Reviews of Broil King PCR-2S Professional Double Cast Iron Range, Stainless

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $264.00
Sale Price: $174.15
Today's Bonus: 34% Off

We've been using the single element version of this (Cadco PCR-1S Professional Cast Iron Range, Stainless) for a year and liked the quality but wanted lower wattage options for simmering as well as the ability to run two elements at once on our limited off-grid power system. This dual element version fit the bill and as an added bonus leaves a useable amount of counter space in front of it (it's not as deep as the single element version--see added product pictures comparing both units side-by-side).

While the single element unit (1600W) linked above is ideal for large pots (over 12" diameter) which do not fit so well on the smaller dual element unit, this dual element unit provides a more even simmer with lower wattage elements (1000 + 650 = 1650W) (total wattage is per nameplate on items--guessing a bit on dual element individual element wattage as product description does not add up to match nameplate). Elements cycle on/off (thermostatic control), so temperature does go up and down, and the swings are more violent with higher wattage. But if you want to boil a large pot fast (say for canning), the single element unit will get it there faster with the higher wattage.

Note that both the PCR-1S (single element) and PCR-2S (this one, dual element) come under both Cadco and Broil King brands--same units with different branding (much like Cadco counter top convection ovens are Unox convection ovens).

One reviewer complained of smell with these units. We're pretty picky about such things, but have had no issues since the initial 10min burn in recommended in the instructions (did it outdoors and would suggest doing likewise). We appreciate quality (and have experience with typical cheap hot plates) and would buy these again.

____________________________

2013-08-07 Update after over one year of daily use for most of our cooking and frying: We've had no problems and are still very happy with this unit, using it for all summer cooking and much of the winter cooking in our off-grid home. For many things, we've found this more convenient than the wood stove even when the wood stove is already running due to the ability to set and forget temperature. We still prefer the wood stove for pancakes though, as it has room for four large griddles--something this can't compete with :)

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I followed the ten minute burn in that instructions called for. It smoked and smelled and now that its over (let the unit cool completely), I haven't experienced any odor problems that a few seem to have complained about. Maybe they didn't read the directions? After the burn in came the test: 8 quarts of water on the big burner and a sauce pan on the little one. It boiled both in about ten minutes. That's fine by me! The knobs feel solid and good under my finger tips while providing a nice adjustment range. The unit works just fine as there's plenty of heat and I'm very happy with it. One note: after I was all beaming over the unit, I noticed a hole in the back of the unit where it looks like a screw might have gone missing. It hasn't. I ordered a replacement unit (Amazon sent it free and within two days) and it was the same. I contacted the manufacturer and this is normal. From their email: "There is actually not a screw missing on the left side of the range there. The hole is there because of the pre-punched metal sheets that are used when manufacturing the units." Great buy in my opinion.

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The range worked well for about six months and then the left burner quit working altogether. By that time the cast iron burners were starting to show signs of rust in places. While it cooked reasonably well, it was very slow to heat up, and equally slow to cool down. The controls are quite good for simmering and warming, but it is not really made for cooking. I would NOT buy another, and in fact have replaced it with a two burner induction cooktop that is far superior for cooking.

Reviews of Dimplex Hampton Free Standing Electric Fireplace in Oak

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $2,835.00
Sale Price: $2,199.00
Today's Bonus: 22% Off

I am very happy with my Electric Fireplace. It is very beautiful and well made. It is also very easy to put together. It comes in about four sections plus the fireplace piece and you easily assemble it. I had no problems. Once it was put together, I just turned it on and enjoyed! I would Definitely recommend this fireplace, it was well worth the money. I only wish that they gave you a choice to choose Light, Medium or Dark Oak colors. I would have prefered the Light or Medium Oak color, but the Dark Oak is nice too. It just depends on your taste in the shade of Oak that you like.

KRS

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De'Longhi EC155 15 BAR Pump Espresso and Cappuccino Maker Review

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $140.00
Sale Price: $89.99
Today's Bonus: 36% Off

I love espresso, and this little baby makes a great cup. Here are a few points that might be useful for you to know:

Good points:

*It doesn't take up too much room on the counter and looks nice with it's silver metal accents.

*The water reservoir is a good size, you can make about 8-10 shots before you need to refill it, which is very easy to do, and there is a clear section behind the basket which shows the water level.

*Fast heat-up time (only about a minute), good frothing wand, no wait time between frothing and brewing (though you do have to wait a little between brewing and frothing).

Be warned:

*Frothing wand is only 3 1/4 inches from the counter top. Not a big deal, I just went and bought a frothing cup that is about that height.

*Distance from grounds basket to tray is only 2 1/2 inches, I usually use a small espresso cup.

*Built-in tamper sucks, buy a good metal one.

*You don't end up with a nice dry puck, the grounds basket is a watery soup after your espresso is made, so I dump it down the disposal.

*You will end up drinking more espresso than you mean to, it's that good!

Seriously, I chose this machine after a lot of online researching, and decided on this one based on its outstanding reviews and great price. What led me to it were the reviews of another DeLonghi, the EC140B, which is an older and less attractive model, but had reviews from people who had owned theirs for 6 and 10 years! I'm hoping that this one will have the same longevity.

-----> UPDATE: I've now had this machine for 8 months and it started running very slow. I'd been using only distilled water, so I knew it wasn't a calcification issue, so I looked into it and it turns out machines like this one (no backflushing) need to be cleaned every month or so to remove built up grounds that work their way inside the machine. So I ran some cleaner through it and all this nasty brownish liquid came out, and now it runs great again! So remember people, take good care of your things and they will take good care of you. A lesson I am still learning...

and to answer a question commented on this review, my tamper is 2 inches in diameter.

