I purchased the PetSafe Drinkwell Multitier fountain in March 2020 for my 12 pound Maine Coon mixed cat. He loves having the continual flow of the fountain. A year later, we added a Cavachon pup to the family. The pup is now 30 pounds. Both of our pets enjoy drinking from this fountain. I typically add an inch of cold water twice a day to keep the fountain full. In the summer, I add ice cubes just to give them cooler water.For about the first year or so, I was cleaning the fountain once weekly by hand washing all the pieces in the kitchen sink. I purchased the PetSafe brush cleaning tools designed to clean the fountain which work great. In less than ten minutes, I could easily have the fountain cleaned and refilled. Easy-peasy! One day it happened I was going to be running the dishwasher, so I decided to put the base and top tier of the fountain top sides down in the upper rack of the dishwasher. The two pieces came out perfectly clean. The only thing I realized when using the dishwasher to do the cleaning is that the glossy sheen of the fountain was dulled. I’m not bothered by that, so now for the last year plus this has been how I choose to clean the fountain. I still have to take the small electric pump apart and clean it each time, but that hardly takes any time.Once a month, I mix a 3 part water (2cups) to 1 part white vinegar (2/3cup) solution in a deep cup and I allow the pump to run for about 30 minutes just to thoroughly clean the pump.To maintain the fountain, I change out the filter once a month. We have really hard water with a lot of lime so I also use refrigerated filtered water when filling the fountain. A friend who recommended the fountain to me actually doesn’t even use filters in her pets fountain. She has two medium sized cats and this works for her. I find after about two weeks though, the filter in the fountain begins to look discolored a bit likely from my pups saliva. Not enough to necessitate changing the filter, but it makes me think the filter is serving a purpose so even though I use filtered water, I still use replacement carbon filters like the one that came with the fountain.There was a period of 12 weeks last year when I was pet sitting for my daughter so a French Bulldog and a Pomerania were also utilizing the fountain. Because Frenchies slobber like they do, I found it necessary to clean the fountain every 4 days and needed to change the carbon filter every two weeks. But even with four pets, the fountain did a great job of supplying clean water.I really could not be happier with this fountain and now having had it for the last 21/2 years, I feel like it was money well spent. I recommend this fountain to all my friends with pets. I would purchase it again without hesitation.One suggestion I have is to put a one inch or so deep tray under the fountain base. What I use is a tray designed to hold wet shoes and boots by the front door. My cat likes to wash his paws in the fountain which inevitably results in a puddle of splashed water being on the floor. The tray helps contain the mess. Plus, the lip on the tray gives me a place to tuck the pump cord so my cat doesn’t chew on it!Also, if the fountain sounds abnormally noisy, check to see that the pump is sitting away from the inner wall of the base. There are guides on the bottom of the base to show where the pump should sit, but if the pump is up against the outer wall, you will hear a vibration. Second cause could be the level of the water in the fountain is too low. You may need to be filling the fountain more frequently. You should only be hearing a soft gurgling sound of the water if the fountain is working correctly.