Testing  the Chanson VS-70’s pH and ORP

Why would I need to test the pH and ORP of the VS 70 water ionizer? The reason is that the VS 70 water ionizer is programmable and in order to get the best results, it should be programmed for the specific source water where it will be used.

The first thing that I did, before testing the Chanson VS 70 water ionizer, was to clean my pH and ORP meters. This is done to ensure that the test results are accurate.

Setting the VS-70 Water Ionizer up Step-by-Step

Once I had the meters cleaned, then I tested the Chanson VS 70 water ionizer at the factory settings.  These settings will need to be adjusted depending on source water and other factors. I did this for the VS-70 water ionizer and the readings were unsatisfactory, as shown below.

Test #1    pH    ORP
Level 1    10.2    -75
Level 2    10.3    -100
Level 3    10.6    -130
Level 4    10.6    -160

The next thing that I addressed to improve the pH and ORP level of the Chanson VS70 water ionizer was to slow down the flow rate of the water. Since this is an undersink water ionizer that does not have a flow control knob, so I had to adjust the “T valve” (see picture below) that hooks the water ionizer up to the water line under the sink.  Once I did this, the readings were much better.

Test #2    pH    ORP
Level 1    10.3    -120
Level 2    9.2    -149
Level 3    10.7    -785
Level 4    10.8    -760

As you can see above, all four levels of alkaline were 9, or higher, in pH.

Then I adjusted the pH settings on the machine a little lower because I wasn’t getting a good range in pH.

Test #3    pH    ORP
Level 1    7.4    40
Level 2    8.2    -10
Level 3    9.8    -260
Level 4    10.9    -405
Low Acid    2.3

The ORP ratings are not so great on this third test.  Although I did achieve a good range in the pH of the alkaline levels.

I had to do a little more adjustment after this to try and correct that.  I adjusted the pH settings a little higher, and finally found the correct equilibrium for this machine!

Test #4    pH    ORP
Level 1    9.0    -200
Level 2    9.5    -325
Level 3    10.4    -660
Level 4    10.6    -700
Low Acid    2.5

In this fourth test, there is a nice range in pH and the ORP readings are much higher than before for the alkaline settings.

As you can see, programming can take some time, effort and trouble-shooting but once you have set your machine up, you have the use of some very healthy and healing alkaline ionized water right at your fingertips!

After over 16 years of drinking alkaline ionized water, I can say with conviction that the very best thing I could give to myself or a loved one is a WATER IONIZER! Give yourself and your family the gift of health this year!

Wishing You Water Wellness!
Sincerely,
Cathie LoGrasso

Email Us: Support@alkaline-water-plus.info
Website Home: http://www.alkalinewaterplus.com
Copyright © 2006 – 2011 Alkaline Water Plus
Call for a “Best Price Quote” 1-888-MY-ALKALINE [692-5525]

Or call my [Cathie's] CELL: 314-452-9560

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Reverse Osmosis is considered one of the best forms of filtration.  A lot of people have RO machines that think that they are drinking really healthy water.  I would like to shed some light on this subject and relate/compare it to alkaline ionized water, which you would get from an alkaline water machine [AKA... water ionizer].

What is RO?

RO stands for Reverse Osmosis.  This is more easily understood if we define osmosis.

Osmosis is the tendency of a fluid, usually water, to pass through a semipermeable membrane into a solution where the solvent concentration is higher, thus equalizing the concentrations of materials on either side of the membrane.

So, likewise, reverse osmosis is when pressure is applied to one side of a semipermeable membrane in order to get fresh water out of a solution.  This actually defies the nature of water.

A typical home RO system would include a sediment filter, an RO membrane, a pressurized water storage container, a post filter, and a separate water tap.

Benefits and Disadvantages of RO

This process is well known for the ability to desalinize water.  This is one of the best ways to go about treating brackish water or seawater.  It will remove up to 93% of the sodium dissolved in water.  This is often used when someone uses a whole house softener that uses sodium.  It is considered unhealthy to drink water that has sodium in it as you can easily get too much sodium that way.

Reverse osmosis will inevitably reduce the total dissolved solids(TDS) of the water as well.  The plus side to that statment is that there will not be contaminants in the water.  However, there will also be very little mineral content left in the water after reverse osmosis.  This is not particularly good for the body to drink as water too void of minerals will tend to leech the body of minerals as it circulates around.

Now, some RO systems do come with an inline remineralizer which would add minerals back into the water, or you always have the option of adding a remineralizing filter (and housing) to the line.