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First, a couple of disclaimers:

1. This is the first pump-driven espresso machine that we have owned.

2. We generally drink cafe Americano, which is an espresso with a little added hot water (or cold water with an iced Americano). We make an occasional cappuccino and have thus used the steam wand, but not extensively.

After doing a cost/benefit analysis in regards to our current cafe Americano habit (~10 per week), we realized that there would be some justification to buying a home unit. We first considered the Breville ESP8XL Cafe Roma Stainless Espresso Maker, but reviewers consistently lamented the unit's tendency to clog the filter, necessitating time-consuming cleaning. Also, not being completely sure that we would actually use the espresso maker, we balked at the $250 price tag.

We also considered moving up to one of the superautomatico machines that grind, tamp, brew and dispose of the grinds, but we worried about the reliability of technology that had only recently hit the consumer-grade appliances. After reading zillions of reviews, we realized that every mid-priced machine had some glaring flaw and, in the end, we decided to buy an inexpensive pump-driven unit and wait for the technology to catch up before investing a huge chunk of change in an espresso machine. Moving our investigation to low-end espresso makers, we were impressed by the reviews of the DeLonghi EC155 and purchased it from Amazon.

I put off writing a review in order to make sure that the DeLonghi was going to last until we had at least broken even on it. We received it in mid-July and since then it has produced about 200 double shots flawlessly. By my reckoning, that's about $400 worth of Americanos at the local cafe. Even considering the price of the coffee, we have more than broken even. So, here's our pros and cons:

PROs

Price--we paid $91.28.

Crema Production--this unit consistently produces a thick layer of delicious crema.

Powerful Stream Wand--Easily froths milk.

Mechanicals--After six months of nearly daily use this mighty-mite works as well as it did the day it arrived.

Easy Cleanup--Filter cleans easily.

CONs

Ergonomics--As other reviewers have noted, there could be a little more room between the area where the cup sits and the output nozzle. Also the steam wand could be longer.

Features--No cup warmer. Not a big deal to us, especially considering the price of the EC155, but it will put off some buyers.

SOME THINGS WE HAVE LEARNED

Using a coffee especially made for espresso, such as Lavazza, produces a much better espresso. Lavazza has the added benefit of allowing you to go for hours without blinking.

Preheating the unit for 15 minutes and warming the cups in the microwave improves the results and experience.

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This machine is fantastic and after i ordered (over great deliberation) and received mine, I could not wait to review this and rebuke other reviewers who clearly have trouble following simple directions or have no experience making espresso (point being, don't go so out of your way to bash something when you are clearly no expert). I was pretty put off by the bad reviews by seemingly well meaning and "intelligent" people. I've owned a really good espressso machine and the issues they were describing sounded like the sort of issues one might have if you didn't know what the heck you were doing. So I gambled ($60 bucks) and got this little thing. It ROCKS.

Here are some tips:

1. It's all in the grind, grimsy. You still want it slightly grainy about cornmeal but I actually have ground it into virtual powder, just to test it, and this thing still has no problem pumping the hot water through amazing.

2. The level and compression of the coffee grinds are CRUCIAL and I have found, after much use, that the single most important thing, is how hard you twist the "basket" on (no idea why they call it a basket but it's the thing that holds the coffee). I have found the ultimate way to make this work!!! I figured out the problem that everyone was having:

IN ORDER TO MAKE THIS PRODUCE PERFECT SHOTS WHeRE YOU END UP WITH ROCK HARD LITTLE PUCKS OF SPENT COFFEE AND BEAUTIFUL, CREAMY JET BLACK SHOTS LIKE YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO WITH A GOOD MACHINE:

FILL THE THING WITH COFFEE, PILED WELL ABOVE RIM, TAMP AS HARD AS YOU CAN TO RIM LEVEL

TWIST IT ON FAIRLY FIRM (IT TAKES BOTH HANDS)

THEN TURN IT ON AND THE SECOND YOU SEE A DRIP OF COFFEE COME OUT, TURN IT OFF

ONCE MORE, TWIST THE COFFEE BASKET ON EVEN HARDER YOU WILL FIND IT IWLL MOVE QUITE A BIT.

TURN IT BACK ON, AND IT WILL MAKE A BEAUTIFUL SHOT

This helps settle the grounds a little so you can compress them even more.

What I noticed is that, because this machine is so small and light, it's really hard to twist the basket on hard enough (the first time) without just yanking the whole thing off the table you have to wrestle like a little piggy! So you just can't compress the coffee enough and, if you don't, it won't pull a good shot and, that's where this "soupy mess" comes from that everyone complains about. I have it down now and don't need to do the turn it off and on thing when I twist mine on the first time, it seem fine and there seems to be no diff in the product that comes out. I am strong however so for those of you who may not be able to bear hug their machine as well as i do do the method above.

One thing that might also be happening is, I ONLY use the larger "double shot" coffee basket but the machine comes with a smaller single shot basket. I haven't even used the smaller basket (because uh, who drinks "one shot" of espresso) and it might actually be a little harder to get the right compression and all that with the smaller basket but honestly, I would exclusively use the double basket, and you will get a richer shot.

I also bought the metal 2 inch tamper that others recommended and I feel I could not be without it now after using for months. You need something hard and shaped like this to really really tamp the coffee in very very hard. I can smash a mountain of coffee down with this thing so it is in fact important.

If you pulled a good shot, you will get a nice, thick, crema (tan foam) with a buckskin or carmel color (this will settle more and more the longer the shot sits there). When you fill your shot glass and turn off machine, the crema should be around 2-3 mm high. If it's really high (say, half the glass) you probably didn't tamp it hard enough or your grind is too course. If there is no crema, you didn't tamp or compress coffe hard enough).

