Last updated: July 27th, 2023
We were recently contacted by the team at Miaustore.com who asked us to review their ceramic cat water fountain, which we were more than happy to do.
We’re a big fan of cat water drinking fountains here, and Smoggy especially loves to drink from one regularly, so we were keen to find out more and pass on our experience with this ceramic water fountain.
At first, the review had to wait while Inky tested the box for size and comfort – I think she was missing the point of the review somewhat.
The box of the Miaustore cat water fountain makes an ideal resting place.
What’s in the Box?
Once I’d persuaded Inky to find somewhere else to supervise from, I opened the box. The box itself is made from sturdy cardboard, so there should be very little risk of your fountain turning up damaged.
On opening the box, you are greeted with a lot of protective foam sheets, and when you remove the first layer you find the main base of the fountain. The base is handmade in Europe from ceramic, with a waterproof glaze. When this is removed, you can then get to the three ceramic towers which sit in the base.
The ceramic base of the fountain is the first piece to unpack.
The three towers are all different heights, and the tallest one has a small electric pump fitted inside. The pump is very similar to pumps fitted to other pet water fountains. However this one is quite unique in that it is attached to the fountain by a flexible tube and is not fitted to the ceramic fountain itself. This should reduce any vibrations or noise, which can be a problem with other fountains where the pump attaches to the base by little sucker feet.
Next to unpack are the 3 ceramic tower pieces. The pump is inside the tallest one (on the right hand side of the box).
Another feature which I haven’t seen before is that the pump has a USB connecter on the end of the cable rather than the more typical round connector.
Installing the Fountain
The first thing to do is give the fountain a quick wash, as the parts had picked up dust and small bits of polystyrene packing material from being in transit. Once clean and dry, it was time to put them together.
I was slightly surprised to find there were no instructions in the box, however the fountain was very simple to assemble. There is meant to be a video from Miaustore online with instructions to assemble the fountain, however I couldn’t find it. This wasn’t an issue though, as all you do is place each of the 3 towers into the base, making sure the little spouts are in the right position so that the water flows from the tallest one down to the lower levels then into the base.
You’ll notice that there are two raised circles in the base – I placed the two smaller towers over these, so both circles would be hidden.
Our chief cat water fountain expert inspecting the assembled fountain.
Using the Miaustore Fountain
After filling the main bowl with a few litres of fresh water, I plugged it in and almost immediately water started flowing. The first thing I noticed was how quiet the fountain was – there was no hum from the pump – just a very quiet sound of trickling water. As such I wouldn’t have any worries about being disturbed, so would be happy to put this fountain anywhere in my home. You can see how quiet the fountain is from the video below – the faint noise in the background is actually a small fan on the other side of the room.
As the pump is in the tallest tower, it pumps water from the reservoir in the base up a plastic tube and through the top of the tallest tower. This then flows down into the next tower, and the next before flowing back into the base.
The Miaustore ceramic cat water fountain in action.
I then noticed that the water was flowing quite quickly, and was up the the level of the rims around the sides of the little towers. Although the water wasn’t coming over the sides, I wanted to reduce this if I could. Fortunately, the pump is adjustable by sliding a small lever on the base of the pump. My version was set to the most powerful output, so by simply sliding the lever back to the other side, it reduced the flow and is now spot on. Based on experience with other water fountains, I would expect the flow to slow over time – so it’s nice to know I can adjust it if necessary.
The fountain is big enough for 2 or 3 cats to use at the same time, and holds 3.4 litres of water. As the pump will work with a lower water level than many other cat water fountains, you can run this one for longer. Miaustore claim that it’s equivalent to a conventional fountain with 5 litre capacity.
As the edges of the towers are very close to the side of the main bowl, and they are not fixed in place there is a risk that a cat might knock one and spill water onto the floor. As such, it may be worth placing the fountain onto a protective mat. The main base of the fountain itself is quite solid though, especially when filled with water.
No Filter
One feature of this fountain is that it doesn’t require any filters. This is a big advantage over the majority of fountains that do require filters, as the regular cost of replacing them can soon add up. It will require slightly more work to keep it clean, but you’ll be saving money every month.
To keep it clean, simply replace the water every few days, and wash the fountain itself every 2 or 3 months. It’s even dishwasher proof.
Buying Options
Our review fountain was the standard model, which is available to buy online for £49. You can also buy it with a variety of optional extras.
The first is a motion sensor switch which only turns the pump on when your cat gets within 1.5m of the sensor, and switches off 30 seconds after they leave. This will save you electricity, and prolongs the life of the pump.
