Mr. Coffee FTTX95-1 10-Cup Thermal Coffeemaker Save 17% Off

First the good:

--It looks nice sitting on your counter.

--The beeping sound to signify the end of the brewing cycle is nice.

Now the bad:

--You will never get anything but a warm cup of coffee out of this coffee maker. And if you add milk or cream to your coffee, the result is lukewarm at best. You will aways have to put your coffee in the microwave. This is true no matter how close you follow the directions, and no matter how creative you get. Even if you remove the carafe from the unit after the brewing cycle is completed, your coffee will only be warm. The instruction manual says to completely fill the carafe with very hot water and let it sit for 10 minutes before brewing in order to heat up the carafe. Okay, during the morning rush to get out to work, who has time to let their kitchen faucet run for a few minutes to get hot water (especially in the winter) and then wait for 10 minutes with the water in the carafe and then wait for the brewing cycle to end?

--The carafe is stainless steel no glass lining (which is the best insulation material) Not sure who the genius is that thinks stainless steel is an insulator.

--The Pause-and-serve mechanism broke on the third day. I went to pull out the carafe to grab a cup and coffee came splashing down all over my hand.

--This isn''t a huge deal but the clock is so bright I''m fairly certain it could serve as a beacon to guide large ships sailing past rocky coast lines.

this was a gift for my husband, we''ve had it for about 2 weeks. he tends to nurse a pot of coffee over several hours, so we thought this would be better than the conventional coffee makers. it doesn''t have a warming plate, so we don''t have to worry about leaving it "on" accidentally. the coffee doesn''t burn after sitting there for a couple of hours. it also has a water filter insert. my husband is overjoyed, he has his hot coffee when he wants it and says it tastes better than our old coffee maker coffee. he loves the programmable coffee brewing feature as well.

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I had one of these for about 3 months before it died. I used it to make about 5 cups a day and after a while it just quit working. Aparently the element burned out from the low water levels I was using. Mr. Coffee customer service was great though, after an email I had a replacement in just a couple days. When it worked, the coffee was good once I adjusted recipes to match the machine. The water filter is a nice touch if a bit pricey for replacements and it seemed to be effective. One hint, use hot water to preheat the carafe and the coffee will stay warmer longer.

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I had this coffee maker for about 6 months before I moved into a new house, unboxed it, and started using it. As the user image I added to Amazon can attest, this coffee maker and I did not part ways amicably (unless you consider being thrown off a 15 foot high deck on to a boulder in 5 degree weather an amicable breakup). You should strongly consider buying another model, but I don''t know what to tell you to get ... none of the coffee makers I can find in stores appear to be truly well made.

First, the cons:

In summary, what you are looking at here is a coffee maker that will make increasingly bitter lukewarm coffee that you may, depending on the day and your luck, find in the "thermal carafe," or find all over your counter, cabinets, and the floor below. The details:

The filter basket is cheap plastic and has a tightly ribbed bottom surface that is impossible to clean. This seems endemic to most every drip coffee maker on the market today. My kingdom for a coffee maker with a stainless filter basked that I can surgically clean! The gunk builds up on the little plastic ribs in these plastic baskets. It is impossible to clean (ever try to get the brown staining out of a white plastic filter basket?) and it contributes to coffee that gets increasingly bitter over time.

Unless you follow the instructions and pre-heat the carafe with hot water, your coffee will never come out anything more than tepid. The "thermal carafe," as someone else has pointed out, is stainless steel inside and out -stainless steel is an efficient _conductor_ of heat, not an insulator. How about a true thermal carafe, with a glass lining on the inside and some actual additional insulating material between the glass and the outer stainless steel shell?

The check valve in the lid of the "thermal carafe" will stick shut on you. For me, it took maybe 6 uses for this to occur. When this happens, the coffee will be unable to enter the carafe as it exits the filter basket, instead pooling on the carafe lid, then continuing to spill on down the sides of the carafe, all over your counter, and down into whatever is below that (unless you have a counter that will pool 10 cups of water around your coffee maker for you). When the coffee got into my new cabinetry as it dripped over the edge of the counter on its way to spreading across the floor, that is when the coffee maker found itself hurtling to the boulders below my deck.

A timer feature is useless on a coffee maker that requires as much user involvement as this one. On coffee makers I''ve had in the past, I would set to brew coffee at approximately the same time I woke up. With this one, if I were to properly use this machine, I would need to wake up 1/2 hour before the timer was set so I could go and pre-heat the carafe, then stand watch over the unit until I was satisfied that the machine was not about to make coffee for the counter, cabinets, and floor instead of for its own carafe.

Pros:

For a machine that smacked into a boulder after being thrown downward from approximately 15 feet, it suffered surprisingly little damage. The plate where the carafe is normally placed shattered, revealing the guts of the machine below, and it was a bit scuffed up, but that was about it. I think this is because it took more of a glancing blow off of the boulder, although in my blind rage I must admit I really didn''t watch that closely ... I was more concerned with cleaning up the mess back in the kitchen.

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When our last coffee pot died, we looked at many models, since my husband and I drink a lot of coffee. I wouldn''t call us coffee snobs, but we do have definite opinions on good versus bad coffee. Our previous coffeemaker, which we loved, had a thermal carafe, and the only problem we ever had with it (until it finally expired after years of faithful and trouble-free service) was that pouring out of the carafe always ended in a few drips. Mildly annoying, but certainly not a deal-breaker.