When you pull the basket off to clean it, you should have a hard, fairly dry coffee puck that is slightly resistant to coming out and has to be dug out with a little wooden stick (use chopsticks or similar blunt, wooden device or you wll harm rubber ring inside).

3. You can remove the little silver tray (it's superfluous and serves no great purpose) and just put a larger cup in the catch basket underneath problem solved for all the whiners who complained about "no room." I love how small the thing is whereas at first I thought "Oh god, it's a toy." It's not.

4. My machine seemed to heat up in no time (under 10 minutes) and my shots were scalding hot (I have no idea what to say to those who complained that their coffee didn't get hot mine would give 3rd degree burns and the cup is far too hot to hold). I admit there seems to be some confusion in the literature about warm up times (15 mins, 30 mins what is it guys?) but I guess it involves the fact that you can preheat it (by actually using it to cycle water only, with no grinds involved) and reduce the actual "ready time" and by practice, this seemed to work (though, again, the instructions actually say "preheat for 15 mins, cycle water...and it should be ready... now wait 30 minutes" what??? This is clearly a typo text left in when it should not have been and as I used to be a technical writer (computer manuals, etc) I can tell you that's a common mistake typos are eazy to see but sensible text, mistakenly left in is not since it does not at first blanch appear out of accord.

Look, once i was in a hurry, I turned it on (I always turn it on to steam first and make steamed milk, BTW) and 5 min later I made steamed milk and espresso, no problem.

After a full year of use, I routinely wait just 3-5 minutes for warm up but my trick is i always put it to "Steam" because that makes it hotter initially.

5. My steamer doesn't work, it only makes hot water, whaaaaaa!!! Yes it does, you just havn't had your cup of joe and you're still ASLEEP. You have to turn the knob....get ready for it, here it comes...to "STEAM." It does not make steam when the knob is in the "I want espresso" position it makes hot water. Mine makes plenty of steam. The knob doesn't say STEAM, or, I WANT ESPRESSO, but the little pictogram showing steam blasting out of a nozzzle that suspiciously looks like an espresso steam nozzle should be enough, even for sleepy heads.

This thing also takes the pre-made "pods" of coffee and as far as I am concerned, I would never use something like that. Old school for me, all the way and I guarantee you my shots blow those hugely overpriced poodle pods out of the water.

So, there is a tiny little art to this but it's not that hard to get it right so long as you know the importance of how hard you tamp it in. Have a little patience or you will be going back there to have teenagers make your $5 cup again which i don't really mind except I don't have time to stand in line for 30 minutes.

That's about it. have used for (over a year) now and it's awesome.

Honest reviews on De'Longhi EC155 15 BAR Pump Espresso and Cappuccino Maker

I was always skeptical of expensive espresso machines and wondered why anyone would pay hundreds of dollars for an expensive machine. It turns out that the more expensive and quality machines are "pump-driven" rather than the typical "steam driven" found at your local Wally World and such. A pump driven machine will hit pressures 4-5 times greater than that of a steam driven machine and gets much better extraction from the espresso grinds (better flavor) and are the only machines capable of generating the "chrema" foam at the top of the espresso.

The DelLonghi EC155 is an excellent budget machine found for under $100 that is pump driven. I was happy with my old steam driven Delonghi, but once I received this I realized that I didn't even know what I was missing. This espresso is as good or better than anything you'll get in a nice Italian restaurant or at your local Charbucks. The chrema that this thing produced is flat out great (you'll get a nice 1/4 layer of tasty emulsified foam). The convenience of pulling a single shot is great too, and you really only need the machine to warm up a few minutes before you pull a shot.

The best feature about this machine in my humble opinion is that it is E.S.E certified (easy serve espresso). This means that you can pick up the ESE certified pods from Charbucks or a good online pod retailer and not have to go to the trouble of grinding and tamping. This is a HUGE feature that even some more expensive machines do not have and is what eventually sold me on this unit. Having grown accustomed to the convenience of pod coffee, it was only natural to look for the same thing in my espresso machine. Do note that coffee (senseo style) pods will not work in here as those are much larger than the ESE certified pod. Try a nice blend from Baronet or another find espresso brand and you won't be sorry.

I highly recommend this machine. In short, it has fantastic features for the money, makes awesome espresso chrema, and it ESE certified for pod use. You will definitely not do any better than this machine for under $100.

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I really wanted to like this machine, I thought DeLonghi had given us an affordable pump-drive cappuccino maker. And it just isn't quite.

(n.b. I'm trying to get customer images up. If the technical difficulty goes away please refer to my customer images for visual reference.)

Things to like:

1. Pump drive! So much better than steam pressure machines. It works pretty well too.

2. The espresso comes out very good (though in small amounts, see below). All 3 proper layers are discernable, crema is especially satisfactory.

3. The removable tank is very handy. And large.

4. Price is right, I don't think there's a more affordable machine with such quality performance "guts".

These pluses are solid reasons to own this machine.

Why I am returning it:

1. The holder for espresso grounds is WAY too small. There are two of them and the bigger one is less than half the size of any standard equipment. Unless you only ever plan to pull 2oz at a time the espresso will come out weak. I usually pull 2-3 shots minimum and can't be bothered to pull, empty, and tamp for every 2 oz I want.

2. The frother is so low to the counter that even a small frothing pitcher won't fit under it. Boo.

3. The wand is so shallow that I cannot properly froth any decent amount of milk since the wand only goes down into the very top of the milk. Also boo. I can't make milk stretch with this gizmo and it's one of the reasons I picked this machine.

4. The only thing that fits under the espresso spout is a shot glass or espresso cup. 2 inches of clearance offers no flexibility for pulling into a mug or small pitcher. I could have lived with this if 1-3 were not already problems.

