Have you ever turned a high-pressure hose on your own mouth? In the name of oral health of course.
I hate flossing, never have taken to it and it was not a habit that I was going to change any-time soon. But like all people, I’m still concerned for my oral health, as in the end you only have one set of these chompers and they’re meant to last you 50 odd years?
So, when I heard a review of Waterpik products (namely the Electric toothbrush +waterflosser) it piqued my interest. After several days of online research, I concluded that I didn’t need a hybrid electric toothbrush flosser combo (as I already have a pretty good electric toothbrush)- but the standalone waterflosser was definitely what I wanted!
By far Chemist Warehouse was the cheapest at $144.99, a genuine savings of $54.69 off the recommended retail price. And if you want a contact-less experience, you can purchase it off their website and have it delivered FREE of charge!
For us, I wanted it immediately, so we rocked up to our nearest Chemist Warehouse and it was in-stock. What you get in the box is the Waterpik Waterflosser Ultra- which consists of a base (where the motor and power source resides); a removeable reservoir which holds around 400ml of water (reservoir= kidney shaped tub); a removeable lid which also acts as a container for your floss heads; the wand where you attach the floss heads to; and 6 different floss heads (they call them tips).
The Waterflosser Ultra requires a standard plug in power source, approx. 2.5 inch by 4 inches of real estate on your bathroom sink countertop, and you have to be semi-disciplined about your new night-time routine. As using the Waterflosser can easily be seen as ‘too much effort’, particularly if it’s late and it’s cold etc.
To get started, run your hot water tap for a few seconds so that the water is warm, then fill up your Waterpik reservoir (not too full, as you don’t want to be spilling water all over the place especially as there’s electricity about). Select and snap on the flosser head of choice, switch on the power and allow the motor to run, just for 10 seconds or so. And then position the flosser head on your first gap between teeth and flick the switch on your wand and experience the power of a mini pressure hose in your mouth!
You don’t need to spend too much time on each gap, we’re talking about 2-3 seconds per gap. Just keep moving along the row of your pearly whites while you’re bent over your sink (as you’ll be dribbling all over the place). And a tip, just remember to flick the switch to off on the wand when you’re moving to the next section of your mouth i.e. from front to back of your bottom row of teeth, or when moving from the bottom to the top row. As pointing the flosser to anything which isn’t your teeth, can be risky. Point it out of your mouth and you’ll cause a mess. And if you point it to a softer part of your mouth, it’s really quite painful. Like sticking a pin in your tongue and shooting yourself in that tender squishy part under your tongue is particularly unpleasant. *Shivers*. And you def don’t want to Waterfloss yourself in the eye! I can’t imagine how painful that might be, not to mention potentially dangerous……
If I’ve painted a picture of a lethal weapon for you, don’t be frightened off, as the Waterflosser has 10 power settings. So, you can adjust it to a level which you can tolerate- for me, I have it on 8 ATM. Not to mention, after cleaning all 32 teeth, if you have some water remaining in your reservoir- you can use it to blast away mould near and about your bathroom sink! #Unintended benefits!
So, after using the Waterflosser Ultra for 6 weeks? What do I think?
On the company’s marketing material, it states that it blasts away 99.9% of plaque, and clinically proven to be 50% better than conventional flossing. But to me? Yeah, after blasting my teeth with pressurised water, everything feels clean of course, but is it cleaner than how things feel after a brush? Hard to say. To tell you the truth, I thought it would be more ‘amazing’, like that feeling you get after coming home from the dentist, and you’re able to suck air through the gaps of your lower front teeth (as they’re completely devoid of plaque.). But is it easier and more fun than conventional flossing? Definitely! That’s a 100% yes! So, after 6 weeks, I’m still persisting with water blasting my teeth each night. And if it reduces the guilty feeling of not flossing with string? then That’s a win for me!
To check-out or to purchase the Waterpik Waterflosser Ultra now from Chemist Warehouse, click HERE!a144
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