“What is an IonCleanse ® footbath and how much is it?”

That was me back in 2015, when I first heard about this IonCleanse ® footbath thing. I’m an Autism parent – that is, parent to a child with debilitating autism of the “not very pretty” kind. I was hearing a lot of buzz in our community about the latest fad. Apparently it was an ionic footbath that was helping kids with Autism feel better, function better and had their mums crying happy tears. THEN I found out the price and chalked it up as another one of the things I’d never afford.

I tried it – for free!

Fast forward a few months, and our footbath arrived. The Thinking Moms’ Revolution had previously completed a study on the effects of the IonCleanse ® on kids with Autism. They decided to do a second study with a ‘tweaked’ protocol, and we took part in it. I’ve written about some of our experiences with the footbath in this blog, so check out those posts!

Why is it so expensive?

If you are comparing the IonCleanse ® to a regular foot spa, or even a cheaper ‘ionic’ footbath, you’re no doubt in shock over the price difference. “Why does this footbath cost more than the ones on eBay or Amazon?” is a common question. To answer that, I’m going to compare some features between the AMD IonCleanse ® and the cheaper versions you can readily find on the internet.

Made in… China or the USA?

The AMD IonCleanse ® has been made in the USA since they started making them back in 2002. Their manufacturing facility is in the same centre as their corporate offices, so they can enforce strict control standards. AMD source parts for their footbaths from within the United States, and they do any repairs themselves.

The majority of other ionic footbaths are made in China, or put together with parts made in China. Most things these days seem to be coming out of China, and most of us buy them quite happily. Yet we’re not surprised when they are broken on arrival, or break down immediately after the warranty expires (or earlier). We have spoken with customers who had Chinese machines that broke and could not be repaired, so they ended up buying a new one. The footbaths that AMD manufacture are made to last 15 – 20 years. In fact, people are still using some of the very first machines produced – yes, machines from 2002!

Tip: Compare the AMD price with having to buy several cheaper models to last an equivalent period of time.

How good is the warranty?

When you buy an IonCleanse Solo® (for Home use) you get a 3 year warranty; if you buy a Premier ® model (for practitioners) you get a 5 year warranty. A Major Difference can easily afford to give you these generous warranties, because they know their machines last the distance. Their defective part rate is only 1%, which you’d be hard pressed to find anywhere! Check out most other models on the market, and you’ll get a 1 year warranty, or 2 if you’re lucky. Would you rather send your machine back to the manufacturer for repairs under warranty, or buy a new one?

Tip: Compare the warranty; ask the supplier if repairs can be done and where.

I’m mixing electricity and water – how safe is this thing?

We couldn’t have said it better ourselves, so we’re just going to tell you what the people from AMD say about this:

The IonCleanse Premier ® and the IonCleanse Solo ® baths both have CE certification, which verifies that they are the safest units on the market. CE certification assures that a product has met European Union consumer safety, health, and environmental requirements. While the CE mark allows for self-regulation, AMD exercised a higher standard and hired an independent organization to test our products.

We can guarantee that whether there’s a fluctuation in current coming from the wall outlet, a power surge, a faulty outlet, electrostatic discharge, or even a lightning strike on the building, our units are completely safe. Even if someone were to drop the control unit into the water nothing will happen. Other units do not provide you with certified assurance of this protection.

Tip: Check whether the unit is compliant with CE, FCC and SAA, and if it is rated for Medical Use.

Don’t all ionic footbaths work the same though?

• The AMD IonCleanse ® has patented medical grade and dual-polarity technology, which makes it different from most other footbaths.
• The average life of one set of plates (also known as the array) is 900-1200 minutes, or 30-40 sessions of 30 minutes each. Some brands will actually pre-program the maximum number of sessions you can get out of an array, making the running costs a lot higher.
• The IonCleanse by AMD ® has a run-time counter that shows you how many minutes your machine has done over its lifetime. There is also a run-time counter for the plates, so you can see just how many minutes you are getting out of each set of plates.
• Due to the focus on safety, you can even use your IonCleanse ® array in the bathtub – handy for children with sensory issues.
• The IonCleanse by AMD ® has been designed from the ground up – watch out for units that have been revamped from battery chargers or similar.

Tip: Not all footbaths are the same!