Alkaline Water Ionizer Trends

It has been a year since I last wrote on this blog. I stopped writing for two reasons. The first reason was that I began helping a natural water ionizer company (Vitev) in February 2013 and I didn’t want my association with the company to influence my writing. The water ionizer industry is notorious for underhanded marketing strategies and I didn’t want any part of it. That association is no longer in place but I remain a supporter of their products and management. The second reason I stopped writing was that I didn’t have anything new to write about. After 300 articles, I had exhausted pretty much every topic on water that was interesting to me.

What brings me back out of writing purgatory?

Two topics. The first is that excellent water ionizers are now available for under $60 which means everyone can afford healthy water. I have always believed that affordability is the key to mainstream acceptance. The other topic focuses on verifiable scientific research which supports the benefits of the water as opposed to the pseudoscience mumbo jumbo offered up by the industry in the past. I will be writing about affordability today and will deal with the scientific research in an upcoming article.

Before proceeding, I think it is appropriate to catch up on what has been going on in the industry during my absence from blogging.

Electric Water Ionizers – Going, Going, Almost Gone:

Electric water ionizer sales continue to plummet. The machines work but the $2,000 to $4,000 price tags that the industry charges for old technology virtually guarantees that the products will never gain mainstream acceptance.

Enagic, who markets their products as Kangen water, continues to be the big dog in the segment. Enagic will survive because the company now has hundreds of thousands of customers who will continue to pay $250 per year for two filters (which should cost about $20 each) to keep their $4,000 machines operating.

I think Kangen dealers and the public would be well served to forget pretty much everything they have ever read or heard about plates, power, hexagonal water, microclustering etcetera because the information is simply not true. Anything short of scientific backed explanations will continue to be seen as hollow by the public.

The one piece of good news for Kangen dealers is that their $4,000 SD501 machines do in fact work somewhat better than other machines in the industry. Their machines work better because they produce more molecular hydrogen (H2) than other brands. The irony is that Kangen dealers always claimed superiority but the reasons they provided were based upon bogus scientific gibberish.

Japanese scientists discovered in 2006 that (H2) produced by water ionizers acts as a powerful and selective antioxidant. The study triggered renewed interest into how and why the water worked. More than 300 scientific research studies performed since 2007 have shown that the (H2) produced by water ionizers provides therapeutic benefits to more than 80 human diseases. Now that is something that the public can sink their teeth into.

Verifiable scientific explanations are great news for the entire water ionizer industry because now there is something tangible to talk about instead of marketing nonsense. What the Enagic dealers won’t like hearing is that a $59 natural water ionizer that I paid for to get tested produced (H2) levels that range from 2.5x higher than Enagic to a little less than Enagic (but still higher than other electric water ionizers) over the life of the filter. What is even more significant for me is the fact that the (H2) produced by natural water ionizers tends to last much longer due to the fact that the minerals that they add to the water continue to produce (H2) while the electric water ionizers must rely upon whatever minerals are available in the source water.

Two years ago, I wrote about my belief that electric water were obsolete. Nothing in the interim has changed my mind.

Natural Water Ionizers – Effective, More Affordable, But Still Not Creating Mainstream Awareness

As I mentioned in the opening paragraph, I spent a good part of 2013 helping Vitev with the development of their product line of natural water ionizers. Vitev was on the leading edge of the natural alkaline industry and I offered my help in exchange for them allowing me to spend their money testing and developing new products. While I’m no longer helping Vitev, I remain a big fan of their Vitev Maxx($795) as I believe it is the premier water ionizer product on the market. The Maxx offers the best of the best in terms of providing clean and healthy water and its permeate pump reduces waste water by up to 80% and refills the holding tank up to 4 times faster than other systems. You can check out the Maxx at: http://www.vitev.com/alkaline-water-ionizers/MAXX/

When I was helping Vitev, I asked the company if I could answer their customer service inquiries for a few weeks. I wanted to know what their callers were thinking. I assumed the public would be thrilled with Vitev’s $399 Flo as it makes great ionized water for one tenth the price of an Enagic SD501. What I discovered what that most of the people in America couldn’t afford $399, or at least were not willing to spend that much money for good drinking water. That knowledge sent me back to the drawing board.

