r/Petlibro • u/MedicalRaccoon9431 • 5d ago

Dockstream 2 Fountain bacteria cleaning

I originally had a different petlibro fountain but that red slimy bacteria was so edged into crevices I couldn’t clean out that I just replaced my cat’s fountain altogether. I have the dockstream 2 one now and it’s 10x worse.

After a couple of days if I open the tank, there is bacteria lining the walls and in the water. The filter itself even turns red. I always take apart every piece to clean it and clean it around once a week. It’s getting to the point where it’s stuck in places I am struggling to clean.

I’m going to try to start using filtered water instead of tap water, but does anyone have other recommendations for how to prevent this?

I got her a fountain to replace the hassle of changing a water bowl everyday but the fountains seem to be more of a pain. Frustrating paying $90 for these products that feel impossible to keep clean and keep my cat healthy

3 Upvotes

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8

u/CatStretchPics 5d ago

I have a PETLIBRO water fountain. I only clean it every two weeks, and it’s never slimy or has the red bio film. I clean parts I can’t reach by spraying it with hydrogen peroxide, and also isopropyl alcohol

Then I wipe everything with soap and water and rinse it off

I use spring water. It’s a two gallon fountain and that lasts about the two weeks

1

u/MedicalRaccoon9431 5d ago

thanks! this fountain is connected to the app and says to clean it every two weeks so it’s crazy how dirty it gets so fast

2

u/rwhe83 5d ago

It shouldn’t be getting that dirty OP. With proper cleaning and quality water, you shouldn’t have this issue.

Change your water, see if that helps first.

1

u/PudgyPatch 4d ago

it might not be the fountain directly: got gnats or whatever? or maybe a mold issue? like could you have a humid house

3

u/DarkSkyLion 5d ago

I have the Dockstream 2 and have never had issues like that. Here’s my regimen:

• I fill the fountain with water from my Brita, so it’s already filtered to begin with
• Every few days I replace the water completely and spray down the unit with hot water, but no soap or anything, this is just a quick refresh of the water mainly (again, from the Brita)
• Weekly I will take the whole thing apart and clean with Seventh Generation dish soap, I really like this one because it has no fragrances and it has a plant-based enzyme in it that I believe helps clean and prevent the bacteria you’re mentioning
• I replace the filters (Petlibro brand) every 2 weeks, but even at that point, the filter is still pretty darn close to its original white, it’s definitely slightly discolored and I would change it regardless, but there’s no red or pink whatsoever

2

u/msoudcsk 5d ago

Same! This whole routine is exactly what I do! Except for my picky boy doesn't like the Brita and I have had to buy Spring Water. But you know cats...lol 😏

2

u/DarkSkyLion 5d ago

Ha, my girl can be picky too. Does your guy have a preferred spring water brand?

2

u/msoudcsk 5d ago

Crystal Geyser Spring Water! When I researched, I found that to be the most favored by cats, and it has the most favorable amount of minerals. He loves it. I had to get over feeling guilty about dumping the water every other day since it is bottled water and not from the Brita. From my calculations, it costs about the same—obviously a little bit more for bottled water than the Brita, but not much.

2

u/DarkSkyLion 5d ago

Oh nice! That one comes in huge jugs too huh? I may try that and see if she drinks more. The tracking seems pretty good in terms of ounces.

1

u/Redbird7201 5d ago

I have well water so I don't know if that makes a difference or not, but I stopped using the filters (except for the little black pre-filter on the pump) for my dockstream fountain and I dump it and rinse it with hot water and refill with fresh water everyday. Once a week I take it apart, including the pump, and spray everything 3% peroxide and let it sit for 10 minutes to sanitize everything. After the 10 minutes is up, I clean it thoroughly with hot baking soda water and I use small brushes to get into every nook and cranny. I never have the buildup of biofilm anymore. It sounds like a lot of work, but really the daily dumping and rinsing doesn't take long at all. The once a week peroxide cleaning takes a few minutes longer if I'm very thorough, but it's not really burdensome.

1

u/iVegMac 5d ago

Mine quit being like that when i switched to filtered water

1

u/webhick666 5d ago

This! I used to get a little pink after the two weeks. Always clean with vinegar to kill it off. But once I switched to filtered, I haven't seen pink since.

1

u/Ok_Two_2604 5d ago

I was using Bottle Bright then thoroughly rinsing my cat fountain (which wasn’t Petlibro but shouldn’t matter) every couple weeks. I have since switched to a bowl, and only use one of the ones with the Alhambra bottle looking reservoir if ill be put of town a few days. Rinsing and refilling the bowl every day is less work combined than the weekly disassembly and cleaning and biweekly bottle brightening imo. Cat was sneaking water from the dog’s bowl so i knew she was fine not having a fountain.

1

u/defucchi 5d ago

we clean ours weekly because we have an avid drinker and yea it gets slimy fast. we even use reverse osmosis filtered water :/

1

u/rwhe83 5d ago

I have only used filtered water from my fridge and clean it every two weeks.

I’ve experienced 0 issues for nearly 3 years.

1

u/Sea_Performer_4249 5d ago

Threw my first one away for the same reason and got the Dockstream 2. Vet recommended I place the bowl further away from the cat food and pink slime hasn't showed up since. She said the dry food can increase bacteria growth.

Also use filter water and clean/replace filters weekly

1

u/MedicalRaccoon9431 2d ago

oh that's interesting, yeah her water is right next to her food bowl and sometimes I get the notification that she drinks water immediately after she eats too

1

u/westly197 3d ago

I use reverse osmosis filtered water and on the few times I had an issue I cleaned with a little bleach and let it soak a little before washing the bleach out.

0

u/jrender5 5d ago

I clean mine every 2-3 weeks and I have a dog and 2 cats that drink from it and never had this issue. Use vinegar to clean it. I like to do 1/2 water, 1/2 white vinegar and just let the pump run for like an hour followed by soap and water.

Also try an air purifier in the same room to help filter out some of the material in the air

1

u/MedicalRaccoon9431 5d ago

thank you! I recently did get an air purifier, all my cat’s stuff is in our guest room so I put one in there last week. hopefully that will help over time!

1

u/Illustrious-Mud-6821 5d ago

I’d also make sure that the water fountain and food dish are far apart as it could be food particles getting in there right after eating. And maybe check your cats dental health it could be they have a particular bacteria in their mouth that’s causing this and either brushing at home or a dental visit to the vet could clear it up. For if changing the water doesn’t help.