The Cost of Store-bought Alkaline Water vs AlkaViva Water Ionizers

With the large upfront cost of water ionizer machines, many people can be put off or believe they aren't "worth" it. Although ionizer machines can have significant upfront costs, these machines are precision-engineered to last and are life-enhancing investments that pay off over the years you own one. The popular H2 series Ionizers by AlkaViva are benchmark machines that provide the highest performance in water filtration and water ionization and are what we will be using for today's comparison.

Why is Alkaline water important?

Alkaline water is often praised for its potential health benefits, this is due to its higher pH level when compared to regular drinking water. Alkaline water can help neutralise acid in the bloodstream, which can help balance the body’s pH levels, boosting overall well-being and may improve metabolism, increase energy, and slow the ageing process by reducing free radicals in the body. It is also believed to aid in superior hydration, detoxification, and supporting immune function.

What does a water ionizer do?

Water ionizers are machines that alter the pH level of drinking water through a process called electrolysis. This process separates the incoming water into acidic and alkaline components.

Firstly, water ionizers receive incoming water through a filter which removes common contaminants like chlorine, sediments and heavy metals, ensuring the source water is clean before ionization. Next, the filtered water enters the electrolysis chamber where a series of corrosion-resistant, conductive electrodes that when applied with an electrical current cause the water molecules (H2O) to split into hydrogen ions (H+) and hydroxide ions (OH-). This process effectively separates the water into two streams:

Alkaline Water

The positive hydrogen ions (H+) are attracted to the negatively charged electrode (cathode) where they gain electrons and combine to form hydrogen gas (H2) and alkaline water, which is rich in hydroxide ions (OH-). Alkaline water is used for drinking and cooking due to its associated health benefits and can help neutralise acidity in the body while providing antioxidants. 

Acidic Water

The negative hydroxide ions (OH-) are attracted to the positively charged electrode (anode) where they lose electrons and combine to form oxygen gas (O2) and acidic water, which is rich in hydrogen ions (H+). Acidic water is used for cleaning, sanitising and skincare due to its effective antibacterial properties.

The ionizer then separates and collects the alkaline and acidic water into different compartments, allowing users to select the type of water they want depending on their requirements. The AlkaViva H2 series water ionizers are also equipped with intuitive control panels that enable the user to adjust the pH level of the output water, achieved by varying the electrical current and the duration of electrolysis, therefore changing the concentration of hydrogen and hydroxide ions in the water.

Cost of store-bought bottled Alkaline water

For our comparison, we will observe a family of four using six litres of water daily. This is a conservative estimate as it's recommended that adults consume at least 2 litres of water every day, although many drink less.

The cost of a 6x600ml pack of Alkaline ionised water from a popular UK supermarket is £6, which means it costs approximately £1.70 per litre. This means it would cost £3723 over a year or £18,615 over five years, just for a family of four! This calculation doesn't even account for any additional use of alkaline ionised water, for example when cooking.

The unseen cost

It's easy to dispel the environmental impact of plastic single-use bottles as most are recyclable right?

It takes approximately 97.2g of oil and 4.2 litres of water to manufacture a single 600ml disposable PET bottle. This amounts to the release of 60g of Carbon Dioxide (CO2), a major greenhouse gas. Therefore, even if you recycle every single plastic bottle you use, you still significantly contribute to world pollution. To have enough store-bought bottled alkaline ionized water for a family of four over five years you would need to purchase 3,041 packs of 6x600ml or 18,252 total bottles! This equates to the approximate release of 1,095,120g of CO2 into our atmosphere and does not even consider the additional impact that transporting and storing this amount of bottles would have. 

Conversely, a single AlkaViva H2 Series main water filter can produce around 3800 litres of water, preventing the environmental impact of about 6,333 600ml bottles or 379,980g of CO2! 

The Comparison

The table below displays a comparative cost analysis of the AlkaViva H2 series water ionizers producing the same amount of water over the same periods. Each main filter in these ionizers can produce 3800 litres of water before requiring a change. The results below are calculated with the associated costs of required filter changes, giving an accurate overview of the expected total cost.

Time will tell...

Studying our comparison's results, it becomes crystal clear that AlkaViva water ionizers offer elicit savings over store-bought bottled alkaline ionized water. In the first year of ownership of one of these machines, you could expect to see savings between £1,724 and £2,324! These savings become even more staggering over five years, with immense savings between £16,376 and £16,979! It is plain to see that the savings you could experience with these machines would repeatedly pay for themselves. 

Conclusion

Now that we have explored the vastly different costs associated with store-bought bottled alkaline ionized water and AlkaViva water ionizers, you should have a greater understanding of how these initially expensive ionizer machines can become phenomenal investments that can continue to reap savings for many years. Explore our AlkaViva water ionizer range now here