All of these issues, which I consider design flaws, could easily be corrected in a product redesign. The internal works are fine. A taller machine with a longer wand would fix all my problems. As is it takes too long to get coffee I don't want and there's always a clean-up mess.

I started with a super-cheap steam drive machine and upgraded to this one expecting an affordable way to take my coffee production to the next level. This machine should be great and instead it's just frustrating.

If you're only looking for a small shot in some modest foam and don't mind some hassle this is a fine machine. I regrettably will be looking for something else.

Best Fireplace Thermostat/Remote Deals

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $205.00
Sale Price: $159.00
Today's Bonus: 22% Off

We use this device to control a furnace rated gas fireplace. It operates on battery as opposed to 110 volt wall current and that is a real plus when there is a power outage. Recently we purchased a second one of these devices based on two years of success with the first device. The second device operates a fireplace at a vacation home that is subject to power outages. Because it can be set to monitor the temperature and operate the fireplace without 110 volt current, it provides a backup heat source when the power is out and the temperatures are below freezing. This is important for a vacant home and it is helpful when the home is occupied. Be aware though that the fan on the fireplace will not run during a power outage so this device does not overcome that issue. FYI, batteries seem to last over a year so battery consumption is not an issue.

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I bought the Skytech 3301 remote transmitter and receiver box to replace my Avanti (model AHP304R2T) which had stopped working. The Skytech has pretty much the same features, which I was happy about, but I've been disappointed in the transmitter. The transmitter works fine, but the batteries keep falling out. They are held in by a small plastic plate. The plate has two tabs at one end and another at the other end. The top tab just isn't strong enough to keep the plate in place. The other thing I don't like about the Skytech is the display. My Avanti was easy to read. It had bold block letters on an almost white screen. The Skytech letters are as big, but not as bold and they are displayed against a dark gray screen.

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GREAT PRODUCT...wish i had it years ago!

VERY EASY to set up and program...installation was a snap.

Excellent instructions...very much "plug-and-play".

Best of all...the wife is now toasty warm all the time, and

I'm not jumping up and down to turn the fireplace on and off.

Again...GREAT PRODUCT...HIGHLY RECOMMEND!

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The Skytech line of products is high quality at a reasonable price. I purchased the Skytech 3301 to replace the manual Skytech Control I have used for about 7 years and is still working like new. I wanted a Thermostatic Control so we would not have to cycle the logs On/Off and adjust the flame manually each time the desired temperature was reached. I contacted my local dealer, from which the logs were purchased, to see what would would work with our logs and was given the product number. I wanted to price shop before buying, local price turned out to be much higher. I ordered and it was received in a couple of days, it was as advertised however, when I removed the old remote control I noticed the two contacts were different sizes, neither of which was the size of the new one. I called Skytech, after a little discussion I learned I have a "Servo Gas Valve", i.e. read "ADJUSTABLE FLAME" and not compatable with the Thermostatic Remote Control "Either On or Off"! Unfortunately I had to return the Skytech 3301, none of the Thermostatic controllers will work with a Servo Valve. Sometime later I was in my local store and asked about the Remote Thermostat this time he told me "it would not work with our logs"! Bottom line be sure you have all the right information and ask questions before buying. Save everyone some time and money!

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I have a gas fireplace that had a wall thermostat located more than 25 ft. from the fireplace. Problem was sometimes the thermostat would lite the fireplace sometimes it wouldn't, very hit or miss.

After I installed the Skytech 3301, no more trouble, works perfect everytime, and so handy, you don't have to get out of your chair to turn up the heat.

Pro's: Easy for the home handyman to install. Works great.

Con's None

Discount Holmes HFH131-TG Compact Heater Fan w/ Manual Controls

Customer Ratings:

This fan-forced heater is nothing spectacular, nor is it bad. While it has only one heat setting, it still can crank out its share of heat. It also has a thermostat to control comfort levels as well as save on electricity. I've purchased different fan-forced heaters in the past, and must say that this one has the most output for the price. This unit is 1,200 watts, so there's plenty of power to heat a small room. Still, the low price is probably this heater's most attractive feature. For that, it gets my endorsement.

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Bought this fan for my cold office. Worked fine for about 4 months putting out a nice amount of heat. Just stopped working. Followed instructions and unplugged to reset. Will not turn on. Total waste.

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my office is freezing. so i brought this in and it worked fine for an hour then just stops. I didnt even have it on full blast. I wouldnt buy it again.

Honest reviews on Holmes HFH131-TG Compact Heater Fan w/ Manual Controls

I bought this for a bathroom that only has a heat lamp and no heater. It works well, is light and heats quickly and efficiently.

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Its alright, but it was cheap so I cant complain. I feel like it doesn't heat up my bathroom when i get out the shower but maybe i'm using it wrong i don't lol

53-1182 Thermal Fuse Kit REPAIR PART FOR WHIRLPOOL, AMANA, MAYTAG Reviews

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great prices, got this very fast, replace only a fuse and got my old dryer working again, no need for a new one $$$

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Not that I love the part but it fixed my dryer which I did love. Quick shipping. Would've been nice to have a diagram included but wasn't too hard to figure out.

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These are easy to do just be sure to use them "BOTH" if dryer has stopped. Also remember to clean the dryer and its duct work first!

Buy Traeger Digital Thermostat Kit BAC236

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $74.22
Sale Price: $69.99
Today's Bonus: 6% Off

I own the Traeger Junior, and I was unhappy with the medium setting on the three position temperature switch (it was too hot, often close to 300 degrees), so I decided to upgrade.

I recommend installing the new controller by removing the hopper:

1. Remove the two screws on the old controller.

2. Remove the pellet hopper (it's only held on by 4 screws). I also removed the 4 screws on the bottom of the hopper to make the final installation easier.

