Waterpik WP-667CD Aquarius Water Flosser: A Powerful yet Gentle Way to Clean Teeth and Gums

Update on June 12, 2025, 7:15 a.m.

The Micro-Tsunami in Your Mouth: A 60-Year War Against Plaque, Waged by Water
It’s easy to think of our mouths as simple structures, but as a dental hygienist, I see them as complex, dynamic ecosystems. And in every ecosystem, there is a constant battle. For us, the primary conflict is a sixty-year war against an incredibly resilient, microscopic adversary. To understand the elegant weapon that is the Waterpik WP-667CD Aquarius Water Flosser, we must first travel back to a time of frustration in the dentist’s chair.

Imagine it’s the 1950s. A Colorado dentist named Dr. Gerald Moyer is growing increasingly dissatisfied. Day after day, he sees patients who brush diligently, yet still suffer from inflamed gums and persistent plaque. He knows that a toothbrush, no matter how well-wielded, can only fight on the open plains of the tooth surface. The real enemy lurks in the valleys and crevices, deep within the gumline. He has a thought, both simple and revolutionary: what if, instead of scraping at the enemy, we could wash it away with a powerful, targeted stream of water? This question sparked a journey of innovation that leads directly to the sophisticated device on your bathroom counter today.
 Waterpik WP-667CD Aquarius Water Flosser

Our Tenacious Adversary: The Invisible Fortress of Biofilm

Before we can appreciate the weapon, we must respect the enemy. What we casually call “plaque” is nothing like simple food debris. In the world of microbiology, it’s known as a biofilm. The best way to picture it is as a fortified, slimy castle built by bacterial colonists. This isn’t a random encampment; it’s a highly organized community, complete with defensive walls made of a sticky polymer matrix that the bacteria secrete themselves. This matrix makes the biofilm incredibly resistant to chemical attacks (like mouthwash) and protects it from the simple mechanical assault of toothbrush bristles.

Worse still, this fortress is often built along a treacherous moat: the gingival sulcus, the tiny, 1-to-3-millimeter-deep pocket where the gums meet the teeth. For traditional string floss, navigating this space is a clumsy, often incomplete mission. For toothbrush bristles, it’s largely unreachable. It is in this protected space that the bacteria thrive, releasing toxins that lead to inflammation (gingivitis) and, if left unchecked, the irreversible destruction of bone that we call periodontitis.

 Waterpik WP-667CD Aquarius Water Flosser

Forging a Weapon: The Surprising Physics of a Pulsating Stream

Dr. Moyer’s initial idea, refined with the help of engineer John Mattingly, led to a critical discovery: a continuous, steady stream of water isn’t the answer. The real breakthrough, perfected in the modern Aquarius, is pulsation. The device fires 1,400 micro-jets of water per minute, and this isn’t for show. This is pure physics.

Think of it as a hydraulic siege engine laying siege to the biofilm castle. A steady stream is like trying to push the castle wall over—inefficient and weak. Pulsation, however, is like using a battering ram. Each pulse is a focused impact, a tiny, targeted water hammer that creates a brief, high-energy compression wave. This wave travels through the biofilm’s slimy defenses, shattering its internal structure. The brief pause between pulses allows the dislodged debris to be flushed away by the subsequent pulse. This combination of focused hydrokinetic energy and efficient flushing is what allows the Aquarius to obliterate up to 99.9% of plaque from treated areas.

Of course, a siege engine must be tunable. The 10 pressure settings (10-100 PSI) are your control panel. For sensitive gums, which are like delicate historical landmarks, you start with a gentle tap. For healthy gums and stubborn plaque, you can dial up the force for a full-on assault. It’s about applying the precise power needed to demolish the fortress without harming the surrounding landscape of your teeth and gums.

 Waterpik WP-667CD Aquarius Water Flosser

Special Forces for a Microscopic Battlefield: An Arsenal of Tips

As the war against plaque evolved, so did the tactics. The Aquarius comes equipped with an arsenal of 7 specialized tips, each one a highly trained special forces unit designed for a specific mission.

  • The Orthodontic Tip is the combat engineer, with a tapered brush that meticulously clears the complex scaffolding of braces, a notorious haven for plaque.
  • The Plaque Seeker® Tip is the demolitions expert, tasked with navigating the tricky terrain around implants, crowns, and bridges, where biofilm likes to make its last stand.
  • The Pik Pocket™ Tip is the stealth operative, a slender, soft-tipped cannula designed to slip gently into the gumline “moat” and deliver a soothing, low-pressure stream of water or a therapeutic rinse, cleaning where no other tool can go.

 Waterpik WP-667CD Aquarius Water Flosser

From Victory to Vitality: The Science of a Gum Workout

Winning the battle is one thing; rebuilding and strengthening your defenses is another. This is where the Hydro-Pulse Massage mode represents a profound shift from cleaning to wellness. If pulsation is a battering ram, the massage mode is like putting your gums through a Pilates routine.

It delivers a unique, intermittent pulsation pattern designed to stimulate the soft tissues. Scientifically, this action enhances microcirculation within the lamina propria—the delicate layer of connective tissue in your gums. This boost in blood flow acts like a supercharged logistics network: it rushes in oxygen and vital nutrients needed for tissue repair and rushes out the inflammatory byproducts produced by bacteria. Regular use doesn’t just make your gums feel good; it helps them become stronger, pinker, and more resilient against future attacks. It’s proactive defense.
 Waterpik WP-667CD Aquarius Water Flosser

The Weight of Evidence: A Seal of Approval Forged in Science

A story of innovation and scientific principle is compelling, but in the world of health, it requires proof. The ultimate validation for this sixty-year journey is the American Dental Association (ADA) Seal of Acceptance. Waterpik was the first water flosser brand to earn this distinction, a testament to its commitment to rigorous, third-party scientific validation.

The battle reports from clinical trials are just as clear. The finding that a Waterpik Water Flosser is up to 50% more effective for improving gum health than string floss isn’t a marketing slogan; it’s a measure of victory. It’s why 9 out of 10 dental professionals in the U.S. recommend the brand.

 Waterpik WP-667CD Aquarius Water Flosser

Conclusion: Wielding History in Your Hand

The next time you pick up your Waterpik Aquarius, take a moment. Feel the hum of the motor. You’re not just holding a piece of plastic; you’re holding the culmination of a dentist’s frustration, an engineer’s ingenuity, and sixty years of relentless scientific refinement.

That stream of water is more than just water. It’s a micro-tsunami, a precisely engineered force, and a tool for taking control of your own health. Each time you guide the tip along your gumline, you are participating in that ongoing, microscopic war. You are deploying six decades of innovation right where it matters most. And that, in itself, is a small, powerful, and deeply satisfying revolution to be a part of every single day.