# made a new purchase, vitamix, whats your opinion?



## bobtheman (Apr 13, 2015)

Ok, so I am at the stage where I am trying to get my kids to eat more veggies. Smoothies seems like a great way to do that. The problem I had was that the blender we had - a fairly new midrange ninja - just wouldnt blend it to a consistency that the kids would drink. For example, strawberry seeds left, the ice would be unevenly blended, etc.

On a side note - A few months back I made a roasted red pepper pasta sauce. It was awesome. My only problem was that when I blended it, the ninja would not pulverisze it to a smooth consistency. The sauce was still great, but left room for improvement.

I have been eyeballing a vitramix for a few weeks (to solve both of these issues)  and made the purchase. I wanted to ask, does anyone here own a vitamix, do you like it? Would you say the cost is justifiable?


----------



## kokopuffs (Aug 4, 2000)

Vitamix = THE Rolls Royce of blenders that can also be used for wheat grinding.  You can purchase one that has power in excess of 1000W.  Me, I use a Nutribullet at 500W of power (EDIT) since I live alone.  Since you have kids, you'll need the ultimate durability for every day use (and more) that only a Vitamix offers.  Checkout the refurbed ones at the Vitamix website as they're offered with the same warranty as their brand new ones.


----------



## kokopuffs (Aug 4, 2000)

...previous post has been edited.


----------



## chefbuba (Feb 17, 2010)

I keep telling myself why I need to spend $400 on a blender.............If I could stop getting that fancy coffee drink on the way home and make it at home, it would pay for it's self in a few months..............

I would buy the refurb one withe the same warranty as new.


----------



## pirendeus (Apr 1, 2016)

So buy a good coffee machine, too ;-)


----------



## scribble (Dec 21, 2012)

We struggled with spending the money on a vitamix as well but after purchasing it we love it and well worth it.  The wife and kids make a smoothy every day of the week. I make grated parm when I need it using fresh blocks of parm.  I have made soups, pesto, alfredo sauce, you can make almost anything with the vitamix.  

I don't think you will regret purchasing one.

If you have a costco near you check it out there as they do demo's and they are usually the lowest price around.


----------



## foody518 (Aug 6, 2015)

+1 on Costco. I don't recall which of the models since I was only looking in passing, but I recall seeing a price of around $329-339 for the model they were advertising for the demo.


----------



## kokopuffs (Aug 4, 2000)

Imho checkout the V's power rating in watts as you'll get what you pay for....in terms of power and performance. Checkout *this page* for domestic and for commercial applications.


----------



## cook4family (Jul 23, 2015)

Honestly I think a good Breville or Cusinart blender will get the job done just as good and they cost much less than Vitamix.

Vitamix is a good blender though, but a bit pricey IMO.

We have a Cusinart and the kids love the smoothies we make in it.


----------



## bobtheman (Apr 13, 2015)

ive had it for about a week or so now. The smoothies coming out of it are second to none. I havent perfected the soup recipes yet but im working on it.

So far its been a great machine.


----------



## cdbrown (May 26, 2016)

How long do these typically last? I've had several other brands of blender crap out on me after about a year of regular use. 1 year seems to be the magic time period in which all of these high powered machines die. Anyone here use a vitamix daily? What's the lifetime on these things?


----------



## bobtheman (Apr 13, 2015)

CDBrown said:


> How long do these typically last? I've had several other brands of blender crap out on me after about a year of regular use. 1 year seems to be the magic time period in which all of these high powered machines die. Anyone here use a vitamix daily? What's the lifetime on these things?


it comes with a five or seven year warranty that is supposed to be the "gold standard". From my understanding - covered shipping and they either fix it or replace it. I have a few friends who swear they have had theirs for 10+ years without issues. Consumer use - however they do sell commercial versions.

The sorbet coming out of this thing is just amazing. The smoothies are really a different world. I had a pretty decent ninja and this Vitamix blows it out of the water.

I havent found a good recipe or method for soups yet (flavor wise) - but ive only tried making soups once.

EDITED: I just checked, its seven years. Here is some info on it.

https://www.vitamix.com/Shop/7-Year-Warranty

FWIW, starbucks is using vitamix.


----------



## cdbrown (May 26, 2016)

bobtheman said:


> EDITED: I just checked, its seven years. Here is some info on it.
> 
> https://www.vitamix.com/Shop/7-Year-Warranty
> 
> FWIW, starbucks is using vitamix.


Thank you for looking into that! Yeah, that seems like a good value considering that I go through smoothie machines, blenders, etc... I can think of 2 appliances that a machine like this can replace right away.


----------



## commanderinchef (Jun 10, 2016)

Vitamix is, from my understanding, worth the money even though it is expensive. It will last you a long time whereas a cheaper one would have to be replaced in a matter of years


----------



## cleo (Jan 20, 2016)

I have had one for about 2 years. It is an awesome appliance. It took me a long time to make the move. I doubted that any blender was worth that much. I finally took the plunge at Costco, figuring that I could return it if I had buyer's remorse. I have not regretted the expense. It is not just the best smoothie maker, but also wonderful for making smooth, silky sauces. Anyone thinking of buying one, check Costco first. Their price on new ones is often better than the refurbished ones.

I hope you will enjoy yours as much as I have enjoyed mine. I use it almost on a daily basis and not just for smoothies, it does quite a bit more!


----------