Even with the remineralizer added in, reverse osmosis may tend to make the water acidic, which is not ideal for drinking purposes.

There are specific contaminants that RO will get out of the water.

Contaminant

Lab Test

Field Test

Nitrates

83-92%

92%

TDS

95-99%

60-99%

Sulfates

90-98%

60-98%

Sodium

87-93%

60-93%

The field test here is for properly maintained units, un-maintained, the amounts could be as little as zero.

Something else to keep in mind is that if there is more than one contaminant in the water, the rejection rate for each contaminant could be reduced or hindered.

There is also quite a bit of waste water produced by reverse osmosis.  You only use 5-15% of the water entering the system.  This is a lot of waste water being produced.

How is Alkaline Ionized Water Better than Reverse Osmosis?

Well, obviously it’s alkaline!  It helps prevent the effects of food, drinks, stress, etc. in making your body acidic. It will counter the acidic lifestyles that we lead, and help the body get to a homeostasis.

By the way, you can combine a reverse osmosis machine with an alkaline water machine [water ionizer], but you need to know this one thing:  a water ionizer needs minerals in the water in order to ionize it properly. Many people purchase a water ionizer and request that one of the water ionizer’s filters be traded for a remineralizing filter, or if that brand of water ionizer has no internal remineralizing cartridge, then it’s easy enough to buy an external one. We will often include a remineralizing cartridge at no extra cost, so make sure you request this if you plan to purchase an alkaline water machine [water ionizer] to use with your reverse osmosis machine.

There are healthy, alkaline minerals in alkaline water. This is good because this means that the water you drink from an ionizer will not leech the body of minerals. All water ionizers have filters built into the machine. These filters, depending on the machine, will filter a large number of contaminants. There are some contaminants, such as fluoride, amonia, sulphur, and arsenic, which are not as thoroughly eliminated using a reverse osmosis machine as they would be using an alkaline water machine which utilizes specific filter media targeted toward eliminating that toxin. Fluoride is a great example of this. An unfiltered water ionizer [which there are none, but theoretically] will eliminate 85% of the fluoride from the drinking water [because fluoride is acidic]. A reverse osmosis machine will eliminate about 85% as well.

The reason that reverse osmosis is so uneffective with fluoride is that it relies on the size of the molecule to sift the contaminants out of the water. Fluoride is such a small element, it’s right next to oxygen on the periodic table. A slow flow [trickle] of water through a carbon filter will eliminate about 85% of the fluoride as well. The specialized filter media, called activated alumina, will eliminate up to 99% of the fluoride. Why so much better? Because the activated alumina filter media is chemically attracting the fluoride to it and then when it bonds it is trapped in the media and can’t go anywhere.

Besides for Better Filtration, Why Else Would You Want to Combine a Water Ionizer with a Reverse Osmosis Machine?

Alkaline ionized water has an abundance of antioxidants.  Ionized water actually has one of the most basic forms of antioxidant built right in.  This is measured by Oxidation Reduction Potential (ORP).  The lower the ORP the better.  Some of the water ionizers we have tested consistantly get an ORP of -600 to -700!  Normal tap water is a positive 200 or 300 ORP, meaning it will oxidize the body. Even if you handle the acidity problem of reverse osmosis, the ORP is another, separate, issue that reverse osmosis doesn’t handle. RO water is usually around +300 ORP, which is very oxidizing.

For most contaminants, other than sodium, extreme hardness or radium, there is not a big advantage in using reverse osmosis at all. Obviously, good filtration is desirable, but many water ionizers provide you with this. You can go to our water ionizer comparison page to compare various ionizers’ filters, http://www.alkalinewaterplus.com/water-ionizer-comparisons We suggest that the best way to filter city water is to use either the H2 or H3 Prefilter System rather than reverse osmosis. With these filter systems you can customize what filters you need [if any] prior to your water ionizer.  Also, if you have a well and you are concerned about bacteria or viruses there are filters for that specifically.  For bacteria, viruses, pharmaceuticals, nitrates, chlorine, chloramine, amonia, arsenic, lead and other heavy metals, the best way to handle is to customize for the water contaminants that you are concerned about.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reverse_osmosis

http://www.ag.ndsu.edu/pubs/h2oqual/watsys/ae1047w.htm

After over 16 years of drinking alkaline ionized water, I can say with conviction that the very best thing I could give to myself or a loved one is a WATER IONIZER! Give yourself and your family the gift of health this year!

