TL;DR Summary: The breakroom water cooler button is a primary hotspot for spreading office illness. Bishop WorkWell mitigates this risk with “Active Defense” technology: hands-free pedal dispensing, antimicrobial surfaces, and internal UV-C lights that continuously sanitize the water tank.
We need to talk about the “Button”
In a typical office of 50 people, the water cooler dispense button is touched roughly 200 times a day. It is touched after meetings, after lunch, and after bathroom breaks. In a post-pandemic world, facility managers know that cross-contamination points are a business risk. “Sick days” cost productivity; the flu spreading through a department impacts deadlines.
Bishop WorkWell treats hydration as a sanitation issue. We have moved beyond the “passive cooler” to an “active defense” system.
The Invisible Threat: Biofilm
The danger isn’t just on the outside of the machine; it’s on the inside. In traditional water coolers, once the chlorine is removed to improve taste, the water sits in a dark, room-temperature tank. This is the perfect breeding ground for Biofilm—a slimy layer of bacteria that coats the inside of the reservoir. If you aren’t actively killing that bacteria, you are essentially purifying water and then storing it in a dirty bucket before drinking it.
The Solution: 24/7 Active UV-C Defense
Bishop WorkWell systems utilize UV-C LED technology—the same ultraviolet spectrum used to sterilize surgical equipment. Unlike older systems that only “zap” the water as it pours, our units feature “In-Tank” Sanitation:
- The Process: A UV-C light core sits inside the reservoir.
- The Frequency: It runs automatically, bathing the water and the tank walls in bacteria-killing light 24 hours a day.
- The Result: Even if the machine sits unused over a long weekend, the water is being actively scrubbed of bacteria every few minutes.
Breaking the Chain: Touchless Dispensing
To solve the “dirty button” problem, we simply removed the button. Most Bishop WorkWell models feature Pedal Activation or Sensor Dispensing. Your employees can fill their bottles without their hands ever coming near the machine.
For the few contact surfaces that remain, we coat them in BioCote® (marketed as SafeTouch™), a silver-ion antimicrobial additive that inhibits bacterial growth by up to 99.5% within 2 hours.
Clean water requires a clean machine. Don’t let your breakroom be the reason your team calls in sick.
Upgrade to a Self-Sanitizing Fleet
Get a quote for touchless Bishop WorkWell units for your breakroom.