After spending 200$ for a supposedly premium Philips blender which broke in less than one year after having been sent to assistance, having parts replaced and broken again, been repaired by me and after I spent thousands of swear and curses, I am really this ’ ’ close to smashing it with an hammer and crucifying it to scare the other Philips products away from my kitchen.
Since those were 200$ wasted, and my parents and grandparents kitchen stuff worked sometimes for 30 years before breaking, where can I get my grandparents gear? Should I just resort to smashing vegetables and fruits by hand with stones?
One thing to keep in mind is getting a blender well suited to whatever task you do the most. It mostly makes a difference in the style of blade and shape of the jar. Some brands will sell multiple styles that interface with one base, which might be the best way to go if you have the space for it.
The reason it’s important is that blending a paste like peanut butter or mole is going to put a completely different demand on the system than turning tomato soup smooth, which is different that crushing ice. Some designs also work really well for large quantities, but not as well for smaller quantities.
I have an old Oster that kinda sucks, so I keep using it, and it will keep using it until it no longer works, and I can’t fix it. If I were to buy one, it would be a vitamix 5200.
Personally, I dont like ninja (or the other half of their business, shark) cause their whole business is making knockoffs, which makes me suspect of their quality. Their blenders seem to often have the giant stack of blades, which is good for shredding up a smoothie, but it’s not well suited to some other tasks.
Personally, I like SeriousEats for reviews and comparisons of kitchen implements.
I used to buy about 800 pounds of salvage electronics a week which I would then resell. I’ve seen and evaluated many brands of used older electronics.
For a blender, I’d recommend a Vita-Mix (5200 / 5500), then KitchenAid. Third tier would include Breville or Ninja.
We use a Vitamix 5500 here. A few benefits of the simple design are that the lid has no moving pieces or hinges or locking mechanisms… It’s just a flexible rubber dome that doesn’t crack if you drop it. The blender jug has the blender blade and a very large sealed bearing. You can swap the entire item out as a future service. The motor bases are extremely high quality. I can’t recall seeing any that were ever broken. They seem to rely on solid state electronics and big mechanical switches nstead of fancy displays and microcontrollers and LEDs – most common points of failure on the competitor’s products.
The biggest issue with most blenders is that they are overcomplicated. For example, a ninja blender has detection switches to ensure that the jug is correctly locked to the base and the lid is locked to the jug. If a tab or pin breaks it disables the blender. They could have just designed the shape so that you can’t have the jug halfway installed instead of adding electronics that fail when they get wet or damaged… Bad design choices.
My only warning for Vitamix is to avoid the white color motor base. That color will take on UV damage and turn obviously yellow over the years.
I would not hesitate to buy a well used working Vitamix in the used market. I have seen many units from the mid 1990s and up that run like new.
Just to add in, vitamix themselves sell refurbished units with a warranty.
I will add to this. If you are intending on blending ice, make sure the blender has a steel clutch, if it has a rubber or plastic one it will be worn down quickly.
But yes I work in hospitality supplies and Vitamix goes the long distance.
Do you know if Vitamix motor units are relatively easy to repair? We have one that the speed control doesn’t seem to work consistently anymore. Even at low speeds sometimes it’ll randomly rev all the way to max, or if the knob is turned up sometimes it won’t actually speed the motor up. I think the model is VM0102D if that changes things.
We’ve been dealing with it as-is because the overall functionality isn’t terribly impacted, it just needs a little extra monitoring when it’s in use, but if I can fix it it’d be a much better experience.
I’ve fixed a bunch of things but not that specifically.
I’d try spraying the speed control knob with contact cleaner because it sounds like that might be the problem. (Available at any auto parts store in a spray can). Or use 99% isopropyl if you have that available.
If cleaning the connection doesn’t work, you can then replace the whole assembly, the new part runs about $20 incl shipping if you’re in the USA.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/326749491891
That’s a non genuine 3rd party Comparible part. The genuine one is on Amazon for about $60 but I am not sure if it’s 3X as good. Your call.
If I’m not mistaken it would be the 2-wire version but ou might want to look inside and confirm before ordering.
(I’m guessing here, but what I think is happening is that the potentiometer is so dirty it’s like a crackily speaker or volume knob that is sometimes cutting out completely. I suspect it’s wired so that it goes full speed and the knob steps down the speed. So when it cuts out at the knob the motor defaults to full blast.)
I very much appreciate your advice. I’ll see what I can find in there.
Dude, you are exactly the hero this sub needs
I bought a Blendtec about ten years ago and it has been amazing. Never once has it even needed maintenance, let alone broken.
Does It Blend?
Don’t breathe this!
Seriously some of the best marketing. I know almost jack shit about blenders, but as soon as I saw this post, I immediately thought of Blendtec. Why?
Because I watched the owner demonstrate many times that his blender could turn things like smartphones, other blenders, and even an entire fucking rake into powder. If I’m shopping for a blender, I think I’ll go with the one good enough to literally blend other blenders.
But he used a new blender every time.
I was lucky and got an old heavy as heck oster, all metal and glass, from an estate sale. Man that sale was a find. They sold a home made sewing kit the lady had made for a few bucks and she packed a bunch of stuff in it and half of it was thread.