Understanding Current Drinking Water Choices

Here is my summary of the state of the drinking water industry in America:

1) Drinking water is vital to our health
2) Public drinking water supplies are getting worse, not better. Government budgets are under constant pressure and there is widespread belief among legislators that providing water that doesn’t make you sick immediately is enough to get by.
3) There is a huge demand for good tasting “safe” bottled water (inaccurately perceived by most to be clean & healthy when it is clean but not necessarily healthy) fueled by massive marketing budgets from Coca Cola, PepsiCo, Nestle, and others
4) Most people are not aware of the difference between clean (reverse osmosis) and healthy (mineralized) water.
5) The awareness of healthy alkaline bottled water is finally growing due to the marketing efforts of Fiji, Essentia, and Aqua Hydrate. If a celebrity says you should buy a product, it must be true (groan).
6) Most people would choose environmentally friendly products over filling our landfill sites with billions of plastic bottles per year if other factors such as cost and convenience were the same.
7) Affordability plays a huge role when it comes to people’s drinking water choices. While everyone would like to drink the best water, most people won’t pay for the privilege other than to grab a bottle of water while they are on the go.

Affordability: The Key To Bringing Healthy Water Into The Mainstream

My goal with this blog has always been to make people aware of the importance of drinking clean and healthy water. I couldn’t do anything more than blog or offer help to other companies (for free) as I was restricted by a five year non-compete contract that I signed in September 2008. I used the time in the intervening years to test, experiment, listen, learn, and blog about water. The focus of my blogging was always based upon my belief that everyone should be drinking ionized water and that the water needed to be affordable in order to go mainstream.

The water ionizer companies and their supporters can educate the public about the benefits of the water until they are blue in the face, but their efforts will fall on deaf ears until the public sees the value. If people can’t afford water ionizers, it doesn’t matter how good they are for your health as long as people have inexpensive alternatives.

VYVwater: My Answer To Bringing Healthy Water Into The Mainstream

Now that my non-compete has expired, I’m able to get back into the water ionizer industry. I have created an alkaline water pitcher called VYVwater. You can see the pitcher online at www.vyvwater.com. Here are some of the reasons why I think that it is worth a couple of minutes of your time to take a look at the website:

* The pitcher is affordable ($59.95) to anyone that has any interest in drinking better water
* The filters cost $19.95 and last for 3 months which means $80 per year (versus $250 per year for electric water ionizers)
* You can fill the pitcher from your kitchen tap or from your reverse osmosis tap
* The pitcher produces pH and ORP levels of 9.5 to 9.8 and -100 to -200 in most source water conditions for the life of the filter
* The pitcher produces as much or up to 2.5 times more (H2) than the leading electric water ionizers over the life of the filter
* The pitcher adds healthy minerals such as magnesium, potassium, and sodium….think Gatorade without the sugar and calories
* Setup takes seconds
* No maintenance is required other that washing the pitcher with soap and water from time to time.
* You never have to worry about the scaling issues that plague the electrical components of electric water ionizers
* You can store the pitcher on a kitchen counter or in your refrigerator if you prefer cold water
* The pitcher is light weight and compact so it is easy to store or take with you to work or on vacation

If the marketing people that are helping me are correct, the pitcher should be available at major retailers across Canada and the USA by the end of 2014. In the meantime, you can buy the pitcher at the website of my friends at www.vitev.com. I chose Vitev because they “get” natural water ionization and they are honest people. These are fun days for me as my dream of making healthy water available to everyone looks like it has a chance to go mainstream.

Thanks for reading.

18 Responses to Alkaline Water Ionizer Trends

  1. Does your new pitcher reduce floride .also?

    • Hi Mike:

      The filter in the pitcher contains ionic resin so it will remove fluoride to some degree. However, the only way to properly remove fluoride is with a reverse osmosis system or a distiller. Zero Water takes the Total Dissolved Solids(TDS) level down to very low numbers but they don’t even claim to removed fluoride.

