Tag Archives: installing a water ionizer

How to Choose the Right Water Ionizer

For decades, water ionizers have been used in Asia to help treat conditions including arthritis, weight problems, cancer, inflammation, digestive issues, skin disorders, acid reflux, allergies, fatigue, gout, and even chronic pain. Alkaline water works by restoring the body’s natural pH balance, acting as a potent antioxidant and stimulating cellular hydration and detoxification. Achieving these health benefits is as easy as choosing the right water ionizer to suit your needs – and then drinking water!

You can obtain a water report from your municipality, or if you have well water, you can have your local health department to have your water analyzed. Tap water is generally preferred for ionization, since the acidity and pollutants of some well water can make the process more difficult. However, it is possible, and knowing the current state of your water can give you a better idea of what kind of ionizer to purchase.

Two popular types of water ionizers are made by AlkaViva and Yi-Shan, and both products are on the cutting edge of water ionizing technology.

Alka-Viva Water Ionizers

AlkaViva's H2 Water Ionizers

AlkaViva’s H2
Water Ionizers
URparamount.com
has the lowest prices!

The AlkaViva Vesta H2, Athena H2 and Melody II water ionizers feature  the latest in technological advances with impressive filtration capabilities, using a duel filtration system with a power-boost that helps regulate a consistent pH output.

AlkaViva’s Ultra-Water filter is the BEST on the market, even removing pharmaceutical drugs. The AlkaViva line uses 2 filters, one a pre-filter and the other the ULTRA-filter. In the future AlkaViva expects to include a fluoride filter with the ULTRA-filter.

These models automatically clean themselves during operation, switching polarity with each use, while ionizing. You never have to wait to use the water. It’s a brilliant solution to electrode maintenance. There is a flow control knob eliminating the need to manually adjust the faucet. Not only does this ionizer increase the pH of your water to a high pH with increased oxygen and hydrogen, it also removes the majority of the other impurities in your water – including pharmaceutical drugs and heavy metals.

The AlkaViva line comes in 5, 7 and 9 plate water ionizers:
Melody II (5 electrodes)
Athena H2 (7 electrodes)
Vesta H2 (9 electrodes)

Easy to install (click here for installation video)

Under Sink Conversion Kit is available (click here for Installation video)

Video about AlkaViva’s Unique ULTRA-Filter

Yi-Shan Water Ionizers

www.URparamount.com for best prices!

Yi-Shan makes
great water ionizers!

Yi-Shan’s Water Ionizer line has the advantage of having the lowest priced ionizer on the market, but still offers great value for the investment. Using three large electrodes, the lowest priced ionizer produces alkaline water with a very high pH, usually 9.5, sometimes even a 10 pH.  It’s a great choice for an economical “no frills” water ionizer if you have municipal water. It might work with well water, but well water is a “wild-card” and may require more ionization power.

The YiShan models reduce electrode mineralization by fully draining the electrode chamber between each use, and running a cleaning cycle approximately twice a day. During this cycle you let it clean and do not use the water. It comes in 3, 5 and 7 ionizer plate models.

The Yi-Shan replacement filters are now ECO-conscious in that after you purchase the first one, the replacements are simply 2 cartridges that fit in the reusable filter housing, eliminating throwing away the plastic filter holder. These are great filters. Click here to learn more about YiShan filters.

Things to Remember:

The majority of ionizers use between three to seven platinum-dipped titanium electrode plates. Generally, you can assume that the more surface area the water flows over, the stronger the ionization. Only buy an ionizer with platinum-dipped titanium electrodes, which all of ours have, and we only carry solid electrode plates for longevity. More electrodes generally mean the ionizer will have a longer life-span, but it is dependent on family size, usage and care.

High-alkaline water produced by an ionizer with three to seven electrodes will produce water within the drinkable range of 9.5 to 10, but some of the models containing seven to nine electrodes can produce water with a pH of 11 or higher, which is not recommended for drinking. Super high pH water (over 10 pH) can be used as a disinfectant cleaning solution. The pH range for drinking water should generally be between 7.5 and 10 pH. Your skin and hair usually show a pH balance of 5.5, and a low acidic pH of 2-4 can be used as a disinfectant for cleaning or wound healing. Many house plants prefer a slightly acidic pH.

Most ionizers on the market will show an “ORP Range,” which gives the consumer an idea of the model’s Oxidation Reduction Potential. This refers to the negative charge the resulting alkaline water will show. The negative charge means negative ions, and they scavenge up the positive ions that we know as free radicals in our body. Tap water is usually at +250 to +350, and a good ionizer will be able to reduce that millivoltage charge to -350 or lower. Keep in mind that this charge will depend on the related charge and mineral composition of the source water. The negative ions are the most important feature of ionized water and are usually equated with an alkaline pH. *

Ionizers can usually be installed a number of ways. Frequently, these systems are installed at the sink with a diverter from the faucet, easily attached directly to your kitchen faucet’s aerator with hoses attaching to the ionizer that sits on the counter. Or, using a Water Ionizer Conversion Kit, the ionizer installs under the sink, out of sight in the cabinet, with a small dedicated double faucet for both the alkaline and acidic waters.

