Blenders

[mum2sarah]

Question for people who use their blender a lot.... We use our blender multiple times every day (my sister's into raw foods, plus I like smoothies for breakfast). Our blenders keep breaking! First we had a cheap plastic blender that we got when we got married, and we hadn't been using it until we discovered smoothies. Once we started using it a lot, a piece of the plastic broke off inside our hummus! My mom had an identical one that she never used so she gave it to us. Same thing happened within a few more months! So we finally said, I guess we need to invest in a better blender. We bought an $80 Oster glass blender, which was one of the top models at Target (a lot of money for us). We purchased it in March just before Ashley was born. Now the gear's stripped on it already! I'm sick of this. Is there an affordable blender that won't break from daily use? It's not like we're abusing it or anything, just using it a lot. It's still under warranty but we have to wait for them to repair it, and we really can't live long without a blender... I just was wondering if anyone has any suggestions for one that won't break. (Sorry, Erin, I know you're going to say "vitamix" but we really really can't afford something that expensive...)

[vegma]

I'm shopping for a blender too. Consumer Reports reviewed blenders a year ago this month, then in March of this year, they published something about their top-rated blender breaking down after a few uses - said they were going to do more extensive testing next time. That really disappointed me, because now I doubt the reliability of any of the affordable blenders! I'll be watching the thread to see what others (besides Erin:D) recommend!

BTW, in all my research I discovered a K-tec that has more hp than a Vitamix and a longer (8yr) warranty. Still expensive though...

[Erin Pavlina]

Chomping at the bit... pick me, pick me!!

Okay I understand the vitamix is expensive. maybe you can find one on ebay though.

It would solve all your problems for the next 10 years. :)

[Casey]

Generally speaking blenders are not really known for being long-lasting (unless you buy a Vita-Mix, which is expensive but from all accounts well worth it). From my experience blenders are good for very liquid things (smoothies, soup, etc), but if you're using it for anything more dense (you mentioned hummus) you'd probably be better off using a food processor instead of the blender and maybe your blenders would last longer. I've had my current blender for about 18 months and it's still going strong, but I only use it for drinks and soup, anything else goes in the food processor - it was making hummus that killed my last blender. I've got a Cuisinart SmartPower now and although it's well rated, I find that it leaves too many chunks of fruit in my smoothies unless I leave it on for a really long time, much longer than it took my other blender to make very smooth smoothies. If you're using your blender a lot and you want to keep making stuff like hummus in it, then I think you'll be better off in the long-run if you buy a more durable/expensive model (like Erin said, maybe you can get a good deal on a Vita-Mix on eBay) or buy a few cheap ones so you always have a backup to use when one breaks down. If you want to stick with a cheaper model I've read that the Black & Decker ProBlend is one of the cheapest (about $30.00) but it lasts much longer than other inexpensive blenders and it has the best performance in its price range. You could buy almost 3 Black & Decker's for the cost of the Oster, so you'd never be without a blender.

[Lucy S]

I often use an immersion/hand blender for making smoothies, rather than haul out the blender (and then clean it). I also use it for soups as much as possible. We have a Braun one that came with it's own container for mixing things in. I would recommend that as a backup, perhaps, or if you find one that is inexpensive.

We have a near-the-bottom of the line blender (Osterize, I believe) that I paid about $40 canadian for a number of years ago. I use it for smoothies, making cheeze sauces and otherwise blending softer things (tofu, for example). I would agree that hummus would be a bit much for most blenders to take. I use a food processor for that and if I have to do any large amount of chopping.

[Christa]

I also don't use a regular blender at all. I use a hand blender for soups & sauces (put it right into the pot) & smoothies (I have wide big glasses & I stick it right into those to make the smoothies.).

For stuff like hummus, I use my Cuisinart, which works very well, although is not bottom of the line cheap. It isn't as expensive as a Vitamix, though, I don't think.

[vegma]

Lucy and Christa, do you use frozen fruit in your smoothies that you blend with a hand blender? I think the frozen fruit is what killed my blender:(

[Lucy S]

Yup, I've used frozen fruit in it - hard frozen fruit too like strawberries, not just softer banana type ones. I love my hand blender. It is easier to clean, too!

[Christa]

I use frozen fruit, too, but mostly bananas.

[mum2sarah]

Well, the thing with the hummus and other thick stuff in the blender is that this Oster blender was supposedly a blender and food processor in one..Yeah right :rolleyes: Guess I should have known better. Anyway, my sister took it upon herself to buy a Cuisinart food processor yesterday and it seems to be doing the trick so far. We'll still get our blender repaired under its warranty and then we'll have a back up just in case. But with the food processor I was able to shred cabbage last night and it made a good smoothie this morning. Perhaps we'll get one of those handheld smoothie things, too. My sister said they were only around $10. Thanks for the advice everyone. If this doesn't work out maybe I'll take out a loan and get a vitamix :)

[PikkuMyy]

We use a Cuisenart Food Processor for all things like hummus. We have a small one and a large one but the large one works much better.

We have an Osterizer blender but it's years old and running low. I don't use it very often although it's had a long life and was used by other people who used it often.

Now the people I used to babysit for used the blender every day. They went through such a number of blenders, they finally broke down and bought something like a Vitamix. If it wasn't one, it was something like it because it cost at least a few hundred. And they were finally happy.

[duckie1978]

I can't wait until I can afford a Vitamix! We can't even afford a $30 blender right now. We were very lucky because my inlaws gave us their old food processor which we use for making everything but smoothies. We saved up last summer and bought a blender/smoothie maker ($50, Cook's Essential from QVC) and after about 3 months my husband broke it. He didn't make sure that the blender was on right and turn it on. He mangled the plastic pieces that turn the blades inside the blender. And of course that is not covered under their warranty. It will still mix things but will not blend ice or frozen fruit into a smoothie.

I think that the blender/food processor in one products are really for people who don't use them very often, in order for them to save money and space. I think a hand blender would work out well for you. My parents loved theirs. The only bad thing about it was that it was a cheaper one and burned out after about 2 years. I have been thinking about finding one because I really, really miss having smoothies. It was one of the best ways that I lost weight! Instead of eating sweets, I made smoothies and it was awesome. Of course our produce bill went up tremendously but it was nice to have a icey cold smoothie during the hot days.