We got this one because of the features and the thermal carafe. Here''s how it works:

First, you can''t pour the water into the reservoir at any rate faster than a drip without having it splash all over the place. This is because they handily placed a flat panel in the middle of the grill over the reservoir, apparently just to splash the water back in your face. So, having splashed about a quarter of your coffee water onto your counter, you wipe it up, get more water and pour it S-L-O-W-L-Y into the grill. Then you put in the coffee grounds and turn it on. I didn''t time it, but it felt like about 20 minutes to get that water through the grounds and into the pot. I once made the mistake of moving my hand near the top of the coffeemaker during this process (intending to turn on the disposal), and discovered serendipitously that quite a lot of steam escapes from the top where the edges of the lid don''t quite meet the sides. Ouch.

Another ouch: don''t -DON''T -try to remove the carafe and pour the coffee before it''s finished. The stop-pour feature simply does not work. You''ll get burned and make a mess. But not to worry; it''s just the beginning of the mess.

Ok, now you try to pour your coffee. You tilt the carafe forward while pressing a button on the handle with your thumb. No matter how hard you press, you will get --a trickle. If you are like me and drink from a mug that holds closer to 16 ounces than eight, this means you are holding the d*** carafe for a full two minutes, with your thumb losing circulation all the while. And the less coffee in the carafe, the slower it comes out. And to add to the fun, the spout is not designed to inhibit dripping, so you now have coffee drips all over the counter you had just wiped to clean up the water that splashed back on you from the grille.

So. You bite back the language you don''t want your kids to hear, and simply unscrew the lid of the carafe to pour the coffee. Right? Wrong. You unscrew the lid alright, but here''s what happens: coffee goes everywhere. There are copious, large coffee drops hanging off the bottom of the lid. I can''t figure out how they designed this lid so that there is a good ounce hanging there. And it goes all over the counter, which (by the second or third time you''ve used this wonderful product) you now have covered with paper towels. The lid is finally off, the counter is protected, but your coffee cup is still empty. You tilt the unlidded carafe forward, carefully, and observe a flow of liquid that more closely resembles rafting-grade whitewater than anything that should ever come out of a spout. Lots of coffee goes into your cup, and lots more goes on the paper towels.

You wipe the drips (there are several) off the sides of your cup, and put the top back on the carafe. Here''s where the thermal carafe should keep the coffee warm. Well, I have to agree with someone else here who posed the question: what idiot thought that stainless steel is a good insulator? This carafe has no glass. Buyer beware. The coffee wasn''t even that hot in the first place because I had ignored the printed instructions to fill the carafe with hot water and empty it again BEFORE I brew the coffee, so that the carafe won''t suck all the heat out of the coffee immediately. They MUST be kidding, right? Ahhh -apparently not. Hear me now: ignore this instruction at your own risk, unless you like lukewarm coffee. And if you have to keep taking the lid on and off to pour your coffee without getting carpal tunnel syndrome from that d*** button, the carafe insulates even less.

My final note on this was about something so stupid as to be hilarious. That notorious button on the handle, the one you press to allow the coffee to flow -no, correct that, trickle -has a picture on it. It is an icon showing the carafe in a forward-tilted position. No, really! I guess if, like me, you were stupid enough to buy this thing in the first place, you might need that icon to understand that if you hold the coffee pot level, nothing will come out of it. Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa!

My husband, who is a very peaceful and non-violent man, was threatening to take this THING out into the driveway and run over it with his car before we got a replacement. We now have the Zojirushi, and all is once again well with the world.

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Superb Wrench #8 -Galvanized Steel Water Filter Wrench

I have to change 20" filters in a whole house water filter system 4 times a year. Over two years, I have broken three plastic filter wrenches, but this wrench loosens the Big Blue sumps quickly and easily. Nothing flimsy here.

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Culligan 750R Level 1 Drinking Water Replacement Cartridge Save 31% Off

• Reduces bad taste and odor and Chlorine taste and odor
• For use with Culligan models IC-750, RV-750 or SY-750S
• Twist-on, twist-off with no mess
• 2,500 gallon capacity or 12 months
• NSF Certified

I found when I replaced this filter, it leaked a bit, so I removed it and moved the little o-ring around a bit and made sure it was even that did the trick.

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A very nice everyday general use water filter.

Easy to install & replace.

Helps water taste better.

I use it as a pre-filter for my refrigerator.

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It is just a back up replacement, same as what we already use. Bought this before

Always keep back ups so we know exactly what to buy.

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It''s a filter, plain and simple. Hard to find where I live. Cleans the water, but ruins the environment the housing will never break down it will forever lay buried in our dumps together with diapers.

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Works great . Water tested 670 without and a 5 with the filter. Great for water and ice in the ice box

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Waterpik ECO 563 EcoFlow 5-Mode Water Saving Handheld Shower Save 29% Off

• Water saving head saves up to one gallon of water a minute
• Features 5 powerful spray settings
• Exclusive fingertip pause control
• Pays for itself in 6 months
• Advanced AptiFlow Technology

Since reviews of similar, but different products are being grouped together on this web page, I am reviewing the Waterpik ECO 563 EcoFlow 5-Mode Water Saving Handheld Shower, Chrome.

This review is pretty long. Here is the bottom line:

Pros

You''re going to get a nice flow from this shower head.

It will be easy to install (if you follow the directions)

It will save you money and cut down on water consumption.

It is plastic, which is not a bad thing. I''ll explain later.

It comes with a lifetime warranty from Waterpik. KEEP THE RECEIPT and you can count on Waterpik to replace any parts that may wear out over time.

Cons

No cons. It''s a very, very good solution, not a perfect solution. Any other proposed in these reviews (Oxygenics 90827, Earth Massage 1.5 GPM) get their share of bad press as well. Even the high-end Moen Revolution has its detractors. With something as personal as a shower, it is going to be almost impossible to please everyone.