When shopping for a water ionizer, look for the warranty. Ionizers are expected to last at least ten years, with an average longevity of closer to 15-20 years. This, of course, assumes the system is being routinely cared for, with filters changed as needed and with an annual deep cleaning. Most ionizers offer at least a three year warranty – if it doesn’t, it’s probably not a solid investment. Ours have 3 year, 5 year or lifetime warranties. Avoid water ionizers from China as it’s crucial that you can buy filters for many years – and we get calls all the time from folks looking for obscure water ionizer filters. Our two brands, Alka-Viva and YiShan, are made in Taiwan and Korea respectively, and have each been in business for a long, long time. They were some of the first companies selling ionizers. They are both high-quality brands you can trust. And we’ve been selling water ionizers for over 12 years!

Other things to think about are design, easy of cleaning, and the size of your household to help you determine what size ionizer you will need. Once you’ve figured out which is the best ionizer for you (feel free to email us) and get it hooked up you’ll see how alkaline water can help improve your health and well-being.

Click here to learn how much and when to drink ionized water.

* NOTE ABOUT THE NEGATIVE CHARGE: AlkaViva H2 Series ionizers, with the newest, cutting-edge proprietary hydrogen technology, produce MORE negatively charged hydrogen at a given pH level than other ionizers on the market. These state-of-the-art ionizers give you more bang for your buck, in that they provide you with more negative ions to counter the positive ions, known as disease causing free radicals. Powerful antioxidant tool for your health arsenal!

Learn more in our Articles Section and/or write us or call! We’re happy to help!

Thank you to Nina Wells who wrote this article. Nina is a guest author from Steam Shower Store and is a respected and expert voice in a plethora of health related subjects with over 10 years of writing under her belt.

Where to Install an Ionizer

under counter water ionizer fission

Most times a counter-top water ionizer is installed on the counter next to the sink, but here are a few other suggestions that may be more convenient and more efficient use of kitchen space.Of course, if you’re lucky enough to have a wide window sill in the sink’s vicinity, this makes a great location – off the counter and still within easy reach. Most ionizers have a small footprint and will sit securely on a 4″-5″ windowsill. I’ve used this option, among all the others!You might have a pass-through near your sink where you can spare some space. If the ionizer fits crosswise in the opening, the back would face the width of the wall (I’ve done this too). If not, and the ionizer front faces into the kitchen you might like to put a photo of you and your sweetheart, or even your kids to obscure the back view (Yup, did this too!). Or perhaps a photo of your parents who made you so smart that you got a water ionizer! My mother used this option – but keeps a photo of her smart daughter on the back side!

Many water ionizers come with a wall-mount bracket. These work GREAT and often this installation uses unused space. As an alternative, or if your ionizer didn’t include the wall mount option, a sturdy shelf, securely mounted works too. Be sure to mount either option up high enough NOT to interfere with counter use. I have used a wall-mounted ionizer in my kitchen and I’ve wall mounted an under-sink ionizer inside my kitchen sink cabinet so it’s off the cabinet floor.

Another overlooked option is installing the ionizer in the bathroom (on the counter or wall mounted) or laundry room. When my son lived with roommates, he installed his in his own bathroom, and my brother installed his in the laundry roomIt all works! My daughter set the ionizer on the counter, BEHIND the drain board– she simply moved the drain board a bit closer to the counter edge. This worked nice in a tiny apartment kitchen, where she didn’t even have room for the wall option. Now she’s in a house and has done a “custom” installation, which brings me to the final option:

Water Ionizer Conversion Kit

This is for AlkaViva-Jupiter Water Ionizers

You may not be aware that, without investing $$ in an under counter water ionizer, you can install a “counter top”  ionizer under the sink. This is what both of my kids have done, as I did. This is a bit more complicated than above the sink, but it can work. I carry an Under the Counter Conversion Kit (email or call me) that has an above counter double spout – one for alkaline, with the other just underneath it for acid water. There needs to be an extra hole in your countertop or you’ll need to have one professionally drilled. The ionizer gets mounted on the interior side wall of the cabinet below the sink, or on the door if it’s sturdy enough and the hinges are well crafted. Of course you can always have the water ionizer simply sit on the floor of the cabinet.

Yi-Shan AQ, EC, EP & SP series Under Counter Conversion Kit

Yi-Shan AQ, EC, EP & SP series Under Counter Conversion Kit

A plumber is needed to hook the conversion kit up to your cold water line. (HOT WATER should NEVER be run through an ionizer.) There are several hoses to connect, and depending which ionizer you have, you may need some connectors and/or fittings to make it all work properly. A handy person who knows a bit about plumbing may be able to do this without a plumber.

 

When it’s all hooked up, you choose your alkaline or acid settings from the unit down below, but the waster comes out on top. Choosing the settings from inside the cabinet is the one drawback of a counter top water ionizer installed to be an under counter water ionizer.

The photo in the upper right is the Jupiter Ultra Delphi Under Counter Ionizer . With this true “under counter” water ionizer you can choose your ionizer settings from the stem of the faucet on top of the sink.

Anyway you mount it, ionized water is the water of choice – and drink lots of it!!!