I Must Withdraw My Endorsement

It is with regret that I withdraw my recommendation for the Vortex hand-cranked blender. When I first got it, I thought it had great potential even though I had reservations about the Lexan material. There are potential health concerns with Lexan and contact with hot materials can degrade the plastic, causing premature wear and cracking. But, I vowed to only blend foods and liquids that were room temperature or cooler, and not let them sit for any length of time in the container.

As I began using it, though, I noticed some problems. The first one was that it did not blend and puree foods nearly as well as the Krups electric blender that I, unfortunately, impetuously sold on craigslist as soon as I'd purchased the Vortex. Oh well, I thought, I'm not a perfectionist. I can live with soup that is not perfectly smooth and silky.

The second problem is a design flaw that seems to be common for the manufacturer (GSI). The bottom of the blender twists into the base in a clockwise direction. The body of the blender screws into the bottom in a clockwise direction. When the blending is complete and it's time to remove the blender from the base, this has to be done carefully while holding the bottom. If I try to remove it by twisting the blender body (rotating it counterclockwise to remove it from the base), it simultaneously unscrews the body from the bottom. Not surprisingly, this results in a big mess. A better design would have been to have the bottom twist into the base in the opposite direction as the body screws onto the base.

This was also a problem with GSI's manual coffee grinder, which led me to return it to the store. I called the company and they were unsympathetic. Customer satisfaction did not seem to be high on their list of priorities. The store was not thrilled with the return either.

The third problem is the thin silicone gasket between the bottom and body of the blender. The hard silicone just doesn't form as good a seal as the traditional rubber gaskets usually used in blenders. I have had serious problem with leaking. It's very annoying to pour all of the ingredients in the blender and then notice liquid leaking out the bottom. This became such a persistant problem that I'd put a cup of water in it before using it just to test for leaks and make sure the gasket was seated well.

I did that this evening. It seemed fine. By the time I'd put all the ingredients in it for the fake (vegan) cheesy sauce I was making though, there was a drizzle of liquid coming out of the blender bottom. I hollered at my sweetie to get the food processor out and I dumped the contents in it.

"That's it!" I fumed, "I am not keeping this POS!" It did not help matters that the food processor leaked out half the liquid either. Whether it was overly full or one of the cracks in its Lexan body has finally given way is a matter for another day.

I now have to decide whether to replace the Vortex with a new electric blender or try to do everything in the food processor, which, as I mentioned, is wearing out. I prefer to use a blender for those things with a high liquid content, such as flax seed egg substitute, sauces, and pureed soups, and the food processor for blending thicker foods such as cooked pumpkin and occasionally for shredding larger quantities of food such as cabbage for sauerkraut.

Can I do these by hand? Mostly, but not as well and not very fast. The chopping takes far longer but can be done. Cooked pumpkin can be mashed with a potato masher, but may not be as smooth. Mixing the flax seed egg substitute, though, really works best at sustained high blender speed for several minutes. And forget making whole wheat berry pancakes by hand. (Actually, I haven't made these since I sold the electric blender. The berries would scratch the heck out of the Vortex and I don't think it would grind them up anyway, even if I could sustain a high speed for a full five minutes.)

So, right now I'm not quite sure what I'll do to blend foods. I am sure, though, that I will not be keeping the Vortex blender. I'll put it on craigslist. Perhaps some fraternity at the university will buy it so they can have fun making blended drinks at their parties. I'm very disappointed at I'd hoped this tool would help me keep moving towards a lower energy lifestyle.