I almost didn''t buy this thing because of the bad reviews, but reading between the lines, it seemed like this product DID work if installed correctly. Most of the complaints were about

Taste in material (plastic versus metal)

Water pressure

Installation issues

And, most importantly...

What constitutes a "good" shower?

This product was easy to install, well built and it does what it says-it cuts the water consumption of your shower by up to half. It may not be the luxurious experience one might get from a metal shower head that costs $200, but it provides a very good shower.

Installation:

If you READ THE DIRECTIONS, this shower head is EASY to install and is very well designed for the Do-It-Yourself type.

Read the instructions first, then install.

Take a close look as you disassemble (required for installation) and reassemble. This will cut down on confusion of how the parts go together.

Don''t use Teflon tape.

Don''t use a wrench. There is a wrench mentioned as a tool you might need, but this is for REMOVING YOUR OLD SHOWER HEAD.

Plumbing skill is not needed, but mechanical aptitude doesn''t hurt.

Keep the receipt and you are set for life if anything from the hose to the head to the arm wears out. They will send a replacement in just a few days. The warranty cannot be honored without proof of purchase, which is the receipt from the place you bought it from.

From here on out, I''m going to address some of the reviews that almost dissuaded me from this purchase. I''m glad they didn''t.

Materials:

From Carolyn H. Heinz

"First, it''s plastic. We couldn''t tell that from the box, or I wouldn''t have bought it on those grounds alone. That meant we couldn''t screw the parts tightly together enough to prevent an annoying leak where the coil attaches to the hand-held piece."

My reply:

Plastic is well suited for a hand held shower head because

1. It doesn''t rust

2. Less dense: if you drop metal on your bare toes you will appreciate this. Also won''t chip tile.

3. Plastic threading can be hand tightened and work. This is better for amateur plumbers like me.

4. Over-tightened metal parts can make subsequent cleaning or repairs difficult to accomplish.

From "bevhealthnut"

"The little insert that reduces the flow is plain terrible."

My reply:

I could be wrong, and bev, if I am please forgive me, but out of the package there are white plastic covers just inside both ends of the hose that you need to remove before installation. If someone did not remove these, they would cut the water flow down to almost ZERO, but of course they are not the mechanism meant to cut flow which is (a inside the shower head and (b)inside the arm. As hard to believe as it might be, that sounds like what might have happened in this case. The other mechanisms would not cut water flow that much.

From Jon M.

"The cradle that holds the shower head only holds the very bottom of the handle and is very unsturdy."

My reply:

I thought this was going to be true too at first, but there is a little rubber nub that holds the handle tightly in place. This is a very solid design. The shower head has not fallen out of its cradle once and the ball joint is very adjustable. I have found it to be very sturdy.

By the way, I am 6''1" and the pipe that comes out of the wall for the shower is about 6'' up in a 3''X 3'' stall. I have had no problem with the height of this unit. Everyone else in my family is less than 5''5" and they have also had no problems.

From Han Dougall

"The hose, which is made out of plastic as well, is so stiff it adds to the head wobble problem"

My reply:

I thought the hose was stiff out of the box, but once I ran water through it, I found the whole assembly well balanced and stable. Within seconds of installation, I watched as this issue was resolved, to my relief, because I was thinking about this review as I pulled the hose out of the packaging.

Metal hoses are fine, but the hose alone can cost more than this shower head.

I have had ZERO problems with twisting or crimping of the hose or a wobbly head.

From Ladybug

"The tab used to change the water settings is very difficult to turn, the "pause" feature only slightly decreases the flow, it was a pain to install, and worst of all-this product KILLED the water pressure in our shower!"

My Reply:

I can do it with one hand. I did not find it difficult at all to change between the 5 settings. The settings are nice.

The ecoflow mode or "PAUSE" cuts the already reduced flow by almost half. It is significant and should save water and is good for lathering up. If I want to completely cut off the water flow, my shower fixtures are modern enough that they allow me to do this with the flip of a faucet handle. The water doesn''t cut off 100% purposely so that it will work with various kinds of water heaters.

I found the water pressure to be fine, but this is a matter of taste. This reminds me of the Seinfeld episode where they get low-flow shower heads. No two people will have quite the same definition of what makes a good shower. Is it the gym style with very strong flow that is practically a steam bath? Is it standing under a sun-shower in the great outdoors? Everybody has their own idea of what is ideal. I am left wondering if some of the complaints around this issue are due more to perception than actual water flow.

From L. Mims

"The lower water pressure ends up being offset by the need to take longer showers in order to rinse. The hose has limited flexibility making it subject to minor damage"

1. The construction of the shower head compensates for the lower flow by delivering a stronger stream of water.

2. Again with the hose. It is segmented plastic. I have found the hose to be quite flexible when installed correctly.

In retrospect, the most helpful and realistic reviews I read were by N. Clark and Philster "Philster" who astutely commented on the design ("With fewer parts needing to be joined together, the possibility of leaks is less").

Mine has been installed for about a month. Although I have done a little plumbing around the house, I am not a professional by any means. This thing was EASY to install and no leaks right off the bat.

I think if you follow the instructions and are looking for a water-saving hand-held shower head, then this is a good choice.

This isn''t a luxury item. Again, metal shower heads can cost up to and over $200. A metal hose can cost up to and over $50. Put it together and it could come out to 10 times the cost of the ECO 563. If you want to save water and get a quality shower and save a little money, the ECO 563 will do the trick. If you want a full on deluge (or at least 2.5 gallons per minute which is the legal limit) there are a lot of high flow shower heads out there to chose from.