3. Feed the old controller through the front of the hopper. This will allow you to completely remove the pellet hopper and get it out of the way.

4. Install the temperature probe (RTD) per the directions; the diagram isn't great, but it's much better than the written directions.

5. Cut all the the zip ties.

6. To keep from improperly connecting the wires or having to study the wiring diagram, simply disconnect the old wires (pull apart the molex connectors with a slight rocking motion)and reconnect the new wires ONE AT A TIME.

6. At this point your done with the connections. I turned on my Traeger briefly to make sure the fans turned on and the LED illuminated. Make sure there aren't any wires interfering with either fan.

7. I used lots of zip-ties to clean up the installation.

8. Feed the new controller through the hole in the hopper.

9. Attach the hopper

10. Attach the controller

11. Look under the hopper to make sure there aren't any wires interfering with the fan(use more zip-ties if necessary), and install the bottom of the hopper.

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I am a college student, so I bought the junior Traeger model, which does not come with the digital thermostat kit. After smoking my first set of ribs I went straight to my computer and bought this because controlling the temperature with the 3-speed was quite a pain. Many burger patties and racks of ribs later I am still completely satisfied with my purchase.

Note: This takes a bit of work to install, so unless you are at least somewhat comfortable working with electronics then I would find a friend who is to install it. Still, don't let this deter you from buying it. The kit does not require any soldering to install.

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got thermostat quickly and in great shape, have older grill with smaller hole, followed instructions and fit in. turned on and works great have grilledand smoked several times since.

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Installed on a Traeger Junior. Works great, with some limitations.

-Install was pretty straightforward, but you should be comfortable with hand tools, and confident in disand re-assembling things. Also, have zip ties available. I took the advice of the reviewer who pulled the whole hopper/firebox assembly out of the grill first. Great idea!!! Just make sure you empty the hopper first. You'll still have pellet spillage from the auger tube, but totally worth the effort. Keep in mind you have two fans to keep the wire bundles clear of when you're putting it all back together, and you'll do fine. The only fairly tricky part (or advanced finesse part) is re-mating the hopper/firebox assembly to the grill body after the thermometer probe is bolted inside the grill and the lead has been run into the hopper body. You'll figure it out. I am experienced and competent with this sort of task; a proper, professional conversion to this thermostat took me about 45 minutes. And two tallboys.

-Performance and fine-tuning are much improved over the 3-speed controller, and that's exactly what I wanted. This unit totally delivers. The feedback from the digital grill temp indicator is nice. I compared the digital display to a calibrated grill thermometer over a 3-hour smoke. Concurrence ranged from spot-on, to +/20 degreesF. This is likely due to the vertical orientation of the Traeger controller's probe. Overall, the onboard digital display is useful and can be considered a decent general guide to average grill temp over time. You will still need to periodically monitor your grill to ensure that you're not going over/under your desired grill or smoke temp. If you're pretty hands-on (OCD?) like me, upgrading to this unit will not give you true "set it and forget it" capability, but it is MUCH better than the stock 3-speed "dumb" control.

-Be aware that there is NO feedback from the temp sensor to the auger drive! They are separate! The temp on the grill does NOT influence the behavior of the auger timing. What you get with this unit is a much finer resolution control of the auger's dump behavior (by virtue of the increased number of set points on the dial), plus a feedback from the digital display of what's going on inside the grill temperature-wise. The dial setting and the digital readout are VERY roughly correlated, but actual working temp on the grill varies depending on ambient conditions, wind, moisture content of pellets, etc.

-Startup sequence is pretty genius. Once the new control was installed, I ran a test burn on the grill by powering on and setting to "smoke", per Traeger's startup advice. After about 3 minutes, I got really worried and thought I had a runaway controller! Set at smoke, the grill temp was 450+ degrees once it got going. I was not happy, but let it run a bit longer. The auger speed settled down (once the fire was well-established), and all was well. It appears that the controller is programmed to run a startup sequence that will ensure positive firebox lightup and grill chamber pre-heat, then settles down to whatever setting you've put it on. This behavior has been consistent over many subsequent grill/smoke sessions, and no longer freaks me out. I just expect the grill to blaze hard upon startup, then settle down and cook as I have it set.

Overall, this product gave me exactly what I wanted in terms of vastly better control of Traeger temp while cooking, plus a general indication of grill chamber temp. Install was reasonable, and I'm quite pleased. No regrets AT ALL about this purchase (except that Traeger put these on sale on their website for $20 less, the week after I installed mine. Timing is everything!).

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This is much easier and less time consuming than monitoring the top thermostat. Just set the temp and let it cook.

Cheap White-Rodgers 1F95-1291 Universal Thermostat with Programmable

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List Price: $397.27
Sale Price: $171.49
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Very average thermostat. Works well but the screen is almost unreadable because of the very dim screen. Would not buy this again because it is almost

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I just swapped this model in today for a 9 year old non-programmable thermostat today and the first thing I've noticed is how loud of a click the relay makes when the A/C turns on/off. I've never heard a thermostat make this loud of a click. Kind of annoying. The thermostat seems to read a more accurate temperature than my builder quality thermostat that was in the house when it was built 9 years ago.

Danby 2.5 Cu. Ft. Designer Compact All Refrigerator -white Review

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List Price: $149.99
Sale Price: $131.94
Today's Bonus: 12% Off

The fridge is great exactly as both described and hoped. The problem is that the packaging is completely inadequate and resulted in my unit being dented upon arrival. Were it not such a huge hassle I would have sent it back. It's really too bad because this is a great minifridge otherwise.

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There is a large dent in the side at the rear. But the box is not damaged.

It may be a returned item and sent to me damaged. I paid for a new item.

