The ability to time the process allows you to leave some water in the distiller after processing, which makes it much easier to clean than my older version that would boil everything down to a hard crust. It takes 3 hours 10 minutes to do a batch (at sea level). I recommend getting an extra pitcher to be able to make a new batch while drinking the completed one. My kidneys do much better with distilled, your results may vary depending on how much pollution and salty mineral load is in Your tap water.