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Seems a good value, but time will tell
At the ripe old age of 54, I have braces. The Orthodontist recommended oral irrigation as superior to laborious flossing around the braces.
Being a guy prone to do a lot of research prior to purchasing anything, I did the whole research thing and found that all oral irrigation machines, no matter from what company (WaterPik, ViaJet, Interplak, whomever) all have lots of negative reviews. It seems they are all prone to leaking, breaking, tipping over and a host of other issues.
That being the case, I decided to start at the low end of the pricing scale and see if the cheaper machine with pretty good ratings would work for me. So I bought the Conair Interplak WJ64.
Yes it is cheesy feeling...very cheap in its construction. It is also very light weigh particularly the base. When attempting to remove the reservoir the base usually comes up off the counter right along with the reservoir, so it takes two hands to remove it...one hand holding the base, the other grabbing and lifting the reservoir. This is not that big of a deal, but it is indicative of the lightness of the unit.
The reservoir is just the right size for a single rinsing of the mouth but the small size does make the overall "footprint" of the unit small too so that is a good thing as it does not take up a lot of space on the bathroom counter.
As for the tip holders on the unit...forget it. The tips easily fall out ending up on the counter/floor. Stash the un-used tips in a drawer and save yourself the daily frustration. I only use the standard tip and suspect most people would do the same. For my usage, the other tips don't serve much purpose as I also use an electric toothbrush and don't need to use the other tips.
The pressure from this machine is totally sufficient. I have settled on a pressure setting in the mid-range of the possible settings and at that setting the stream is quite strong. No issues with pressure (or lack of) for me.
I do not like the "on/off" button on the handle... it is really cheeesy feeling and I'm just waiting for it to break. It hasn't yet, but then again, I've only been using the machine for two weeks.
For the price I paid, nearly half the cost of other oral irrigation machines, I'm quite happy so far. It does have a 2 year warranty which I consider generous. So if it breaks, the warranty should cover it. If it doesn't break in two years then it'll be one heck of a value because I like its performance in spite of the limitations I've already mentioned.
I was going to by a Waterpik initially, but after reading so many complaints about how the quality of them has gone downhill, I decided to try this one first. I'm happy with my decision. I will update my review if anything changes my opinion such as breakage or leaking.
I was tempted to give only 3 stars because of the "cheesy" factor, but am going out on a limb and awarding 4 stars since the performance of the machine has been more than adequate so far and the price is excellent.
[Saturday, September 20, 2008]
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Extremely poor quality/no customer service
Purchased on 1-2-08 and used each day one time and on 1-9-08 sub-gingival tip failed. Rubber tip split in two while using. Phoned conair/interplak and got eternal hold. After I finally got through they expected me to return the entire unit for replacement of the little attachment tip. Not realistic. I will return to Walmart for a full refund and look for another brand. DO NOT BUY INTERPLAK BRAND!!! When you have a problem (and you will because of poor quality) you will find no customer support that is reasonable. They are rude and don't want you to return the unit and make doing so prohibitive in terms of the delay getting through and the cost of shipping back to them, the entire product no matter what goes wrong. I've seen some poorly operated business' lately but this outfit takes the grand prize. I would have given them no stars if it were possible. The unit itself is very noisy, crude controls compared to other brands I've owned and has a very small reservoir. The cord tangled so bad that it would surely have failed in short order if the tip hadn't done so first. I would recommend you spend the extra money on one of the better quality units out there rather than waste your money and time with this one (unless you are looking for a cheap gift and don't care how it works).
[Friday, January 11, 2008]
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Pleasantly Strong
I just purchased my Interplak about one month ago. At the first use, I wondered why I always have to be the sucker. Is it written in my DNA code? Is it some mental defect? I decided that I might do some research just as soon as I cleaned the water from all over the bathroom sink. It sprayed water all over the place (even wet up my toilet paper), and the spray felt far too weak to be of any benefit. As I boxed up the unit to return, I wondered about the other tips and whether or not turning up the pressure would do any good. So, I unboxed that rascal, filled it up, changed to the sub-gingival tip, and let 'er rip. Whoa! What a change! That tip on the highest setting really does the trick. It even blasted away that wicked popcorn husk that had settled under my gum line and had been vexing me since dinner. I have since decided that using the subgingival tip on the highest setting is overkill. The pressure is strong enough to leave my gums too sensitive, so I have turned it down a couple of notches. That tip works so well that I no longer bother with the other tips that were included. And it is just as well too, since the tongue cleaner tool is likely a hospital visit just waiting to happen. I almost drowned in front of the mirror when I tried it. There is no good way to holler for help with a pint of water down your throat. I caution strongly against that.
Overall, the unit is a great machine at a great price. I agree with one of the reviewers about storing the other attachments on the machine. The least little bump or jarring sends them all over the floor or sink top. I keep mine stored in a baggie for the day when I develop amnesia and forget why I never use them. Also, I have to use my Interplak without that water stopper in the resevoir now, or it won't work. I just fill it with a dixie cup or something, and I am off to the races. I do wish that the resevoir held more water at times. It has to be refilled at least once to finish the job, but I shouldn't complain. I bought it because I didn't want a big butt-ugly tank littering the bathroom. Next time (when this Interplak breaks totally), I'll get the Quickpik to attach to the faucet.
[Thursday, December 27, 2007]
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