I''m totally satisfied with my purchase as is every member of my very picky and vocal family. I didn''t buy it at Amazon: the negative reviews made me feel like I needed to see it first to gauge its potential, but don''t feel you have to do the same. Amazon offers this item at the cheapest price. This thing works fine, day in, day out. It feels good in the hand, looks nice, is well designed and easy to install.

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I purchased one shower head two months ago to test its performance. Too my surprise, I cannot notice the difference between my old 2.5 gpm shower head and the new 1.5 gpm. My frist experience with low flow shower head was in the 90''s. Those were just mist with restricted water flow. Water was never hot enough. For the Ecoflow, I specially like the water flow control that allows you to save more water depending on you need. It works so great I have purchased another one already.

I have also researched other models as well, like the Labybug. It auto shuts off water once it reaches certain temp. That does save as much water as having the abilty to control water flow while maintaining the same temperture.

In summary, if you want to save water and not compromising on the shower experience, this is the one.

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I purchased this item locally.

While this item does indeed save water, it provided me with the most UNsatisfying shower I have ever had. I understand that reducing the flow of the water is the intended goal, but when you have to shower an extra five minutes just to make sure you are completely rinsed sort of defeats the purpose. I have no water pressure problems, so unless I installed the item incorrectly, then the showerhead is completely to blame. One good thing is that it was very easy to install and I was done in less than five minutes.

As an added note, the "pause" function does not stop the water, it merely reduces the flow a little.

There are other showerheads out there that reduce water flow while still providing an adequate or even above-average shower experience. I previously owned an Oxygenics handheld showerhead that puts the Waterpik to shame. I will be returning this item to the store immediately.

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I have never been the first to write a review, so I''ll try o do my best.

Let me start with the packaging. The item comes in the typical plastic anti-theft crap that is hard to open, but after getting the product opened, I threw out the directions (no need to loose my man card on a shower head), took off the old shower head and put his baby on.

The shower quality, or should I say the amount of water you feel on you is O.K. nothing to write home about. Enough pressure to get the shampoo out of the hair.

The most interesting mode is the mist mode. I am not to sure what good a mist is while taking a shower, but if you live in a hot part of the country like the deserts of Arizona, you can use the mist mode to cool ya down, but not really take a shower with. There is so much mist, it is hard to the mist mode off.

To round up this report, all in all the device is O.K. not too impressed. Maybe I''ll be more impressed when the water bill comes in a little lower. According to the Waterpik web site, I should see a savings of $40.00 per month family wide on heating, sewer and water.

Would I recommend this product to a friend or family member? Make sure you purchase the shower head at a location that has a good return policy. It only takes a few minutes to install and a shower to see if you like it, and just a little more time to take back to the store.

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This item was purchased locally. I give it two stars because the product may have environmental benefits and it''s easy to install but the overall performance and quality of this item leaves much to be desired considering the cost. If you plan to purchase this item, understand your needs before getting excited about all of the options available with the unit.

As you''ve probably already read, it''s plastic. After 6 weeks of use the plastic bracket that supports the head has cracked off and must be replaced. This unit isn''t for every bathroom. If you''re in an urban setting with cramped space smaller bathtub or shower area I recommend something a little more basic; you probably won''t need or want to use all 5 settings. Furthermore, take some measurements before installing; based on your current plumbing the added bulk of the unit means that your installation may be too low (it doesn''t adjust that well). A taller individual will have issues.

The lower water pressure ends up being offset by the need to take longer showers in order to rinse. The hose has limited flexibility making it subject to minor damage (there are no leaks thus far but a "fold" has developed that could be trouble).

Did I mention that it''s all plastic?

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Watts Premier 201007 Big Blue GAC Radial Flow Green Carbon Filter Save 9% Off

• Effectively reduces sand, silt, sediment, rust, chloramines, chlorine taste and odor
• Designed to allow maximum contact between the water and the carbon ensuring optimal reduction capabilities with reduced pressure drop
• 20 micron GAC filter
• Part of the Watts Premier green line of premium coconut shell carbon filters
• Compatible with Watts 213089 and 213057 housings, as well as other whole-house filter housings that accept 9.5 by 4.5-Inch filters

We''re on a well, out in the country. Lots of iron and sediment and sulfurous odor. I installed this in a GE Whole House filter housing.

Flow rate seems fine and I think it''s filtering but it only took a week and a half for the sulfur odor to return. So far the GE filters have been the best.

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Culligan RC-EZ-3 EZ-Change Replacement Cartridges (500 Gallon) Save 59% Off

• Reduces: bad taste and odor, chlorine taste and odor, particulate class III
• Features twist-on and twist- off mechanism, quick-connect fittings double water shut-off
• NSF Certified and a 5 year warranty
• 6 month 500 gallon capacity
• Filter change reminder sticker

Anybody who knows about the Culligan filter systems knows just how great they really are. The RC-EZ-3 is a great filter, removing most of the more common contaminants and chemicals from the water; resulting in nice, pure, fresh, sweet tasting drinking water and crystal clear pure ice cubes. We even use it for ALL of the water we give to our cat (family member). We wouldn''t be without it (and we live beneath the poverty level, so that''s just how important -and cost efficient -this water filter really is). If you don''t have one, I would absolutely HIGHLY recommend getting one. It''s only pennies per gallon to assure you that you aren''t ingesting contaminants, chemicals and parasites!

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Easy to change filter and water that tastes good are my criteria. To that I would add compact size. I use this in my RV, and the RV filter pack came with the level 4 filter which is much more rotund in size. It might do a more thorough job in filtering some things, but not that I can tell. This filer is half the price & lasts a full season. We use either city water or water in our tanks that has been filtered and re-chlorinated for storage. [1 Tablespoon per 10 gallons.] Works well & makes great tasting coffee & tea.