You can also buy a cat grass cup which sits in the main bowl and lets you grow cat grass. Other options include a waterproof silicone mat, and a matching ceramic food bowl.
The fountain is also available in a number of different colours. Our review model is “Tiger”.
Our Thoughts
There are a lot of different cat water fountains available to buy, but this one stands out with it’s unusual design and features. It’s very simple, and extremely quiet. While it isn’t the cheapest fountain to buy, it does have the advantage of not requiring filters – this will save you money in the long term.
Another good feature is that it’s made from ceramic – this is hard-wearing, and is more hygienic than plastic fountains. It also looks more stylish than many of the other alternatives.
If you’d like to read more information, or place an order, you can visit the Miaustore website.
Disclaimer
Although we were provided with a fountain to review free of charge, the opinions in this review are entirely our own.
Dear Sir
I am very interested in this product to purchase, just a question all cat water fountains say they have filtration I am wondering does this one not need filtration because it is ceramic and would that go for all ceramic cat water fountains? Await your reply with thanks Kind regards Noeline
Hi Noeline,
Apologies for the late reply! Some ceramic fountains do have filters, so it’s just the design of this particular fountain that means it doesn’t need a filter. This means that you will most likely need to clean the fountain and replace the water more frequently, but on the plus side you won’t have to keep paying for new filters.
what about the motion sensor? Is it worth it and where does it go?
I bought a fountain from Miaustore for my cat about 2 years ago. It is still as good as the day I first used it. I had a problem with the original pump that stopped working after about 6 weeks, but I contacted the company and a new one was sent out straightaway with no argument or questions being asked. The second pump is of a different design, so I wonder if they have changed suppliers. The second pump works very well, and is adjustable in terms of flow rate. I wash the fountain weekly, and top up the water during the week as necessary. One important point about cleaning. The plastic tube needs thorough cleaning to avoid mould building up inside it. I bought myself a tiny bottle brush from a kitchen equipment shop and a couple of passes through the tube weekly is enough to keep it clean. I always disconnect the tube from the pump and the stopper at the top of the tube to make it easier to scrub all the parts. One other point is that my cat is quite anxious and she gets nervous around new items. For the first month I thought I had bought a very expensive ornament as she ignored the fountain completely. I left it running, and after a month she started to investigate it. Within two months she was playing with the water and drinking far more than she did before. So, if you have a nervous cat, leave the fountain running and they will most likely use it when they get used to it because it is very quiet. The fountain is in my bedroom which is where Sooty snoozes when I am working, and so at night I go to sleep to the gentle sound of water trickling over the towers – quite relaxing really. I would highly recommend this product and I am a genuine customer with no connection to the company.
Thanks for the feedback, and useful advice about cleaning the plastic tube. It’s great to know Sooty is enjoying the fountain.
The motion sensor is plugged in to the existing power lead, and then into the pump – the sensor itself sits near the fountain, and switches the pump on when your cat comes within a range of about 5 feet. The pump doesn’t use much electricity, so it’s probably not going to save you much money in electric costs – however it should prolong the life of the pump.
Service is awful! My friend purchased me this as a lovely gift as I’d been harping on about it for months. My birthday comes and I’m elated. The ceramic work is a bit rough, but the design is gorgeous. BUT the service is AWFUL!
After two weeks the pump packed in. I popped onto the site to purchase a new pump, and saw the 10 year warranty. So I purchased that instead, legitimately, on their site, with no warning, terms, conditions etc, as seen in photo. They took my money, and I emailed miaustore to tell them about the issue. They sent me a new pump. This pump failed after less than a month. I’d like to add here that I cleaned my water fountain out once a week, used q- tips to clean the pump filter, and ran it through with white vinegar to clear build up of any nasties. I’m not new to water fountains, so this is not new to me.
But still, another pump failed. They went through 3 different models of pump in this time frame, so clearly they were having problems with other customers.
Today, I contacted miaustore to replace yet another pump that had failed. They said that my warranty was invalid because I didn’t purchase it WITH the fountain. There is nothing that tells you otherwise when purchasing the warranty that you’re paying for something they won’t ever honor. If that’s the case, why can you purchase it on their site? When I questioned them about it, they just refunded me my warranty and went on their way. They’ll happily take your money, but hide behind self imposed reasons to not honor what you’ve paid for.
Does anyone know if the plastic tube is BPA free? It smells very chemically to me. I know it’s a small part of the fountain, but all the water continually flows through it, so a little concerned. Thanks!