Wishing You Water Wellness!
Sincerely,
Cathie LoGrasso

Email Us: Support@alkaline-water-plus.info
Website Home: http://www.alkalinewaterplus.com
Copyright © 2006 – 2011 Alkaline Water Plus
Call for a “Best Price Quote” 1-888-MY-ALKALINE [692-5525]

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I was doing a little research on distilled water verses ionized water, and I found some pretty interesting things.  I have a few friends who insist on drinking distilled water because their rationalle is it does not have any chemicals in it and it is pure water, so it obviously is “good for you”. This sparked an interest in what the health benefits or consequences are from distilled water versus alkaline water.

I found a few things that I thought were very interesting about distilled water.  Now obviously distilled water is not going to kill you, but I wanted to find out how healthy it really was for you, especially in comparison to alkaline ionized water.

Distilled Water

• No minerals
• Slightly acidic
• Removes contaminants
• Leeches body of minerals

I found that distilled water tends to be slightly acidic.  The reason for this is that distilled water is void of all minerals.  This is how water gets a pH value [by assimilating minerals]. If it has no minerals, it will assimilate the carbon or other minerals in the air [which are mainly acidic].  On the other hand, distillation removes a broad amount of contaminants, which are in typical tap water.  Contaminant removal is the main reason people drink distilled water.  “Pure water” just sounds so good for you, right?”

Since there are so few minerals in distilled water, it tends to want to get minerals from other places.  If you drink distilled water it would tend to leech the minerals from you.  If you cook with distilled water, it would tend to leech the minerals from the food you are cooking.  This is called adhesion, the attraction of water to other materials.  Water has a positive charge on the Hydrogen side of the water molecule and a negative charge on the oxygen side.  That is what makes water so attractive!

Ionized Water

• Alkaline
• Filters out some contaminants
• Allows good minerals through

As you may well know, diseases thrive in acidic environments. People have known for years that eating raw fruits/vegetables, whole grains, etc., which are alkaline, and avoiding acid-producing foods [white flour, sugar, processed foods...] are good for their health. However, some how or another it doesn’t always sink in that what you eat/drink is directly proportional to how well you are. The last time I checked, doctors don’t ask very often about what your eating/drinking routines are. The availability and desirability of junk foods, processed foods, fast foods [all highly acid-forming] along with our fast-paced lifestyles today, drives people to eat more and more of the wrong things and avoid the right foods.

Alkaline ionized water is alkaline. The alkaline ionized water will allow for acidic wastes to be discarded much more easily and also turns the state of your body more alkaline. Alkaline ionized water will help to buffer the less than perfect diet. In addition, alkaline ionized water is packed full of antioxidants, which also ward off diseases.

All water ionizers allow for the good minerals, such as calcium, magnesium and potasium to go through their filtration process.  This is important because in order for electrolysis to work you do need minerals in the water.  You cannot ionize distilled or reverse osmosis water without remineralizing it. Water ionizers also filter out many of the contaminants found in tap water. Some ionizers have better filters than others. For a comparison of water ionizers [including their filtration] see http://www.alkalinewaterplus.com/water-ionizer-comparisons .

There actually have been studies showing that hard water prevents cardiovascular disease.  http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/3396141.stm . [Hard water is just water with lots of calcium in it.]

So, the idea that “pure water” is better for you is just not true.  You don’t get a significant amount of calcium or any mineral from water, but it does seem to have an affect on health.  In the link above, it was found that acute heart attacks were significantly lower in areas of the country where water was harder.

Conclusion

The one benefit that distilled water has going for it is that it does not have contaminants in it.  Other than that, it is actually not very healthy for you.  Alkaline ionized water, on the other hand, is going to help alkalize your body.  If you’re concerned about the purity of your water [from the standpoint of eliminating pharmaceuticals, water-treatment chemicals, and other harmful contaminants], some water ionizers have better filters than others. So, do your homework, and check out the link I gave you above. There are also some great pre-filters out there that will take care of pretty much anything you would be worried about.

After over 16 years of drinking alkaline ionized water, I can say with conviction that the very best thing I could give to myself or a loved one is a WATER IONIZER! Give yourself and your family the gift of health this year!

Wishing You Water Wellness!
Sincerely,
Cathie LoGrasso

Email Us: Support@alkaline-water-plus.info
Website Home: http://www.alkalinewaterplus.com
Copyright © 2006 – 2011 Alkaline Water Plus
Call for a “Best Price Quote” 1-888-MY-ALKALINE [692-5525]

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