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I was very happy at first with this Culligan product until at about after 9 months, the filter bottom split open, flooding the kitchen floor and cabinet area. I thought it was a fluke thing and installed a new filter. The same thing happened at around 8 months with water everywhere. I called Culligan to report this and they said they have never heard about this problem??? The filter has a engineering flaw at the base where it is seemed together. I DO NOT recommend a Culligan water filtration system. Besides the water damage I have, they weren''t even willing to send a new filter or acknowledge that they have a design flaw. The Culligan representative told me to try the EZ-4 filter, but after reading reviews, I found that it''s happening with the EZ-4 filter as well. I have never had this problem with the GE filters, so I''m going back to them.

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These are SO easy to change I''ve used the EZ-3 and EZ4 I didn''t really notice a difference in the taste or smell of the water between the two. What I did notice is that I''m not paying twice as much for it and it''s so much easier to change than my old Aquasana that the only effort involves the fact that it''s under the sink. If it were at shoulder level in the open, this would take 10 seconds to change. LOVE these filters, never stop selling them Amazon and Culligan!!

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This is one of the best purchases I have ever made. Three times per year I change the cartridge and we always have great tasting water.

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HE260 HE265 HE360 HE365 Humidifier Pad Frame Save 41% Off

• HE260, HE265, HE360, HE365 Humidifier Pad Frame
• Humidifier pad scale replacement part
• Honeywell and Aprilaire replacement part
• Overall size 11" x 10" x 2"

We just moved into our new home and never had any expirience with a built in humidifier. We threw the whole piece away and it was hard to replace locally. They had it shipped the next day and the price was great.

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Aqua-Pure 68900-33 Whole House Filter Wrench

works as advertised, be careful using because "teeth" on the wrench can break if an unbalanced torque is applied. The only product I''ve found that works on the filter housing.

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Austin Air Allergy Machine Jr. HM205

This is the first time I''ve purchased an air purifier not based on the cadr, so I was a little nervous. But it is great. From day one, the air in my bedroom has smelled very fresh. In addition, I purchased this because of a potential mold problem in my apartment. Since using it, I have experienced less symptoms than before. I like it so much, I''m thinking of purchasing another one for my second floor because the old Hunter I have isn''t sufficient.

I would recommend this air purifier to anyone, especially if you have allergies. The only reason I didn''t give this a 5-star rating is because it is a little noisy on high (although for normal uses, it probably wouldn''t need to always be run on high like I''m doing because of my mold problem). Also, you have to have some place out of the way to put it as it must be set 8 inches from the wall with the air output facing away from the wall.

I actually won this machine on an allergy website and have been using it for over a year now. I love it! My allergies are really bad and this machine plus my medicine allows me to keep all my cats and dogs. It does not allow me to be symptom free but if you are an allergy sufferer, you know that you will never be allergy free and you can make breathing a little easier with this machine. It is quiet enough for the bedroom and simple to take care of. The pre-filter gets replaced every year and it is easy to do and inexpensive. The HEGA filter is really expensive but it only needs to be changed every three years so you really aren''t spending too much in the long run. You don''t have to open the machine to clean the filters either, you just vacuum the outside once a week and you are done! The Jr model does a room up to 750 sq ft and the regular model does a room up to 1500 sq ft. I highly recommend this machine!

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I have owned a few few other airfilters before, and this is by far the best. I have a mild allergy to my cats and i use this machine reduce the symptoms. It does a commendable job. Highly recommended. The only reason I am not giving it a five star is because it can get a little noisy at the higher fan settings. My cats tend to get flustered when that happens. But overall a good buy.

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I bought this Austin purifier to help me with my indoor allergies. I no longer wake up with a stuffy nose, itchy eyes, or a scratchy throat. This filter runs all night in my bedroom. The medium setting is not loud, but the highest setting is very loud. Be sure that you read the instructions before operating, because they state that you should use the purifier on the highest setting for at least one hour. I usually set the filter on high for an hour before I go to bed. Austin air purifiers are the only purifiers still made in the USA. The nice workmanship, fit and finish, and steel exterior are things that set it apart from the cheaper purifiers made by Honeywell and others.

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This is a nice air purifier. It is not sufficient for tobacco smoke though so don''t buy it for that.

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Euroflex Monster Floor Steam Cleaner Blue EZ1

My new Monster Floor Cleaner was delivered just 9 months ago. It has been used once a week to clean 500 sq ft of textured ceramic tile floor laid on concrete slab since. It did a very good job cleaning. I used distilled water exclusively and purchased additional pads. It frequently required repairs during those 35-40 uses and I longer consider it repairable. Here is what went wrong:

The jets in the front of the Cleaner seem like a great idea but cause more trouble than they are worth. They blow straight out so nothing is loosened. Instead, loose dirt is blown around out of control. The jet trigger is in the handle and opens the steam valve via a wire that gets off track and jammed from time to time. The jets tend to clog when the cleaner bangs into things. One could simply forget about keeping the jets running, but the control wire is the reason the handle breaks. The two sections of the handle are joined by a plastic connector that passes the trigger wire and isn''t as robust as it should be. Mine broke twice. I carefully repaired it once and gave up when it broke again six months later.

The flaw I consider a show stopper is the floor steam valve. It turns the steam off when the handle is raised and controls the amount of steam. Mine was a little temperamental at the start but then worked dependably for several months. A few months ago it began sticking again, getting worse and worse. Steam flow is through plastic tubing which softens and kinks. Between the valve and the tubing it finally became impossible to finish the floor before the steam cut out.

