No, I’m not lazy.. 🙂 But I did do some research and it’s been proven that electric toothbrushes take plaque off your teeth more effectively than by regularly brushing. This is due to a number of factors:
– People forget to brush
– People can’t brush as hard, or as fast as an electric toothbrush
– Standard toothbrushes can’t rotate or swivel as easily to reach hard-to-get areas
– People don’t brush for the requisite 2 minutes (This is a big one!)
What really turned me off was the price. $50, $100, even upwards to $200 for a “good” toothbrush was a bit more than I was willing to pay.
So I researched into getting electric toothbrushes, and I initially purchased the Crest Electric Spinbrush that used 2 Double A batteries.
It was a great bargain (or so I thought) for $9.99 for a single brush, and just the cost of replacing the batteries. Brilliant…for the first month. I have a habit of brushing in the shower (while I wait for my conditioner to work its magic), and I quickly realized that it wasn’t watertight, and after a month or so, the batteries were all icky, gross, and the connectors inside the toothbrush were all rusting and just in general, covered in toothpaste foam. Ick.
I cleaned it out diligently with cotton swabs and tissue paper, and when it looked like new, I decided to just brush over the sink from now on. Lo and behold, the same problem happened because the foam tends to slide down the handle of the brush and get into those crevices (so it wasn’t strictly related to my in-shower habit!)
I tossed it into the garbage, disappointed at the cheap make of an initially fantastic toothbrush.
Then I found the Braun Vitality electric toothbrush:
It was two and a half times the price of the Crest Spinbrush at $24.99, and the best part about it was that it was an INTERNAL battery that could be docked on a fabulous toothbrush stand, and charged nightly if you wished. It was about 4 hours before it’d be fully charged, but if you just throw it on there after you brush your teeth before bed, by morning, the charge is 100%, and it works like a demon on your teeth. I’ve even been known to charge it, bring it on a trip for 2-3 days, and then bring it back and recharge it.
After a month or so of this fab toothbrush, it started to lose its power, and no amount of charging would stick to it!
I was devastated, and resorted to using a manual toothbrush while I fiddled around with it. I tried to recharge it and it still didn’t work. But I didn’t want to give up on this $25 toothbrush because it hadn’t collected gunk inside, was watertight, the battery seemed fine, and quite frankly.. it was only ONE MONTH OLD. I didn’t want to resort to manufacturer warranty because you know how long they bloody take to return rebates and items.. I’d rather fix it now if I could.
So I let it die again, charged it back up. Let it die again, and charged it back up.
This time, it held its charge!!
I was so pleased with the product, even though it DID die (probably due to my lack of battery reconditioning knowledge), and a year later, it still works like a charm.
So in conclusion? If you’re looking for a decently priced, solid electric toothbrush that can withstand toothpaste foam, water, and in-shower brushing, then this is the one for you: Braun Vitality. It comes with many different toothbrush heads, and you can use the SAME toothbrush unit, and just switch out the heads – if you buy a new pack of toothbrush heads, they even come with colored bands that you can slip onto the toothbrush head to identify which one is yours.
Personally, I like the mini round head as seen in the image above. It gets into all of my tooth curves, crevices, and is small enough to really get into the back of my mouth, because the larger one I found, tended to really chafe my gums at the back.. This one fits like a glove over my teeth 🙂
What I also like best is that it has a 2 minute timer on it, and it does a buzzing thing after the 2 minutes are up to let you know how long to brush (2 minutes is the recommended time)….
Just a girl trying to find a balance between being a Shopaholic and a Saver.
I cleared $60,000 in 18 months earning $65,000 gross/year.
Now I am self-employed, and you can read more about 
Joanna: Yes.. electric toothbrushes are the way of the future 🙂
Icy: It’s strange huh? I wasted $20 *bought Husband one too*, and ended up buying a $25 dollar one in the end that we BOTH could use with separate heads…. 😛
G.G. You tagged me?.. Hmm.. I’ll have to spend some time going through my posts’ comments, after I get back from this resort (not my choice, it’s bloody expensive, it’s a company thing)
Oh, I forgot, I tagged you for something (not a meme).
Good tips, wasn’t happy with my Crest SpinBrush. I forget which my dentist said to get… been procrastinating, so will have to ask him again 🙂
Oddly, I went through the same experience. Bought a cheap one, was unhappy with it, then bought the low end Braun one and I’ve been really, really pleased. I’ve never had the battery problem though, but we always let it run flat.
=) Electric toothbrushes are the way to go! I like how the braun tooth brushes come in different coloured handles too and you can coordinate them to your bathroom decor if you really wanted to!
I’m currently using the sonicare advance (present from the parents in my second year of college), it’s pricey but makes my teeth feel reeeealllly smooth afterwards.