It turns on and the compressor is super hot. Sadly after 2 days it fails to cool.

UPS will pick up in 2-5 days.

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Got this for a good price, free shipping, with fast delivery from Amazon.com. Arrived in good-condition outer box, but upon unpackaging, the refrigerator itself has a crease dent along one side, enough to be very noticeable, but not so severe as to make the unit not functional. The unit otherwise was clean and "new," and must have been damaged in the factory prior to packaging.

Upon start-up, the poor little compressor works, and works, and wines, and wines. I had the unit in proximity to my sleeping quarters, and finally had to move it to another room! Some fridges have noisy compressors; this fridge's compressor has a pitch with which I couldn't manage.

And the "still figuring out if it works" title comes from the temperature control, or lack thereof. I've had this unit for a few months now, and it fluctuates in temperature from lower 30s to lower 40s on the same setting. I occasionally check the fridge thermometer I borrowed, and wish I found the unit fluctuating around a few degrees not ten degrees! Is 42F safe for food? I have dialed in cooler settings, only to find again 40F+ highs and, if pushed, sub-freezing lows.

So, while cheap, and delivered proficiently by Amazon, I can't really recommend this to anyone, except if you need a fridge away from personal quarters and don't intend to store spoilable foods.

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This is the perfect refrigerator except for one feature: it does not get at all cold, not even slightly cool. In hopes that this particular one was defective, I have requested replacement. Take note that you must LET IT SIT FOR 2 HOURS prior to first turning it on. (Even that did not help with this one.) It seems like there should be a note saying that taped across the door because I did not know that until I read the manual. I tried settings low and high and gave it a day and a half to try to cool down but it was actually slightly warmer than room temperature. The motor runs and is not at all loud.

Other than not getting cold, it is lovely.

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My fridge got here on time and the box was in perfect condition. When we opened it, the fridge door had a large dent in it. Now how did that happen? Had to be packaged that way. Got a refund ok after several weeks but what a disappointment. I reordered but from a different vendor.

Bionaire BFH2242M-SM Heat Circulator with Rotating Grill Review

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List Price: $49.99
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Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program Addition as of Dec. 19, 2012: We've been using this heater constantly for weeks now that it's cold and I'd give it even more stars if it were possible. It's small, doesn't raise our electric bill much, and heats out big living room all by itself, and quickly. I've always preferred space heaters to whole-house heaters and nearly always buy one every season -never the same kind. If this one ever breaks down, I'll get another of the same kind. One of the most impressive things about it is the "low" setting. It goes low enough that I can put it right next to my feet and it warms without overheating my skin and making it itch. My cat also can comfortably sleep with it inches from his face without problems. I absolutely love this heater. (Below is my original review.)

Here in southern California, we don't need heavy duty heaters. In fact, I virtually never use the whole-house heater because I prefer, even in winter, to have a cold face and warm feet. I've been using little space heaters like this for at least 20 years.

We have a 13X20 foot living room and I set this Bionaire heater up in the usual place: beneath the edge of a very large double-decker glass coffee table. This way, my feet get hit, my husband, sitting kitty-cornered from me in his Laz-E-Boy gets a nice blast, and the table warms, which is an absolute necessity according to our cats. Some heaters accomplish only these requirements, but the Bionaire also easily heats the entire room, and quickly. The oddly rotating grill definitely amps things up, too. It's perfect for our needs.

Finally, and most importantly in our multi-cat household, if the heater tips over, it turns off. Last year I bought a heater for $60 -the Bionaire is only $35 -and it didn't have a safety shut off. (I hadn't even thought to check -I assumed it had one because of the price, and you know what happens when you assume...) Because of this, I couldn't leave the heater on for the cats as I normally do on the coldest nights. This year, our cats will be much happier. Recommended!

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Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program I'm always scouting for a better space heater for our guest bedroom/sewing room. It's the "bonus room," the large room above the garage, and is very chilly during the winter.

I have been using the original little ceramic heater made by Pelonis, Pelonis B-6A1, Classic 4 Disc Ceramic Safety Furnace, Brown. The Bionaire is about 1/3 larger than the Pelois and is about half the price. The Bionaire threw lots of heat, enough to warm up the room in short order. The rotating grill did disburse the heat more evenly and seemed to spread the warmth quicker than the Pelonis. Nevertheless, the ceramic disc design of the Pelonis is probably still the gold standard for space heaters.

My Bionaire was missing the owner's manual. There was no documentation of any kind in the box just the heater. However, the operation is fairly straightforward and self-evident. Some instructions are printed on the side of the box.

The Bionaire has an automatic cutoff, so, of course, I tried it. Upon tipping over the heater, the cutoff switch activated. I tried to restart it and, nothing! Then, I read on the side of the box that you must wait 30 minutes for the heater to cool down before restarting. Probably, a good safety feature.

The cord of the Bionaire is long enough that you don't need an extension. Space heaters are not supposed to be used with extension cords. A nifty little feature is a cord storage area on the bottom of the heater. Neatness counts.

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This is only the second product I've bothered to review, despite purchasing on average over two products per week on Amazon. I do, however, appreciate all those who do write reviews and wish I had the energy to pitch in. BUT this product is so wonderful, I just had to write. It gives off plenty of heat to raise the temperture in my bedroom, which is approximately 20+' by 20+' and has a little alcove, which I use as a study EVEN WITH THE BEDROOM DOOR OPEN as it is now.

I have a thermostat in the room and this little space heater can raise the temperature from 64 to 70 degrees and keep it there. It does not have an odor that is annoying and most important, it does not get hot to the touch ANYWHERE and is quite simple to operate. Some reviews say their unit failed in 3 or so months (or even in a shorter time). Well, all companies produce a lemon or two. I've only had this product about 3 weeks and mine's fine. But even if it fails in a month or so, I'd buy another next year. At this price, for this performance, it's worth it.

