5 thoughts on “iTouchless UV Toothbrush Holder/Sanitizer”

1. Think about it for just a minute. These gizmos are absolutely useless.

   (1) Anything that gets on your toothbrush head was ALREADY in your mouth. Unless you think your houseguests are cleaning their shoe soles with your toothbrush while you aren’t looking.

   (2) You are sitting a wet toothbrush head in this gizmo. Which means it is sitting in a puddle of water that is likely to mold/mildew. So you can put mold/mildew INTO your mouth (that was NOT in your mouth before).

   (3) The puddle of water is likely to (a) rust out the innards of this gizmo and (b) short-circuit the gizmo’s electronics.

   (4) The American Dental Association says these gizmos have no proven beneficial health benefits:
   
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   Given all that, it seems your money would be better spent betting “Hard 8″ at the Craps table in Vegas.
   Rating: 1 / 5

2. There is a much cheaper alternative to this product.

   Go to the drug store and buy a quart bottle of hydrogen peroxide. It should cost about $.99. Come home and fill a small glass with the hydrogen peroxide. Then put your toothbrush in the hydrogen peroxide for about an hour. At the end of the hour you will have a disinfected toothbrush. You will notice that bubbles will form around the toothbrush as the hydrogen peroxide disinfects it.

   I have read that hydrogen peroxide degrades in sunlight. That is why they put it in a dark colored bottle. I just leave my toothbrush in the hydrogen peroxide over night with the lights off. I try to flex the bristles a few times also to make sure it penetrates into the bristles. Remember, hydrogen peroxide is an oxidizer / bleach and is used to whiten teeth. I am not a rocket scientist but I know that bacteria and viruses don’t like the stuff at all. It is also used as a rocket fuel, so don’t go mixing it with the chemicals from your son’s chemistry set. Other than that, the use of hydrogen peroxide should be uneventful and will get the disinfecting job done at minimal cost.
   Rating: 3 / 5

3. The grandkids love to watch the light after they finish. Makes it easier to get them to brush.
   Rating: 5 / 5

4. I liked this little unit because it is compact, easy to use, easy to clean and it holds my toothbrush and my daughter’s toothbrush (which is always a weird shape like Ariel or Snoopy) without a problem. The inner tray comes apart and fits right into the dishwasher (on the top rack), and it’s one of the least expensive out of any of the UV sanitizers on the market. Automatic shutoff after, what I believe is, 6 or 7 minutes is a nice feature too (when it works). I really like having a toothbrush sanitizer because it just helps me feel like my toothbrush is cleaner and I do see a difference in shortened recoup periods for sore throats and coughs; maybe it’s all in my head and I just bought into the hype, but I swear these things really do work. Here’s where the bad part begins…first off the unit eats batteries like candy and sometimes the auto shutoff doesn’t work so it stays on for hours and eats the entire battery in one shot! That I can live with, but after a few months the unit completely stopped working, I replaced the batteries and nothing. I thought at first that the bulb was out, but the indicator light on the front doesn’t even turn on anymore which leads me to believe the unit is completely dead. I was very disappointed. I gave it a few “gentle” taps against the counter top and still nothing, so now our toothbrushes sit in a disgusting tray of murky water (as there is no UV light to assist in the drying process) until my new unit arrives. PS: This time I purchased a VioLight unit, a little more money but I’m hoping to have better luck, and I have two VioLight travel cases that haven’t failed me yet.
   Rating: 3 / 5

5. I am not sure if I like this item yet. I certainly find it hard to believe that this TINY UV light can kill anything, never mind what is growing on a toothbrush. What I would like to add to everyone’s discussion, is that the directions that come with the sanitizer tell you to clean your toothbrushes BEFORE you use them. If you put them into this sanitizer wet they will sit in the pool of liquid in the bottom cup. Each of the 4 brushes sitting in the SAME cup, as there is no division of the cup for each toothbruh. It’s disgusting. If you want to use this thing correctly you have to put your DRY toothbrush in for sanitizing. This item is NOT meant to store your brushes. You have to leave your toothbrush someplace where it can dry. Also, the cup in the bottom needs to be cleaned DAILY!!!! I think I am going to purchase the toothbrush sanitizer that uses heat and steam and throw this one away.
   Rating: 3 / 5