I love cleaning the floor with steam. The Monster isn''t tough enough for my floor though. It isn''t quite hot enough for tile laid on a concrete slab. The handle is weak. The valves and tubing are not robust and not dependably over time. The steam control and the jets seem nice but lend additional weaknesses to the design.

UPDATE: Below is my original review to which I assigned a 5 star rating. Since then, the 1 yr old mop has gone on the fritz and now has stopped working completely. I always used distilled water (as recommended by the manual), but after about 6 months or so I started experiencing issues that usually occur when you''ve used hard water -i.e., the mope would heat up, but no steam would come out. I read the manual, which very technically explained that I needed to fill up the mop with water (not plug it in), shake the mop violently, and then dump out the water out. I did this, and gray water came pouring out. I repeated the process and then the mop worked like new....until a couple months later when the same phenomenon happened I remedied it again. I emailed customer service and they never replied. Now, about 1 yr after the purchase my steam mop heats up but no steam comes out and the violent shaking of yesteryear does not work. I''m frustrated and wish I would have gone with a more recognizable brand. I borrowed my mother-in-law''s Shark and think I will get one of those. While the water chamber is about half the size of the Monster, the chamber is plastic and you can see if you are getting any funky buildup. Also, the Shark is about half the weight and allows more steam to come out.

I researched for weeks online and in stores for a steam mop, as most of my house is wood or tile. I could not be happier with my purchase. Here are the reasons why i finally chose the Euroflex Monster:

1) It was actually designed to be used on hardwood floors this was important to me b/c I didn''t want to ruin the floors in our house

2) It has 2 different steam levels, which makes it safer and more effective at cleaning tile and hardwood. i could not find any other steam mop w/ 2 different steam levels.

3) it has a good sized water chamber. i can mop the whole house on one filling if i don''t press the trigger too much to get extra steam to come out the front.

4) steam jets on the bottom AND front. i don''t remember seeing this in any other brand.

5) it heats up hotter than most steam mops to 240 degrees F. Other steam mops don''t get as hot so to actually sanitize you are supposed to hold the mop in one spot for 15 seconds, which would make mopping a house an all day event.

6) it also has an attachment for steam cleaning carpets i have not tried this yet, but liked the feature.

It has been great at cleaning well and quickly. It really does wipe away grime... even grime that''s been there for a while. The pads are machine washable and come out clean every time. Be sure to use distilled water so that you don''t get any build up in the chamber (that goes for all steam mops). My only complaint is that if you do have to refill the water chamber mid-cleaning session, you have to wait to 5 mins unscrew the cap (b/c of steam escaping when you unscrew the cap)and then another 5 mins for the mop to heat up after you put more water in the chamber.

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I''d been wanting to purchase a steam mop for over a year, and I finally plunked down the money for this one. I''m very pleased with it! I was amazed at the amount of dirt that it removed from my kitchen floor, especially. That floor is textured linoleum stick-on tiles that are supposed to look like slate. Anyway, dirt tends to get trapped in the grooves, and it''s very hard to remove. I was a little worried that the high level of heat would ruin the adhesive and lift the tiles, but that hasn''t happened after several moppings. I had even scrubbed that floor on hands and knees with a magic eraser about a week before I bought my Monster, and yet there was more dirt remaining than I thought possible. Now, I can even walk around barefoot and my feet stay clean. My other floors are made of ceramic tiles, laminate, and linoleum. It has cleaned all of them equally well. I was a little leery about using the Monster on the laminate floors, but I just put it on the lowest setting and they are spotless and no worse for the wear. It should be noted though, that my laminate floors are glueless, so your mileage may vary if yours are glued together. This mop is super easy to use and what''s more, it''s fun! I''ve never had such clean floors, period. And with relatively little effort! Even my six year old had to try it out. Picking up her toys is another matter, but who wouldn''t want to try blasting a floor clean with this thing? I also like the trigger on the handle that sends out a blast of steam--it''s nice to blast around the base of the toilets, under the fridge, in corners, etc. I feel like this mop will be pretty durable too--there doesn''t seem to be a whole lot that could go wrong with it. After all, steam irons last forever (my mom still uses one she inherited from her mother, daily, because she sews) and this is basically an iron on a stick. Overall, just a great, chemical free way to get your home really clean.

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The steamer does work as advertised, but it does take some scrubbing action and pressure to get everything up. Thus the second problem the handle broke. I am not that strong and the handle snapped after my 3rd use.

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I love this steam mop! After watching an infomercial for another steam mop, I started researching reviews and after watching a video on how to operate this one I chose it. This one does not seem to have the problems of others. It does not leave the floor soaking wet, and it heats up quickly. It also has a very long cord. I have marble, granite, hardwood, and laminate floors, and it did a great job on all of them. It does not make them "shine" but does clean them well. I found it even removed gum and paint. I have 3 teenagers and 2 dogs and this is the first mop that actually cleaned all the grim and dirt away. Get this mop, you will not be disappointed!!! I bought mine from GOvacuum and got free shipping for around $106 and received it in a couple of days from placing my order with Amazon.

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Saeco S-TG-ST Talea Giro Super Automatic Espresso Machine Save 29% Off

I have purchased this coffee maker because I tasted the coffee it makes at a friends party. It was awesome. My friend had his machine for a few weeks and was very excited about it. This is a good looking machine, easy to fall in love with. I immediately went to purchase one. That''s when my problems started. and by the way, so did my friend''s. If you don''t want to read any further, the summary is DO NOT SPEND YOUR MONEY ON THIS MACHINE!!!