I have found two vintage Oster blenders at yard sales, each for under $10. They are from the 50s and 60s and are solid heavy metal things with glass pitchers. I needed to buy new seals for them and on one I had to replace the little star bolt that the pitcher locks into to turn the blades. Either of them will completely liquify things that my modern cheapo Hamilton Beach would meekly chew at. If you can find one online (ebay maybe) or better yet in person (thrift stores, yard sales), I can definitely attest they are built different.
Edited to add: a search on US ebay for “vintage 60s Oster beehive blender” turned up some results that look like mine between $40-50 plus shipping. It’s an excellent machine.
Would you mind sending me a link example so I can see wht it looks like? I think there might be new models which look like the older ones, which I do not want.
I’ve had a Vitamix for the last ten years and it still runs great.
I really like my Ninja one but it’s got some weird mechanical sensors in the base that tell it what attachment you’re using (blender pitcher, food processor, single-serve cup, etc). I’ve had it for about 5 years now and use it regularly, and it’s held up, but I always worry about those little sensor things messing up.
I’m actually having issues with mine. It has a magnet sensor in the handle to tell if the lid is locked and the magnet has lost it’s pull. Now I have to cram a neidemium between then to get it to register until I have the time to pull it apart and fix it.
Yeah, that’s exactly the kind of thing I worry about breaking on it. I’m not sure about the blender pitcher, but the food processor attachment definitely has that.
Haven’t had any issues, but I’m always just super careful with it.
It’s not a hard fix if it does, infact anything you do yo fix it would probably be considered an upgrade. I just haven’t gotten to it yet.
Im going to have to go with the Ninja here, had one for three years and I use it frequently with no problem. I might have an older cheaper one though as there’s no magnets to worry about as others noted.
I know people with a lot of different ninja products and everyone seems to love them. I dont have anything beyond the blender but I am impressed. I personally will try other stuff from them.
Yeah, I really like mine and it’s used pretty frequently. No complaints. I just mentioned those aspects as things that worry me but otherwise so far so good after 5 years.
Our household currently has 6 blenders, two Oster, a Breville, a Ninja and two Vitamix blenders. Hands down the Vitamix 5200 has been a keeper and gets used daily. The Vitamix e310 also does a great job for the price.
Maybe check thrift stores for ancient but functional blenders?
I’ve had a ninja express chop ($30) food processor for over 10 years to make smoothies with frozen fruit. Still works like a charm. I love the wide opening and cleanability vs most blenders I’ve tried. It might be too small for a family.
Cult Fav did a great head-to-head of a bunch of blenders. They weren’t specifically looking at durability but it comes up when they cause a couple blenders to overheat or start smoking.
I’d look at whatever brand commercial kitchens use.
What professionals use is generally the answer for any tool and repeated use item. If professionals use it then is generally reliable because otherwise it wouldn’t be cost effective to purchase and use. Kitchen equipment, painting, and power tools failing loses money on top of the cost to replace, so reliability is very important.
Frequently the commercial stuff is less complex because they aren’t adding stuff to draw in the general public and not even a lot more expensive either since using more robust components only slightly increases the costs to manufacture.
From what I’m aware professional kitchens use Vitamix products for the most part.
That’s what I’ve seen at Starbucks, Jamba Juice, etc.
Unfortunately their blenders are probably the most expensive you’ll find anywhere.
Take a look in the kitchen in places that don’t need to show off their equipment. The places you name want to show off the shiny expensive equipment and so cheap quality is a negative for them.
Plus it’s gonna look cool as shit on your counter, most likely, compared to whatever EZ Bake+ plastic shit Target is peddling.
Personally I have a good knife and a nice spoon. I find for most kitchen tasks they work just as well as a machine, are easier to clean, and take up less space in my tiny kitchen. I would spend your money on quality hand tools first, and learn to use them. I’m rarely doing so much in my house that a machine is actually better.
You blend things with a knife and a spoon?
Kudos I guess.
Or a whisk. Manual egg beaters work well to for a lot of things.
I do own a blender, and use it maybe twice a year. There are somethings it does I can’t figure out how to do by hand, but overall I’m not sure it is worth the space it takes up.
Sorry, I phrased that poorly by not being clear that I mean ‘blend things like a blender does [post topic], which includes cutting the ingredients into extremely small pieces while mixing them evenly’.
So do you make a fruit smoothie with a knife, spoon, and a whisk?
I don’t make fruit smoothies.
We actually have a blender in the kitchen - my wife and kids make fruit smoothies. Since we have it I use it for some soups - but this is only about 2x/year and I would eat chunky soups and do without a blender. This is the point I’m trying to make: you can do without things and live a satisfying life - so is it worth it to have the thing?
Lol, of course you can do without things. However, having tools to create food and enjoy food is also something that makes people happy. It sounds like your solution to blending things os not a knife and spoon, but to not blend. That’s fine, if you don’t like blended things, but clearly even your family does, so you shouldn’t try to impose your values on other people who like it. This sub is clearly not about materialism and is about good value items that last a long time with repeated use and are repairable. So you’re probably lost.
