Catit PIXI Stainless Steel UV-C Fountain Review: A Cordless Cat Fountain That Stays Clean
We lived with the cordless Catit PIXI Stainless Steel UV-C Fountain and our cat for over two weeks. It's quiet, it doesn't splash and it stays clean, but give your cat a week to warm to it.
By Laurence Deer
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Catit’s Australian distributor, Pet Pacific, sent us this fountain to review. They didn’t see this review before it went live.
If your cat ignores the water bowl and then drinks from the shower floor, the tap or your glass on the bedside table, you’re not alone. Lots of cats prefer moving water, and a fountain is the usual fix. The catch with most fountains is the cable: they have to sit next to a power point, which is rarely where your cat wants to drink.
The Catit PIXI Stainless Steel UV-C Fountain gets around that with a built-in battery, so you can put it anywhere. We set it up at home with our cat for a little over two weeks to see whether it’s worth the switch.
The short version
This is a quiet, tidy fountain that’s easy to keep clean. It holds 5 litres, it didn’t splash once in our testing, and the water stayed clean between changes. The battery lasted more than a week in sensor mode without running out. Our cat took about a week to get used to it, so don’t give up on day two.
The one thing we’d change is the motion sensor. It’s a little over-sensitive, so it switches on more often than it needs to. It still does what it’s meant to.
Pros
- Runs on battery, so it isn’t tied to a power point
- Lasted more than a week on battery in sensor mode without running flat
- Quiet: all you hear is the water
- No splashing or puddles around the bowl
- Easy to pull apart and clean, and stayed clean after two weeks
- Big 5 L reservoir means fewer refills
Cons
- Motion sensor is a little over-sensitive
- Our cat needed about a week to warm to it
- No wall adapter in the box, only a USB cable
- Filters are an ongoing cost (Catit says replace monthly)
- Not sold at the big pet chains, so you’ll be buying online
What’s in the box
You get the stainless steel reservoir with a clear outer lid, the stainless top plate, the pump unit, a filter, a USB-C charging cable and the manual. There’s no wall plug, so you’ll need a USB charger. Catit says any 5 V, 1 A USB-A adapter will do, and most of us have a spare in a drawer.
It goes together in a few minutes. The filter sits in the bottom of the reservoir, the pump unit clips into the back, and the stainless top plate drops on.
Three modes, one button
The pump unit has a small display that shows the battery level, the water level and which mode you’re in. One press of the button switches modes:
- Sensor mode turns the water on for a short burst when your cat walks up. Catit says it picks up a pet within about 1 m, across a 120-degree arc in front of the unit.
- Timed mode runs the water in short bursts on a schedule, whether or not anyone’s there.
- Continuous mode keeps the water running all the time, but only when it’s plugged in.
Battery or plugged in?
The battery is the reason to buy this fountain over a cheaper corded one, so we tested it first. We ran it on battery in sensor mode for more than a week and it didn’t run out. Catit says a full charge lasts about 45 days with around 24 drinks a day. We didn’t run it until it went flat, so we can’t confirm that figure. More than a week without a charge is a good start, though.
After that we plugged it in for good, simply because there’s a power point right next to where our cat likes to drink. If you can do the same, there’s no downside. If your cat’s favourite spot is in a hallway or a bedroom with no power point nearby, the battery is what makes this fountain worth buying.
The sensor works, but it’s a little eager. It switches on more often than it strictly needs to, so expect the water to start up when you walk past as well as when your cat does. That means a bit more pump time on battery, but it does its job.
How our cat took to it
Give it a week. Our cat was wary at first, which is common with anything that suddenly starts moving and making noise. For the first week we left it on timed mode, so the water ran on its own every so often rather than starting up the moment she got close. That way it didn’t startle her. By the end of the week she was drinking from it happily, and she’s used it ever since.
If your cat is nervous, start the same way, and leave the old water bowl nearby until they’re drinking from the fountain on their own.
Noise
You can’t hear the pump at all. The only sound is the water running over the top plate, and it’s soft enough that it didn’t bother our cat once she got used to it. We’d happily have this in a bedroom.
Spills and splashing
None. After more than two weeks there was no water on the mat or the sideboard. The spout is small, and the curved top plate keeps the water inside the bowl rather than letting it run off the edge. If your current fountain leaves a puddle every morning, this is a big improvement.
Capacity and refills
We measured it: the 5 litres Catit claims fits right up to the line. That’s a lot of water for one cat, and you won’t be refilling it because it’s run dry. We changed the water about twice a week, just to keep it fresh. The clear lid keeps most of the water covered between changes.
Catit says the pump stops when the water drops below about 30%, so it won’t run dry and damage itself.
Cleaning
This is where it shines. After more than two weeks of use, the reservoir and pump were still clean. There was no slime and no build-up in the corners. Day to day, we just emptied it, gave it a quick rinse and refilled it.
It comes apart easily: lift off the top plate, pull out the filter and unclip the pump. Catit says the stainless steel parts are dishwasher-safe. The pump and filter should be washed by hand.
Two weeks is still early days for a pump. Some owners of other PIXI fountains say their pumps failed after a few months, so we’ll keep using this one and update this review if anything changes. Catit recommends a new filter every 30 days, so price up a pack of filters before you buy.
What about the UV-C light?
Catit says the UV-C light runs while the water is flowing and helps reduce bacteria. It’s off whenever the pump isn’t running. We can’t measure bacteria at home, so we can’t tell you how much difference it makes. What we can say is the water and parts stayed clean for us.
Price and where to buy
This isn’t a fountain you’ll find on the shelf at the big pet chains. Catit’s Australian distributor told us it isn’t sold through the big-box retailers, so you’ll be buying it online. When we checked on 7 November 2026 it was $144.75 at vet-n-pet DIRECT and $159 through the Bunnings online marketplace, where it’s sold and shipped by a third-party seller rather than Bunnings itself. It’s also on Amazon Australia, listed as the Catit PIXI XL Stainless Steel Cordless fountain.
Prices for pet gear move around a lot, so check a couple of stores before you buy. Budget for filters too: Catit recommends a new one every month.
Should you buy it?
Buy it if your cat drinks better from running water and you want a fountain that’s quiet, doesn’t make a mess and is easy to keep clean. It’s especially worth it if the spot your cat likes has no power point nearby, because the battery is what sets it apart.
If there’s a power point right where you want it, a corded fountain will do the same job. You can still plug this one in, as we did, and you won’t lose anything. Either way, give your cat a week on timed mode before deciding they don’t like it.