Pros: When it works, it makes wonderful coffee

Cons: you need about 10 minutes to read this and let it sink

1. Usability after a few weeks of use it stopped working. The first problem with this machine is its usability specifically, feedback to problems. It has a very capricious operation and the feedback it provides whenever a problem occurs is illegible. It is capricious because, it complains when (a) the water tank is half empty. When it complains you cannot make a decision to override it in other words, when the red light goes on because your water tank is half empty, you cannot continue making coffee until you fill it up again. It takes 2-3 lattes to empty half the water tank in other words, if you have several people for coffee, you can keep yourself busy filling the water tank, forget about polite conversations; (b) after 2-3 lattes you are also forced to dispose off of the used coffee, as it doesn''t let you make your own decision, even though the disposal container takes a third of the volume of the machine and has plenty capacity to store 30 times more.

2. Reliability I have this coffee maker for less than three months. It has been in repair 2 times, for a total of over a month. The first time I had to send it for repair after only three weeks of use, when the red light stayed on, no matter what I did. Customer service determined that the machine was faulty and asked me to send it for repair. It came back after 14 days with a note that they found nothing wrong with it! Miraculously it now worked, yet, while the red light problem went away, there was another, new problem. Now when I made espresso, the steam hose was dripping concurrently and profusely, emptying the water tank even faster then it already did under normal conditions. Called customer service again. They diagnosed it as a potential problem with an O-ring and asked me to send the machine for repair again, this time to their center in Ohio. I sent the machine for the second repair on November 14th, and I still don''t have it back as of this writing (Dec 9, 2009) you do the math!!! AND YES, THEY HAD TO REPLACE ALL THE O-RINGS IN THE MACHINE, SO PLEASE TAKE A PITY ON YOUR MACHINE AND TRY NOT TO USE YOURS EXCESSIVELY, MAYBE A CUP A WEEK OR SO...

3. Customer Service this is the worst customer service money can buy. It is not that the reps are not nice they are very nice and courteous. However, they are completely ineffective, dis-empowered to make any decisions (everything goes to a supervisor, her manager, and so on). When you''re on the phone with the customer service rep, (which they have one of, judging by the wait time of 30 minutes on the average, and the fact that you get the same one every time) it may take 3-4 "waiting in between" times for him to go ask the supervisor how to answer my question or what to do with my request. And it goes on and on. By the way don''t call during lunch as you will get a voice prompt politely asking you to call back as the company is out to lunch literally! And yes, if you thought you can get a status of repair on your coffee machine you paid so much for, forget about it. They have no ability to tell you anything except that "its on the workbench" or its not on the workbench... If they promise to call you back to let you know what''s going on, because now it has been three weeks and you have called them multiple times, sent them multiple mail messages, etc., don''t hold your breath they won''t get back to you, guaranteed. And guess what, having gone through all this, they won''t send your machine overnight. If you have an issue with this, here is the reply you will get (I got this earlier today):

"I''m sorry that you feel that way. You should have been told that our turnaround right now is roughly 2 weeks. As I stated before, we are the main warranty center for THE ENTIRE UNITED STATES. THIS IS THE HOLIDAY SEASON. WE ASK OUR CUSTOMER TO BE PATIENT WITH US DURING THIS EXTREMELY BUSY SEASON. We ship standard ground. Anything other than standard ground must be paid for by the customer." It reminds me of the movie "My Cousin Vinny", when the whole store got the flu... The "roughly 2 weeks" she quotes has been 4 weeks now, so "roughly" goes a long way with Saeco. It also shows you how busy they are with repair the more they sell, the more they are swamped with faulty coffee machines.

Will update you when I get the machine back. Obviously I would have returned it to Amazon within the first 30 days, had I known what is in store for me. Now I have to keep it. But I am clearly done with Saeco no more buying their stuff. BTW if anyone knows if I have a different option, would love to learn about it.

Update 1/14/2010

And so it goes on and on. The long story from above ended up with Saeco replacing my first machine with a new one. Got back from my vacation few days ago and found a new machine awaiting to be finally enjoyed. My wife and I were very excited. Opened it up, read the documentation and watched the video and started setting it up. I won''t burden you with details three days later the new machine doesn''t work. Discovered that a selection knob (steam/hot water) is damaged. Sent Saeco support a couple of messages with the images of the broken part. No reply. Called Customer Service several times, waiting 20-40 minutes and ending up being disconnected. So here we are. I guess it''s lawyer''s time now.

We got this coffee maker for my husband, who likes to drink a lot of coffee and expend practically no effort to prepare it / clean up afterwards. He already knew drip machines were not for him clean up after every use... So he had switched to a French press and got to like the bold flavor but that ended up being too much work still. After that he was only drinking "Turkish coffee" (i.e. dump the grounds in a cup and pour water over them) that was about the right amount of effort but just didn''t taste that great. Especially compared to his favorite "Americanos" at the neighborhood coffee shop.

SOO, when I saw this machine I knew we had to get it. We found it almost 50% off at an unnamed dept. store so I have absolutely no reason to justify an expensive purchase by writing a positive review :).

I would not say it''s cheaply made at all. The parts where it matters most use high-quality materials. I don''t care if my water tank is plastic it seems to be crack resistant all right.

The maintenance could not be easier it cleans itself by running a bit of water through the system before every use (so the coffee never tastes stale) and all you have to do is empty out the grounds drawer and rinse the "brew group" about every week. Very easy.

My husband can make his americanos just by a touch of a button the dispensing of extra water could not be easier. The switch to steam, just as easy. He loves the coffee and so did our guests all major coffee fans.

And here''s my favorite part. I didn''t even drink coffee before we got this thing but now I will actually make a super light latte now and then. What won me over? The high-pressured, super-effective milk frothing system and the option to reduce the amount and strength of the coffee you brew. I can''t think of a better investment and I''m glad I listened to my coffee-fanatic sister about going for the proven Saeco brand.

