Braun ORAL B S 18 Sonic Complete

...the cheaper version of the Braun Oral B Sonic Complete, as it seemed to offer everything I needed, at a reasonable price, and without too many unnecessary bells and whistles.

This brush is quite common and can be purchased in most high street shops selling electrical goods. You can buy it at Boots for £99.99 or at Comet for around the same price. However, you will pick up a better bargain online to be honest. I purchased mine through ...
...to operate.

Braun recommends that the brush is moved gently over the teeth in a slightly circular motion, as this will allow the brushes to reach both between the teeth and around the gums. You should only use a very light pressure, as the electrical pulses of the toothbrush should be doing the hard work for you. It really is very simple to use, and being so lightweight to hold makes cleaning your teeth feel somewhat less of a chore.
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A year or so ago, I decided to buy the Oral B Sonic Complete due to ongoing toothache and gum problems. A family trip to Center Parcs was completely marred for me as I had chronic toothache throughout, and dare not venture in any of the more boisterous pools in case someone inadvertently knocked my poor mouth.

Many years of over brushing with a manual toothbrush seemed to have been caused my gums to recede, thus making my teeth far too exposed and over sensitive to any extremes of temperature or sensation. I knew I was to blame, as my toothbrushes wore out far quicker than anyone else's I knew; I was just being far too heavy handed with the brush. Enough was enough, and I needed to do something. Upon inspection my gums were receding in places above my front molars, and I needed to find a less abrasive method of cleaning my teeth.

I had not used an electric toothbrush since I was a child, and remembered them as being pathetic little things that lightly buzzed over your teeth, and didn't really seem to do much cleaning. However, I was soon to learn that electric toothbrushes have come on a fair bit since the 70's.

** The dangers of over brushing your teeth **
Over brushing (or too much pressure on your teeth/gums) can cause damage to your tooth enamel as well as your gums. Unchecked, over brushing can lead to gingivitis, a mild form of gum disease. Symptoms of gingivitis include soreness, swelling and bleeding to the gums. Untreated, gingivitis can lead to receding gums, loss of teeth, abscess/infection and trench mouth. What I liked about the idea of an electric toothbrush was that it would do much of the brushing for me, and I would be less tempted to be as heavy handed as I was with a manual toothbrush. Similarly, some of the models I looked at had timer devices on them, meaning I would be reminded to stop over brushing my teeth quite so often, and keep to the recommended two minutes twice daily.

** Costs and Availability **
I had a trawl through the usual websites looking at prices, and kept coming back to the cheaper version of the Braun Oral B Sonic Complete, as it seemed to offer everything I needed, at a reasonable price, and without too many unnecessary bells and whistles.

This brush is quite common and can be purchased in most high street shops selling electrical goods. You can buy it at Boots for £99.99 or at Comet for around the same price. However, you will pick up a better bargain online to be honest. I purchased mine through Amazon, where it cost a lot less at £73.91, fully inclusive of postage and packing.

Although the unit comes with two free toothbrush heads, replacement heads can be purchased for around £9.99 for a packet of two in the high street (Boots may be your best option). Again, however, you can pick them up cheaper online (currently £5.97 on Amazon).

** What's in the box? **
Every model sold features not just the toothbrush itself, but two brush heads and a white plastic recharging base. The charger base has a lidded storage area at the back, where you can stick your spare brush heads to keep them clean and dust free, until you're ready to replace the brush head on your toothbrush. Each box also contains a wall holder which can be mounted onto your bathroom wall easily enough (I say "easily enough", as the diagram in the instruction manual looks simple enough, but I haven't actually mounted mine on the bathroom wall). Every toothbrush comes with a fully rechargeable nickel cadmium battery, which is sealed into the end of the toothbrush. The toothbrush can be recharged in any shaver socket, or you can buy an adaptor which plugs it into any standard plug socket. Every unit sold comes with a full two year warranty from Braun.

** Appearance **
The toothbrush is a smooth, tapered, slim looking unit in aquatic looking blues and greens. Despite being considerably thicker than a manual toothbrush, this unit is incredibly lightweight to hold, and only slightly longer in length than a manual brush. It's made from a very durable plastic, which is completely waterproof. It has an easy grip handle, and the base of the unit has a slightly ridged feel to it, which makes it much easier to grip and hold onto whilst cleaning your teeth. I tend to get into a bit of a mess whilst cleaning my teeth, and end up with toothpaste, water and dribble all over my hand and the toothbrush. There are no problems with this toothbrush at all though, it rinses easily clean under the tap.

Each unit has a large silver on/off button to its centre. Underneath this, are the lights indicating the various brushing options of Clean or Soft mode, and further down is neon blue light for the recharging indicator. The whole unit is powered by a fully rechargeable battery, which sits snugly inside the plastic casing, and should not be tampered with.

The brushes sit on the tapered end of the toothbrush, and the toothbrush head is very easily pulled off and pushed on. There will always be a small 2mm space between the brush head and the unit in order to allow the brush head a full range of motion in the cleaning process. The tooth brush heads are a good, decent size, which I like. A lot of the models I considered in my quest to find a good electrical toothbrush had tiny brush heads, and I wanted one with a "normal" sized toothbrush head like you get with manual toothbrushes. The toothbrushes have multi-textured bristles, which are also multi-angled so as to reach between the gaps in your teeth, and get to those harder to reach areas. The criss-cross bristles are ideal for cleaning the surfaces of your teeth and going over the gum line. There are also interdental bristles, which are slightly raised, in order to reach between the teeth. At the tips of the brush there are slightly longer power tip bristles, which are designed to clean the harder to reach areas of your mouth.

