I bought a big cylinder and a refill kit a few years ago. I refill my own in the basement. Every 30-40 refills I have to take the big tank to a fire supply place for a $30 refill. The whole set up coat $200. I'm way ahead of the game.
It looks like Kitchen a la Mode (in South Orange) does the Soda Stream cylinder exchange (scroll down their home page):
Kitchen a la Mode has the DrinkMate cylinders, which fit the SodaStream, but be aware that although DrinkMate accepts empty Sodastream cylinders in exchange, I don't believe SodaStream will accept empty DrinkMate cylinders.
I am curious about Dan's system. How difficult a setup is it?
You need a basic wrench to install the hose onto the big bottle. That stays on until you take the big bottle for a refill. After that you screw the soda stream cylinder on to a fitting and slowly open a valve. Once the gauge reads full you close the valve and unscrew the cylinder. I suggest wearing gloves because the cylinders get very cold. I also leave my empty cylinder in a freezer for a day to cook it down before refilling. I have three cylinders; one in the machine, one standing by, and one waiting for refill.
i have a kitchen scale I use to measure the fill level. I never get them quite as full as a factory refill, but it doesn't matter. Empty they are roughly 660 grams. Full from factory about 1250 grams. I end up around 1100 grams per fill.
For years we've been exchanging our original style carbonation cylinders at Bed Bath & Beyond. Now that the store is closing - does anyone have any local recommendations?