      The Safe Drinking Water Act of the EPA reduced the acceptable level of fluoride from 1.2 ppm down to 0.7 ppm more than a year ago and municipalities follow suit. In fact, most water treatment plant employees hate adding fluoride because of the danger in handling the substance.

      If you want to remove fluoride from the water, you should look for a reverse osmosis system with a good remineralizing filter. I recommend the Vitev Maxx if you can afford the $795 price tag.

  2. hi Rob
    i really enjoy your website & i’m happy you’re back !
    i think that the vitev maxx is a good solution but why are those filters so expensive ($200)!?

  3. This product definitely looks interesting. How well, or to what extent, does this product filter out chlorine? How well does this product compare to the Santevia Alkaline Water pitcher?

    http://santevia.ca/

  4. Rob, just the fact that you take so much time to bash Enagic tells me a lot about your ulterior motives. Do you still own Tyent Rob Gray?

    I own an Enagic Ionizer and let me tell you the truth. First of all, Enagic Ionizers only have ONE FILTER! Not two. I could tell you all a lot more, but people do your own research. Japan has had this for 40 years and it’s part of their health care system. Their technology works and is far superior to any other Ionizer or gimmick water filtration out there. Rob Gray always has his hand in something to make money.

    The Enagic Ionizer really and truly works. You cannot dispute that at all. I have had my health completely reverse from drinking from and Enagic Ionizer and it is worth every single penny.

    Sounds like you have another gimmick here Rob to swindle your customers. Be very careful of this man, he distorts truth and facts to sell his own products. He is a manipulator and lier, and I doubt he will even print this on his “blog”.

    Trena

    • Hi Trena:

      I have always believed that Tyent machines are good products. I left the company because of the lies and deceptive marketing tactics that the company used and Rob Gray played a significant role in that.

      I never said Enagic machines have two filters. I said that Enagic machine uses 2 filters per year as each filter is designed to last six months.

      I agree that the Enagic SD501 works. I also believe that the SD501 is the best electric water ionizer on the market because of its capability to produce molecular hydrogen. I also know from independent testing that the $59 pitcher produces more molecular hydrogen when the filter is new and that it produces more molecular hydrogen than other electric water ionizers over the entire life of the filter.

      I’m happy to hear that the Enagic machine has improved your health. The fact that you think the Enagic machine is worth every penny makes the machine worth every penny for you.

      The 300 scientific studies which show that the molecular hydrogen is beneficial to eighty human diseases offers a reasonable and supportable explanation as to why the water works. Despite the hundreds of millions of dollars of profits that the Enagic company has made, I have never seen any evidence that Enagic has done anything to understand or support the science behind the water but Enagic is definitely good at marketing.

      You are entitled to your belief that alkaline water pitchers are a gimmick but until you do some research or try testing a pitcher, your opinion will provide minimal value to most readers.

      I publish every comment that might offer any value to readers who are interested in learning. While your comments are completely disrespectful and based solely upon your personal beliefs without any factual evidence, your comments do shed light on how you as a representative of Enagic think and behave.

  5. Hi Rob,

    I currently have a Kangen water filter in my home, which was loaned to me for 2 weeks. I have been using the water for about 3 weeks and it has helped me get off my insulin for type 1 diabetes. I also drastically changed my diet at the same time I started using the water. So, I’m really happy to be feeling better and not having to take insulin. I have been doing research because I do not plan on spending $4,000 for a water filter.

    I’m glad I came across your blog in my research because I see you are trying to help people get good water at a better price. You mentioned the $60 pitcher that you’re selling as well as the Vitev Maxx. If I want to get clean, alkaline water with a high amount of H2, do you recommend using both the reverse osmosis machine along with the $60 pitcher, or would it be sufficient to just purchase the $60 pitcher? Where I live the tap water is pretty heavy. Please give me some recommendations to save money and continue to improve my health.

    Sincerely,
    Steven

    • Hi Steven:

      Your story is very encouraging.

      When you say your water is “pretty heavy”, I assume you are referring to a high TDS (total dissolved solid). If that is the case, you would probably be interested in removing contaminants from your water as well as making sure you have the recommended amount of calcium and magnesium.

      If you can afford the Maxx ($795) I would recommend that you get it because I think it offers the best of both worlds in terms of clean and healthy water.