** Operation **
There are two modes to the cheaper version of the brush. The first is a gentler and quieter mode called Soft mode. The Soft programme is designed for cleaning the sensitive mouth areas and your tongue. When you first start using this brush, the sensation really does feel weird in your mouth, so it's best to start off in this mode so your teeth, gums and tongue get used to the feeling. I was convinced I hated my new toothbrush for the first week or so of use, as I really did not like the sensation in my mouth. It felt tickly and itchy, and I was not at all sure I would get used to it. However, you do find the initial weird sensation wears off as your teeth, mouth and gums get used to it.

The second mode is Clean, and this is a little bit stronger and really does the job of getting your teeth feeling smooth and clean. It is also great at removing plaque and build up in those harder to reach areas between your teeth and gums.

The unit is best held with a light grip and angled towards the gumline. Sometimes I spread the toothpaste all over my gums and teeth before I switch the unit on and start cleaning. Other times, I will just put the toothpaste on the brush itself and then switch it on. However, you do get better coverage and cleaning to your teeth, if you spread the toothpaste over your gums and teeth first.

To start the toothbrush up, you press the large silver on/off button halfway down the base. The toothbrush will automatically start to vibrate in the softer and slower Soft mode. If you press the on/off button once more, it shifts up a gear into the stronger and faster Clean mode. To turn the toothbrush off, you press the on/off button once more. The toothbrush is really very quiet, and not at all noisy to operate.

Braun recommends that the brush is moved gently over the teeth in a slightly circular motion, as this will allow the brushes to reach both between the teeth and around the gums. You should only use a very light pressure, as the electrical pulses of the toothbrush should be doing the hard work for you. It really is very simple to use, and being so lightweight to hold makes cleaning your teeth feel somewhat less of a chore.

The brush needs to be massaged gently over your gums and teeth for no more than two minutes to get an optimum result. This toothbrush comes will a fully built in professional timer programme, which tells you when to move onto the next section of your teeth. It's best to spend 30 seconds on the first bottom half of your jaw, and then move on to spend 30 seconds on the second section of your bottom teeth, and so on. The brush will miss a slight beat whilst you are brushing, and this is your 30 second indicator to move onto another section of your mouth. After two minutes, the brush will give three small beats as a sign that brushing should be completed. Having not read the instruction manual properly (I'm a woman…what do you expect….), I was not aware of the timing signals on this brush for many weeks. I was convinced I had a faulty brush that kept cutting out. I now know better…..

** Recharging and Replacement Heads **
To recharge your toothbrush, you place the whole unit (brush head and all), into the charger base. It slots in really easily, and you immediately know it's working as the neon blue charge indicator lights up. The blue charging light will blink on and off for the entire charge period, and only stops blinking once the unit is once again fully charged and ready to go. I find if I pop my toothbrush onto charge overnight, it tends to be ready to go by the morning. If you have completely run it down, it does take at least 16 hours to fully recharge.

According to the instruction manual, the toothbrush will need to be recharged every 14 days or so. Personally, I find that I need to recharge mine every 7 to 10 days, but that is purely because I often go beyond the recommended two minute timer for cleaning my teeth (old habits die hard, but I am working on it).

I also find it slightly annoying that the brush does not come with some kind of indicator on it to show when the battery is getting low. I can almost guarantee that there will no juice left in my toothbrush on the morning when I have overslept, and am late for work. If there was a level indicator somewhere on the brush, this would avoid the need to try and remember when it needs recharging. However, to be fair, once you've had the brush a while you can tell when the power is getting low, as begins to get a little sluggish and the on/off switch is slower to react.

Braun recommend that you replace the toothbrush head every three months or so. The box you receive should contain a handy set of stickers printed with the months to act as a reminder. The stickers can be lightly stuck to the recharging unit. If you have forgotten to replace your toothbrush head, Braun have also come up with another handy indicator to point out the error of your ways. New brushes have sky blue indicator bristles, which fade to white with use, thus demonstrating it's time for a new brush head.

This brush is suitable for all ages, although parental supervision is recommended for anyone under the age of 3. It can be used on fillings, crowns and bridges without a problem, but perhaps the gentler Soft mode is best used on any teeth/gums which have been recently worked on by your dentist.

** Do I recommend it? **
Yes, I do. My teeth have never felt cleaner. It's really pleasant to run your tongue over your teeth after you've brushed, it really is amazing how much smoother they feel. The nasty darker marks between my teeth are fading, as the bristles on this brush are much more effective at reaching behind and around the gaps in my teeth. Similarly, my gums feel a lot less sensitive nowadays, and they are definitely happier dealing with both hot and cold food/drinks. Since my manual brush has been shown to my wastepaper bin, the temptation to put too much pressure on my teeth during my morning and evening cleaning routine has gone. The electric brush now does the hard work for me. I am working on the over-brushing, but the timer device on this unit really does serve as a handy prompt.

** Main Features **
- Fully rechargeable unit with neon blue charge indicator light
- Dual speed unit with up to 40,000 pulsating movements per minute
- Maximum sixteen hours charging time
- Completely waterproof
- Light and easy to use with non-slip grip handle
- Three dimensional brushing action so it brushes back and forth as well as side to side, thus removing plaque more effectively.
- Soft, rounded and multi-tufted bristles to brush heads to get to harder to reach mouth areas
- Two minute memory timer
- Indicator brushes to toothbrush heads to show when replacement brush is due

More information can be found at www.oralb.com or www.braun.com
Oral B Helpline: 0800 73 11 792 (free phone line number) 

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