption does not exceed productivity.
Hot water tank volume
The volume of the hot water tank provided in the device.
This parameter describes the maximum amount of hot water that the cooler can produce in one run, without interruption or with minimal interruptions. When this amount is exhausted, you will have to wait until the water in the tank heats up again to a sufficient degree; the waiting time depends on the heating capacity (see below). At the same time, the volume of hot water tanks in modern devices is usually several litres, and it is extremely rare to drain this volume entirely — usually, small portions of 200-300 mL are required. Therefore, this tank plays the role of a buffer — when the user drains the next portion of water, water from a bottle or a water mains is added to the tank; such an admixture does not particularly affect the temperature in the tank, however, for an additional guarantee, the heating system immediately turns on. Thus, if the consumption does not exceed the heating capacity, the temperature of the contents remains practically unchanged.
Cooling performance
The performance of the cooling system installed in the device, in other words, is the amount of water that can be cooled per hour. In coolers, it is usually indicated for water at room temperature — about 20 °C, in models with a connection to the water mains (see "Water loading") — for 15 °C (this is the average temperature of cold water). Accordingly, when deviating from these indicators, the actual performance may be slightly more or less (however, such deviations must be very significant for this to become noticeable).
This parameter determines two main points. First of all, it characterizes the maximum flow of cold water that the device can handle and the recommended breaks between use. For example, if a user needs to collect 2 standard 200-gram cups and the cooler specifications state a cooling capacity of 2 L/h, this means that the cooler will cool 400 g (0.4 L) of water that has entered the tank, for 0,4/2 = 0.2 h, that is about 12 minutes. However, the need for such calculations arises mainly with high water consumption, which is very close to the claimed performance.
Also, knowing the cooling rate and the volume of the cold water tank (see above), you can determine how long it will take to cool the tank filled with water at room temperature. Such situations arise during the first use of the device, as well as when draining the entire volume of the reservoir. So, if in the above example, the volume of the tank is 3 litres, then 3/2 = 1.5 hours...will be spent on cooling it. However, you can use water earlier, if a slightly elevated temperature is not critical.
Lighting
The presence of a lighting system in the design of the cooler.
It can perform both decorative and practical functions. So, in some models, the
lighting plays the role of an indicator signalling the readiness of water and other parameters of the device. Also, this function can be useful in low light conditions, making both individual elements (taps, levers, etc.) and the entire device more visible, reducing the risk of bumping into it in the dark.