      If the price tag of the Maxx is too high for you, you could start with the VYVwater pitcher and see if it works for you. Keep in mind that a $69.95 pitcher is not the same as the $795 Maxx. If you buy the pitcher from Vitev, I would assume they would allow you to upgrade to the Maxx at a later date.

      No matter what you buy, please make sure to drink the water as fresh as possible because the molecular hydrogen dissipates into the air over time.

  6. Would enough calcium be returned to RO water through the vyv pitcher, and where can I find a more complete list of minerals replaced by Vyv? Also, what are your thoughts on alkaline water being bad for the body in that the body needs to bring the ph back down to blood levels ?

    • Hi Matt:

      The VYVwater pitcher only adds traces of calcium. The sport drinks don’t add calcium because people typically get plenty of calcium in their diet. The pitcher primarily adds Mg, Na, and K in terms of minerals. It also adds lots of trace minerals found in the bioceramics.

      I don’t believe that alkaline water is bad for the body at all. The fluids (other than blood) are almost always acidic and typically get more acidic over time. Alkaline water helps in a number of ways.

      The VYVwater pitcher costs $59.95. The annual replacement cost for the filters for the pitcher is $80. Based upon my readings and research and testing, the pitcher is as good or better than any electric water ionizer. I think the pitcher will do well as it offers people the opportunity to try the water without risking a lot of money.

  7. Rob

    I came across your blog while looking for alternatives to the expensive Tyent filters. I took the plunge a few years ago and own an MMP 7070. Our water in San Diego is quite bad across the board and I feel (but dont know) that the Tyent filters aren’t lasting as long as they would if the source water was ‘better’. The VYV water pitcher looks like a great alternative had I not owned the Tyent, and I also wonder about throughput of the pitcher when used by a family of four adults & 2 dogs.

    Can you tell me if adding pre-filters will extend the useful life of the Tyent filters, & if so, what would you suggest that I use to accomplish this? While pre-filtering, I would also like to remove as much toxins as feasible, such as fluoride & chlorine.

    I’ve also considered using an RO system upstream of the Tyent but was concerned about adequate re-mineralization. I’d appreciate your analysis of my current situation.

    And last but not least, can you direct me to or suggest any alternatives to using the proprietary filters sold by Tyent? Quality & Affordability are paramount & I do understand that those attributes are constantly at odds w/ each other.

    Thank you in advance!

    Mark

    • Hi Mark:

      Lots of good questions in your comments.

      I used to sell Tyent machines (about 450 of them in a year or so) about 6 years ago. The machines were great but the people running the company, not so much.

      It sounds like what you are really looking for is a RO system (to take the bad stuff out of the water) with a remineralizing filter (to put the minerals back into the water). Tyent doesn’t do a particularly good job with either of those functions. The most cost effective way to deal with the “cleaning” function would be to get an inexpensive RO system from Costco or Home Depot (about $150). Then you could add a Remin filter (see http://www.Vitev.com) which costs $149. Together, they would clean and remineralize the water going into your Tyent which would increase the life of your Tyent filters and make the Tyent machine perform a lot better. The catch is that you really wouldn’t need the Tyent anymore. That is why I started talking to people a few years ago about how electric water ionizers were obsolete.

      I’m sure that there are alternative filters available that work just as well as proprietary filters. The knock-offs would likely cost about 10% to 20% of the retail prices of leading filters. The problem is that you would likely have to buy a lot of them to get the pricing you are looking for and then you would have to arrange for shipping and customs clearance. Nobody is going to do that unless they get together in a buying group. There was an Enagic guy who tried to set that up a few years ago but Enagic shut him down.

  8. Hi Rob,
    Thanks for your commitment and from what I have read- integrity to the outlook on human health.

    For those concerned about TDS, (solids in their water) or chlorine or flouride- your thoughts please on the simple process of purchasing ‘filtered’ water from supermarkets, (eg ALDI sell in Aust 10ltrs for $4) and passing it through the VYV jug? Kills 2 birds with an alkaline stone!