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Have been using this machine for a week now, and, most importantly, it makes outstanding coffee. I am not a coffee expert, but as a (now former) Starbucks regular, I can testify that I''d prefer coffee from this machine over Starbucks brew any day.

Other things on the good side:

easy to install and simple to operate

very fast, a great cup of coffee is always just a minute away

On the downside:

Although the design is ok, the execution is a bit on the cheap side (for what I''d expect at this price tag) with plastic body and controls not having a feel of precision mechanism

alarm indicators (too add water, add coffee, empty waste tank) are a bit cryptic and it takes an effort to figure out what this machine wants from you, maybe I''ll get better at it with time.

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The Talea Giro shows a lot of functional improvements over my 1997 Saeco machine. It makes better coffee, yet I don''t believe it will be nearly as reliable and it is positively loaded with clumsy, annoying misfeatures. I''m somewhat disappointed. It is a machine to be endured rather than enjoyed.

I''ve been fussing with it for a few days and now have it making very good coffee. There is a lot of crema, which will easily float a teaspoon of sugar for five seconds. The coffee is much hotter than it was from the old machine. I make a couple two-shot cups in the morning and espresso at night, and both kinds of coffee are as good as restaurant espresso but not as good as the best hand-pulled shots.

As I said, there are several controls to twiddle. There are some that weren''t present on my old machine, and you have to tweak them for some time before decent coffee starts coming out. You control the grind fineness, the water volume, the dose (amount of ground coffee per shot) and the back pressure on the filter. Once you get these lined up to your satisfaction, the shots come out at a reasonable pace regardless of the amount of water that''s going to go through the ''puck'' of compressed coffee grounds. Once set, these controls seem to stay set.

The machine is much busier than my old one. When you start it up, it rumbles and growls for a few seconds, then there is a cheesy flashing Christmas-light display no doubt meant to assure you there is something going on. After that, it spits a couple ounces of hot water into the drip tray and hums a bit more to itself. All this activity is conducted at a low sound volume, at least. When you push the "brew" button there are all kinds of whirrings and gurgles. The grinder is fairly quiet.

The machine''s design is functionally OK it makes good coffee but it has enough usability problems to reduce an industrial engineer like me to helpless laughter. The exterior is not well made. It reminds me of a Fisher-Price doll house with lots of flaps and buttons to push, all somewhat misshapen and all made of plastic that''s a little too thin to be worthy of a machine this expensive.

The machine is pretty much cylindrical and it rotates on its feet so you can easily spill your coffee when you turn it to one side or the other as you must, to accord with its cryptic signals, or when you try to push the power button without making a weird Vulcan death-grip pinch on it. The water tank is hidden behind a cheap-looking panel. It should be visible so you do not have to rely on the machine turning on its ! light (its way of saying "something is wrong") to know when to do something, perhaps refill it. On top is the bean hopper. The bean hopper is supposed to hold the beans and allow them to slide into the grinder that''s located at its low point. My old machine had a round bean hopper with a conical bottom leading to the grinder a straightforward, silo-like device. The Talea Giro has a wide, shallow bean hopper with a nearly flat bottom so the beans stay perched in clumps instead of sliding into the grinder. You end up herding beans toward the grinder all the time and just so you don''t get carried away and try this while the grinder is operating, the cover is now interlocked. However, you can see the beans that aren''t going into the grinder. The hopper cover is clear. On my old machine the cover was opaque and that is the way it should be since coffee is degraded by light.

There''s another interlock on the water tank door and yet another on the "dregs drawer" where the pre-heat water and the used coffee pucks are ejected. The machine tells you to dump the "dregs drawer" every fourteen shots, no matter whether you''ve just done it or not, and it won''t proceed until you comply.

The half-bakery continues with a feature that was good in concept but was executed with malice aforethought. The drip tray moves up and down. This is wonderful if you have a tall morning coffee cup but short espresso cups. However, the entire mechanism is made of blow-molded cheap. It wobbles to help you spill your coffee when you turn the machine. The water-containing bit of the drip tray pulls off so you can dump it and when you do, you find that it''s so light and flimsy that you wonder how it manages to hold a cup up without catastrophic failure. This is going to get broken, perhaps when it''s bumped by a wandering kitten, and you need it because all the coffee you have spilled while turning the machine this way and that ends up in it.

I''m extremely unimpressed by the "BMW Designworks USA" effort at building coffee makers. These designers changed a machine that could have a straightforward way of operating into an expensive treasure hunt game, re-inventing things to make them needlessly complex, less useful and more annoying in the process, very much like recent BMW cars. I''m giving the machine three stars because the coffee quality is so good, but Saeco: give the industrial design job back to your old group. They built things that work and last, like my old Saeco machine.

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Great for about 3 months.

Then the steaming wand began to drip endlessly.

I have been trying to contact their support for a week now.

My total hold time has been well into the HOURS.

And I am on hold now as I write this review.

Would I buy this again...NO WAY!

Look for another product with better support.

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Barley Flakes Pond Save 9% Off

Thumbs Up. It took about 10 days, then the water became very clear and the string algae declined noticeably. The bags are easy to use and stay on the bottom after one turn at floating up after a few days.

This stuff works incredibly well. I used some flakes in a very small pump & it''s keeping the water crystal clear. I used the greater part in a larger pump & it''s working well too. I think next time I''ll use only half the flakes I may have overkill for my very small water features. But this is the first year my larger pond has had good water quality & the temperature has been brutal.

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These were good as long as the waters fresh once the larvae start I don''t think they kill them. I''m not sure

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