Honest reviews on Bionaire BFH2242M-SM Heat Circulator with Rotating Grill

Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program Bionaire Heat Circulator with rotating grill works great. We have had a few chilly nights here lately, perfect to give this heater a try ,it works great! Believe me when I tell you I have several different makes and types of heaters . This one holds it own with the best of them. It has a pleasing shape and two heat settings. You can also turn off the grill rotation. I also like the tip over overheat safty feature.I put it on high and it warmed an open 12 x 13 ft room with 9 ft ceilings. The only thing that took getting used to was the way the grill rotates. It slowly goes around instead of from side to side. It works just as well as my tower heater and as an added bonus the rotation of the grill mesmerizes my dog. Give this one a try I'm sure you will like it.

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Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program I got this for my kids (aged 4 and 5) for when they get out of the bath tub. I put it in the adjoining bathroom (they have a jack and jill bath with separate sinks) and it heats the room up nicely for when they get out of the tub (and start screaming at the top of their lungs how cold they are) and makes the drying experience much more pleasant for all of us. I recently tried it on our sunroom after a rug got wet and we wanted to speed up the drying. That was a much larger room (14x14) and it was not nearly as effective. Still, it did warm the room some.

It is very quiet and overall it works very well. For smaller (11x11 or smaller?) rooms it is very effective and seems very safe. No hot, glowing wires or anything like that. It is very "plastic" and doesn't look engineered to handle a beating, but it works well and I would recommend it for anyone looking to improve the heating in a room, or counter-effect a draft or for our use, of heating a small bathroom area it is great!

Maxi-Matic Elite Cuisine13 in. Countertop Grill Reviews

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List Price: $39.99
Sale Price: $26.99
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This has been a great purchase for our kitchen counter top. This is the perfect item for rainy days when you don't want to grill outside. I have had no issues with this product so far and it cooks staek and chicken perfectly the way my girlfriend and I like it. The grill surface isn't very big but it's great for two people. Fantastic for grilling veggies too!

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I wanted to save a buck by buying a less expensive grill but was worried the quality or grilling power wouldnt be as good. Turns out it works great! I've already used it 4 times and so far so good. Nice grill marks and the temperature appears to get very hot just like a regular grill. Very nice to use when the weather is bad or you just dont feel like messing with the big gas grill.

I do reccommend using this on top of the stove with the vents on high as this will absorb the small amount of smoke that grilling causes. The house is less stinky that way and you also have free counter space. Just a thought.

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I bought this for my sister and she loves it! It's easy to use, grills great and easy to clean!

I also have this grill and use it all the time. I highly recommend this product.

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This is the second Maxi Magic grill I've bought. It does a great job. It's inexpensive, smokeless and easy to clean up. What more could you ask for. The other one was exactly the same. I had an accident with the first one (wasn't paying attention and the element got put in the dishwasher) and needed to replace it because there's no substitute for this little grill... unless you want to buy a new stove top with a built in grill for much more money.

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I like this a lot. Pretty easy to clean too. Heats ups well. Good for steaks, lamp chops, chicken. About the same time as I used to do on an outside grill. Nice big drip pan too on the bottom (that washes off very easily). Recommended.

Reviews of Lakewood 792/JR 750/1500 Watt Fan Forced Utility Heater

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I bought this heater a few years ago for my RV and it has performed excellent. On one trip it to Alaska it was on full power for over 2 months and no problem. A very vell made little compact unit. A+++

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I like mine when its running. I have only had to fix it about 15 times. I do like it because it was cheap, 17 bucks at Walmart, and puts out plenty of heat. These will cut off sometimes if they have to much dust in them, may be a safety feature. I had one little wire in it that kept coming loose or arcing. Had to fix that about 10 times or so. The last time must have been the trick. Someone at Walmart told me she had about 20 in the back that people had brought back. In other words, nothing but problems. But if you can fix stuff its not that bad. The case is actually very durable. Simple basic design. I may have just got a bad one. Kinda reminds me of an old car I had that ate a starter every 80,000 miles. Got so use to fixing it that it became no big deal, and only took a few minutes. I know.... strange review.

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After 2 months of use, the fan stopped turning in this heater. This caused the heater coils to turn bright red and overheat. It started smoking profusely. My circuit breaker did NOT trip, nor did any fuses within the heater unit cut off. Luckily, I just happened to be nearby and smell the smoke. Another few minutes and my house would have likely burnt down. I will be filing a complaint with the BBB for this Lakewood product.

Honest reviews on Lakewood 792/JR 750/1500 Watt Fan Forced Utility Heater

I bought this last year. It lasted 3 months. It worked well while it worked. The store no longer carried it when I went for an exchange. I figure I paid $6/mo. for heat. That's fair enough.

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I recently purchased this product--this being our 4th Lakewood utility heater. We still have our first one--the larger utility heater---it is probably 12 years old and still works fine! We use it in our garage. I bought 2 small utility heaters 2 1/2 years ago and they work great!! We use them in our bathrooms. I like that you can set your temperature and it will go on and off as needed. I have tried a ceramic heater and took it back because it didn't have this feature. Great little heaters and love they they are so small and compact, but can put out lots of heat!

Discount Soleus Air PH4-13R-01 13,000 BTU Evaporative Portable Air

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I did extensive research before purchasing my portable air conditioner. Thanks to some reviewers I learned that having a dual hose is key, as a double and contrary pressure inside one hose could create problems in the future (the AC pulls air from outside and releases air from the room, it's a double process get a dual hose). So I searched for a dual hose as a pre-requisite and the only one I found on Amazon was this 13,000 btu Soleus. Even though the room I needed it for was a relatively small bedroom, I went for this item. And I'm so happy I did!

