I’ve got a friend who absolutely hates the dentist. She is the type of person who gets real fired up whenever someone mentions going to the dentist, goes on and on about how mean they are and how she always feels judged by them when they give her “the look” after checking her teeth.
According to her, “they make most of their money by making you feel guilty for not flossing 11 times a day.” I mean I get it, the dentist is never a fun time, and I do know what she means by “the look” because heaven knows I get it too, flossing is my least favorite part of getting ready for bed, so I skip it too much. Still, she takes it to the next level.
Well irony was looking for a fresh target, it would seem, because this friend recently started complaining about tooth pain and she finally had to swallow her pride and go see a dentist. It would seem he gave her “the look” because she came back in an absolute fluster about being told she has the early stages of gum disease. “Gingivitis” is often just sluing around as another word for “bad breath,” but that’s not at all what it is. It’s the first major phase of serious gum disease that comes from, you guessed it, not flossing or brushing enough. If I’m being honest, she did have some pretty rough breath there for a while, but who am I to judge? Obviously the dentist sent her back with a list of things to do to get into a better place. She got a cleaning, but now she needs to figure out how to keep things from getting worse, and that’s where today’s product comes in!
The dentist recommended something called a “Waterpik,” which is basically a little wand that shoots water in a tiny jet so you can use it to blast off plaque and other gunk from tough to reach places in the mouth. It’s also apparently a nice (but not perfect) replacement for regular floss for people like my friend and me who absolutely hate flossing. Well, I’m the product guy, so I went ahead and bought two. If I’m gonna get on her case about taking care of her teeth, I might as well lead by example and get a good review out of it! I got mine in black, because I’m very cool and manly, and I got her the gray model which I thought looked pretty nice.
Here’s how our experiences went.
From my friend (emojis have been removed to spare you the extra paragraph they added to this beast of a message):
ok honestly I was prepared to hate this thing on principle because I’m still mad at my dentist for acting like I personally betrayed him by not flossing enough but I’m using it pretty consistently like you asked. the first time was a disaster and I sprayed water straight down my throat because apparently there’s a learning curve to pressure washing your own gums lol but now that I’ve figured it out I kinda get why people like these things. my mouth feels cleaner afterward and my gums aren’t as angry when I brush. still think it’s annoying that you and my dentist teamed up against me on this but to my dismay I can’t say it was a bad purchase especially since you paid for it!!!
What is a Mouth Power Washer Really Like?
Now that we have her testimony out of the way, let’s try something from my perspective:
It’s a little unwieldy, the wand is attached to a coiled hose that reminds me of the old stretchy phone cords from back in the day, but the hose is pretty stiff so angling and positioning it right takes some getting used to. The wand has a few cool attachments for cleaning in different ways, one of them is even just a brush that shoots water, that’s neat. I mostly use the fine jet nozzle, seems to get the job done. The hose is attached to a pretty large device that sits on the sink. Half of it is a reservoir for water, the other half is a base with an on/off button and a knob to adjust the water pressure. There’s a little switch on the wand to turn the flow on and off, otherwise it would just spray all over the place as soon as you turn it on, and once you get the hang of aiming it around in your mouth while using that switch it’s a really good tool! As much as I hate to admit it, I also shot myself square in the back of the throat the first time I used it, just be ready for a learning curve. It does a really good job of getting the spaces between your teeth, and the gum line really clean! You can even mix in a little mouth wash with the water to make it work even better. I have to say, laser-blasting your teeth with Listerine is a heck of an experience.
The Waterpik is loud, though. I don’t know if you’re ever heard an air or water pump at work before, but this is basically a really small version of that. It revs up like a little engine and absolutely howls at you when you push the switch. If you typically get ready for bed after other people in the house go to sleep, you might consider using this in the morning so you don’t wake everyone up. Also, and I can’t believe I didn’t even consider this as part of the experience, it very quickly fills your mouth up with water, so you’ll be stopping to spit pretty often. I tried just holding my mouth open while using it, but I sprayed water everywhere. Listerine water was all over the sink and the mirror and the floor… and my face and my shirt. I’d not recommend doing that. Using it while your mouth is closed, though, makes you wanna swallow. I don’t know how to explain it, but the water hitting your mouth so fast like that really triggers some kind of response. Maybe that’s just me though, but do try not to drink your mouthwash water if you can avoid it.
TL;DR specs for the skimmers.
If you don’t want to read all that up there, here are the basic specs and a short how-to.
This is taken directly from the Waterpik official site-
- 10 adjustable levels
- 22 oz reservoir
- Up to 90 seconds of flossing time
- Floss mode
- Hydro-pulse massage mode
- 7 total tips
- Classic Jet Tip
- Orthodontic Tip
- Plaque Seeker Tip
- Pik Pocket Tip
- Toothbrush Tip
- 360-degree rotating tip handle
- Built-in pacer and 1-minute timer
- Corded electric
- Dishwasher-safe
Oh yeah! Pulling that list down reminded me about the modes and timer. Once you find a setting you like it’s easy to sort of forget about the other bells and whistles! It sort of pauses in it’s spraying for a moment every 60 seconds, which makes it really easy to time your flossing. Apparently you’re supposed to floss for a full minute, I know that’s common knowledge, but man, a minute feels like such a long time! The floss mode is a constant stream, and the pulse mode is just what it sounds like. I have had it sitting on pulse mode for a long time now since it really does feel nice.
Is it Worth the Money?
As of this review, the Watrpik Aquarius is going for $79.69 on Amazon. That’s kind of a lot for a floss replacement but considering how much nicer this is than using floss (for me at least) I’d say it’s worth it. If you already floss regularly and don’t complain about it endlessly like my friend does, this might not be for you, but if you have always found it difficult to make yourself floss at night, this is a great tool. It also takes up a good amount of space on your sink so it becomes kind of a good reminder to do your flossing!
About the Author:
George Berger
Ever since a young George was disappointed with a toy that did match up to the advertising, he became a tireless advocate for consumers. He’ll review anything that folks have to spend their hard-earned dollars on. George is grateful that he gets to use his skills as a writer and an artist to help connect with consumers and help them make the best decisions possible.
This article is for informational purposes only and reflects the author’s independent opinion. Readers should verify details directly with the manufacturer or retailer before making a purchase decision.