    Also approx how many litres would a VYV filter process ( over the 3 months) before replacement is required? How does one know if the filter needs replacement, (assuming you forgot when you bought it and/or lost your calendar to write the purchase date- lol)
    Cheers
    Ian

    • Hi Ian:

      If you are concerned with contaminants of any kind in your source water, you can buy an inexpensive Reverse Osmosis system to remove virtually everything which is a lot cheaper in the long run than buying bottled water. Once the water has been cleaned by a RO system or by purchasing bottled water as you suggested, the VYVwater pitcher is a great solution for adding back minerals. I have been using a VYVwater pitcher now for about a year and I love it.

      I don’t know exactly how many liters the VYVwater pitcher will filter before it needs to be changed as I can’t get the one I’m using to stop working. Seriously, I ran the one in my fridge for 150 liters in the first few days when I first got it to see how long it would last. The same filter is still producing good pH (testing with pH drops), the water still tastes great, and it is not letting chlorine through (testing with a chlorine kit). The source water where I live is exceptional as they don’t add fluoride and they add very little chlorine according to the manager at the water treatment plant. I assume the filter would not perform as well with less optimal source water conditions. In general, filter companies claim the life of their filters to be half of what they normally expect because they have to account for poor source water conditions. I imagine that the fact that the more filters that you use, the more money they make has nothing to do with it:)

  9. Champion- thanks Rob!

  10. Hello Rob,

    I was considering doing what the guy above mentioned doing, which was purchasing a filter pitcher and putting regular distilled or filtered water through it because although I can afford the more expensive MAXX system or any other system, I see it only removes 92-95% of the fluoride which is not enough for me, I dont want any fluoride any my water because it causes too much havoc on my system. Is there any other methods which will completely eliminate fluoride? Like somehow connecting it to a purer source? And also I’m still concerned with anything that says BPA Free on it (The Pitcher) because they still tend to leak estrogen mimickers into the water, is this going to be the case with the pitcher or will it not leak under the right conditions? Ive found this out through experience of drinking bottled water and even though they got rid of BPA, they replaced it with something just as bad. What is the best alternative I just want clean healthy ionized water and willing to do whatever it is no matter how inconvenient to achieve it. I can’t imagine dropping thousands of dollars on a system only to be drinking a healthier water that still contains fluoride. Not even bottled alkaline waters contain fluoride.

    Mitch

    • Hi Mitch:

      I think the Maxx system probably eliminates more than 92-95% because the unit takes the TDS down to almost zero. When you combine the fact that the Safe Water Drinking Act of the EPA limited the content of fluoride to 0.7ppm with the fact that a good RO system typically brings the TDS of source water below 5ppm, I suspect that fluoride content passing through the Maxx would be virtually negligible. However, I don’t work for the company so you might want to call them and ask. If you want to be extra incredibly conscientious about fluoride removal, you could install an activated alumina filter before the reverse osmosis system as activated alumina is an effective fluoride removal media. Short of using a distillation system, I think this is your best alternative.

      Bottled water may or may not come from a source water that contains fluoride depending upon what the companies are using for source water. Even spring water may contain naturally occuring fluoride at varying concentrations.

      A distillation system will evaporate the source water turning it to gas which will leave any contaminants in the original vessel. When the gas condensates, it will be pure. Distillation systems tend to be expensive and cumbersome compared to reverse osmosis systems.

      If you want to chat, send me your contact info by email and I will give you a call.

  11. Thanks for the response Rob! That insight helps narrow my choices but i’ve realized that I don’t know if that Maxx setup will work due to me being in a apartment building. If it will set up properly on a counter or underneath the sink without any permanent alterations to the counter or under the sink I can do it because that seems the best choice but I have a question regarding the electric models if the Maxx won’t work. If it doesn’t should A electric model be able to remove the same amount of fluoride or will only a RO system be able to accomplish that. The one I read you recommending was the EOS model around 1,000$ , but I would be able to afford something like the a Tyent model if would it work better. the The last question is about the chemicals in the ionizer, do I need to find one that does it naturally or will I not be able to feel the difference between the two if it would save more money? Also, where can I find your email listed at? I am done with drinking mediocre water again for the rest of my life!

    Thanks Again
    Mitch

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