The machine is really big, really huge, and extremely heavy. But pretty good looking, with a great design. Packaging was large and bulk, and it traveled a long way to where I am. The side panels were a bit damaged from shipping and handling and I hoped it wouldn't be a problem, so far not a problem.

There is nothing portable about it. Besides its heavy weight, once you install the window kit, the last thing you want is to keep moving it around and compromise a good installation.

I did not receive one of the accessories, the sliding panel, and the instructional dvd and manual showed that this was necessary for installing the AC on my window, but we figured it out in the end with what we had. My window is a horizontal sliding window. I adapted two of the panels I had (one with two exhaust hose openings and one with no openings) to one end of the window, mending the two to cover the entire vertical length. Attaching the exhaust hoses was really easy, all I had to do was make sure that the window kit was well screwed in my window, to hold, and then stretch the hoses and attach them to the AC unit.

When I plugged it in and turned it on it sounded like I had a plane's engine right inside my room. It was so loud! Later I grew used to it and now it doesn't bother me anymore, in fact, it helps, because it simply eliminates any other noises you might have from outside.

The first night after about three hours the AC mode simply shut off and it went into fan mode. A red light was on, indicating that the condensate holding tank was full. I couldn't believe this, since it had been on for only three hours! So I fit a small tray from my toaster oven under the drain plug and discarded all the water that came out of it.

The second night, we figured we should just leave the drain plug open and the toaster oven tray under it. We woke up to a flooded room, as the tray is barely enough to hold so much water.

Since the drain plug is so near the floor, the only solution was to put the AC on top of a low coffee table, which in fact, shortened the length of the exhaust hoses, optimizing the overall cooling capacity, as one of the hoses gets pretty warm and the longer the hose, the harder the AC will have to work to cool the air around it.

Now we have it all set. Our AC sits on top of a coffee table, with a bucket behind it and the tiny hose that came with it attached to the drain plug. The drain plug is always open, and the water that comes out of the unit simply fills the bucket to about 1/3, it is so much water! But the AC mode never shuts off anymore, and you get some healthy humidifying from having a bucket full of water in the bedroom and the hoses are less stretched, ensuring better cooling.

So far, so good! The AC does an excellent job of cooling the room and I absolutely love it!

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I purchased this unit in July 2008 and I have had nothing but problems with it. The Soleus support line is always busy, and when you do get someone, they look for an answer and never call back. My front panel to control the unit does not work, and I have tried to get Soleus to replace the panel, with no luck. I have to use the remote control to use the A/C. Around 2 years of service, and the unit started leaking water. It appears the drain line for the unit is not placed far enough back, and so the water pan just drips out of the unit, right onto the floor. You can pay to have the unit shipped back and repaired they said, but the minimum charge is $150 plus shipping charges. Don't waste your money!

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This thing does not evaporate well, still have to empty the tray every other day. But it does not flood your floor it shuts off when full.

As for heating this unit is completely useless. A $50 ceramic unit will heat better than this heat pump.

Don't bother buying if your temp outside goes below 40 this unit will not heat to keep even 65. (This was heating a room around 250 sq ft)

Overpriced air conditioner.

Honest reviews on Soleus Air PH4-13R-01 13,000 BTU Evaporative Portable Air

I actually purchased Soleus Air PH4-13R-01 13,000 BTU Evaporative Portable Air Conditioner, 13,000 BTU Heater, Dehumidifier and Fan locally as the ones sold on Amazon are getting poor reviews, but mine shoots out 61°F cold air 24/7 and never leaks or needs to be drained although we are having the most humid summer I can ever remember. A favorite 2012 purchase which I would have purchased on Amazon were it not for all the bad reviews there.

UPDATE OCT 21, 2012 This A/C ran 24/7 up until about a week ago when it finally cooled off and never once did it leak or need to be drained. I am extremely happy with my Soleus Air PH4-13R-01!

UPDATE JUNE 30, 2013 It was very humid here and I ran this 24hours straight more for the humidity than for the heat at 61°F and it did not leak once. I have it set up to exhaust to the outside and intake inside air as my home is loose. Also I like having it set up next to the entry way window as that way I can use floor fans to direct the air up to 30feet into the room(s) I want. This weighs 80lbs so you really don't want to be moving it all the time. I am very thrilled with this portable A/C, dehumidifier, heater, and fan. I have used it as a heater during the winter too and that was great.

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The heat pump for our house is probably a bit too old and under-sized for our house. For the last seven years or so I have placed a very small window AC unit in our (2nd story) master bedroom to help cool the house in the summer. Thinking that the window unit was making the house look a bit trashy we decided to replace it with this unit.

Overall, we are quite pleased with the unit, but it takes up quite a bit of space in the bedroom. Sometimes I think the window unit was easier in that sense certainly cheaper / took less indoor space.

A word about capacity the previous unit was only 8000 BTU this unit claims to be larger in capacity and it may very well be but it certainly seems to take a bit longer to cool the room / upper floor of the house. (this seems typical of this type read up online) BUT it isn't nearly as noisy as the old unit was. There is a small rattle that is solved by placing a small pillow on the left side of the unit annoying, but workable.

The remote is probably a cool feature, but we simply set to temp and move on. We never touch it. I'm curious how the heater will work in the winter.

Relatively easy to install took about an hour the unit is quite heavy over 100 lbs easily takes some effort to move.

Don't turn on for 24 hours after you've moved the unit especially if turned on it's side. I let the unit sit in our bedroom for a few days as we had to set it at an angle to transport.

CONS this unit is expensive, takes up a lot of room INSIDE of the house, might take a bit longer to cool than a window unit.

PROS easy to install, remote nice feature, works pretty well.