Refurbished Blendtec on the cheap (relatively speaking)

[Major Nikon]

I posted previously about ordering a refurbished Blendtec on flea-bay for $169 (shipped). The original full retail price of this blender (when it was sold) was $1,500. This model is no longer made, but the model that appears to have replaced it goes for about $800-1,100 street price depending on where you buy it. You can see the auction site here:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/390384230941

I received it today and had a chance to play with it a bit. I must say overall I'm quite pleased with it, but there are a few down sides that became readily apparent.

I knew that the blender had been used in a national chain of coffee shops, then refurbished. I really had no qualms about ordering used commercial appliances. I've done this before with other appliances. Real commercial appliances are made like tanks. As long as the thing works there really should be no reason why it won't last me for many years in the home environment. That being said I was fully expecting this thing to be beat to crap from some of the reviews I had read from people ordering from this retailer. I expected the plastic pieces to be broken in places, the numbers on the buttons worn off, and a general unsightly appearance. This is not how it arrived. It was well packed and in really good shape. The clear plastic pieces are all polycarbonate. As you would expect there are many scratches and cracking as polycarbonate tends to get from regular use. However the scratches really aren't noticeable if you take a couple of steps back and the cracks around the bottom don't seem to pose any structural issues. The numbers on the buttons look fine. The pitcher is scratched and well used, but in good shape. The most heavily used part where you really notice if you look closely is the lid (more about that later). The blender came very clean. Obviously the place that refurbished it gave it a thorough cleaning. The markings on the pitcher were obviously designed for a coffee shop. They work fine as a general reference, but you don't get volumetric markings like you would with most blenders.

One of the first problems I ran into is this blender will not fit under my cabinets. With the sound shield closed, the blender is just a tad under 18" tall. When you open the shield it gets even taller. It's not as if you can put it on the edge of the counter either because there still isn't enough room when you open the sound shield. Now it is possible to remove the sound shield completely and the blender will be about 16" tall. The models designed for home use don't have the sound shields anyway. While this is an option, one of the reasons why I wanted this model was because of the sound shield. This wasn't a big problem for me because I have an island in my kitchen with power, and I have some areas in my kitchen countertops that don't have cabinets above them. So while it prevents me from putting this in the optimum location, I still have options that work fine. Some people may not and should be aware of this.

The second problem I ran into was the lid doesn't really fit snugly onto the pitcher. This may be a problem with just my blender which has become worn with heavy use, but it appears to be just the way Blendtec makes them or at least this particular pitcher model. This was not a problem with making smoothies, as the liquid was viscous enough not to make it past the lid, but when I tried to run the blender with just soap and water before I put food in it, the water immediately went everywhere or at least all over the inside of the sound shield. Strike up one more plus for the sound shield. If the lid ever comes off, instead of a smoothie hurricane all over your kitchen, the mess will be contained inside the sound shield.

The next problem I ran into is trying to figure out how to use the thing. The buttons say 1, 2, LO, HI. There are actually two buttons between 2 and LO which aren't marked, and you'd never know they were there unless you started digging around on the internet or someone tells you. The manual(Xerox copy, but not a bad Xerox copy) is not much help. It tells you how to turn it on, some safety tips, how to mount it in the counter, but doesn't even show the buttons or tell you how to use them. LO and HI aren't too hard to figure out. You have to keep them pressed to operate the blender as you would expect. I searched around online and finally found a chart online. I'll post the link at the end that shows you how to get to the chart. It took me a little while to get the hang of the thing. The program settings require two button presses one immediately following the other. If there is any delay between pushing one button and the next, it doesn't run that program function. Once you figure that out, it's no big deal.

The first thing I tried to make is a fairly easy chore for a commercial blender. Two oranges, one banana, a cup of ice. My old Kitchenaid blender could not do this without some liquid. I used cycle #5 which is just a ramp up to full throttle. Just 14 seconds later it was done. The blender shuts itself down when the cycle is complete. Wow! A perfect smoothie. No chunks and everything is smooth and sucks right through a straw like you'd get at a retail smoothie place.

I decided to make the next task much harder. I put in a cup and a half of frozen cherries and a whole apple split down the middle, seeds and all. As expected, it didn't blend. The problem wasn't lack of power, but just no way to keep the hard ingredients going down towards the blade. The Vita-Mix has a plunger that can be used while the blender is in operation. I added a cup of water and pushed the ingredients down with a spatula a couple of times (with it off naturally). Then it blended fine. I drank every bit and there were no chunks. Even the seeds got liquified.

One huge plus to this blender is the sound shield. Without the sound shield this thing makes enough noise to wake up everyone in the house out of a dead sleep. With the sound shield in place you could carry on a normal conversation right beside it. It probably makes less noise than my dishwasher.

Overall I'd have to say I'm fully satisfied. This is a good buy, at least for me. I read one review where a guy ordered one and didn't like the unit he was sent because of too much wear and they sent him a replacement. He was out the return shipping cost, but at least he didn't get stuck with something he didn't want. Since they are selling them $30 cheaper now than they had been for many months, it's probably a good risk to take.

http://blog.vminnovations.com/blendtec-icb3-blender-review/

[Major Nikon]

1. Here is the programming chart

I had a heck of a time finding the programming chart. I couldn't link to the place where I found it, so I uploaded and linked to it here:

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/111994398/Blendtec_Chart

[NMDemDist2]

2. be aware

with VitaMix you can just replace the blades, with Blendec you get a new jar all together. IIRC jars were running about $40 in 2005

you'll know you need one when you see leaking around the base, what causes this mostly is leaving liquid in the bottom of the jar, it will start to rust

Enjoy the new toy!

[Major Nikon]

3. The VitaMix blades look to be considerably different

I have never looked at the VitaMix blades up close, but they appear to be thinner. Unless the blade breaks or becomes damaged in some way there should be no reason to replace it. The jar that came with my mixer has obviously been used very heavily as evidenced by all the scratches on it, but the blade is still in great shape. I can't imagine the jar itself outlasting the blade on the Blendtec.

[NMDemDist2]

4. right, it's not the blades that break so much

as the seals between the blade assembly and the jars

vitamix deals with this issue by selling new seals and blades, blendtec just sells a whole new jar

just make sure never to leave liquid in the bottom of the jar, drain and dry it well before storing

[Major Nikon]

5. Ah, I see

I always wash blender jars in the sink immediately after use.

[NMDemDist2]

6. home use as opposed to commercial use

i replaced jars usually annually at my shop since they were rinsed and put back into service at once, the seals would start to break down after a year or so, the vitamixes were even worse for needing replacement (quarterly even) and when a vitamix seal went, you had a HUGH!! mess. at least the blendtecs would give us some warning before letting go

for once a day home use, as long as you dry it well before you stick it back on the motor base it should last you a decade

[Major Nikon]

7. I hope so. I ordered a new jar so I have a backup

The price was $71. I found some that were in the ~$50 neighborhood, but they were an older design. They probably would have worked fine, but I opted for the newer design instead. I figured the older ones have probably been sitting on the shelf for a long time and I was worried the rubber parts might have deteriorated.

[NMDemDist2]

8. you're set then

just wanted you to have a heads up, i loved those Blendtecs especially since ours had a program timer thingy that worked perfect for our coffee drinks

[Major Nikon]

10. Yep, still using mine several times a week for the last 4 years

Still works as good as a new one. Better actually because it's a commercial model with more power and a noise and mess shield. There's been a couple of times when I got in a hurry and forgot the lid. The shield saved me from turning my kitchen into a shit storm.