Customer Reviews

KTEC Kitchen Mill - Grain and Flour Mill (K-Tec)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This is a decent affordable electric mill. It has a large capacity reservoir and a dial for variable grinds of flours. You can pour about 2-3 cups of wheat berries in the hopper at a time, and add more as the grains flow through the grinder. I usually make about 6 cups of flour at a time, and the process takes about 5 minutes. I've made oat flour by simply putting rolled oats through the hopper, and corn meal using corn kernels. Corn kernels don't flow as well through the hopper, though. They need to be trickled in a bit more slowly so that they stay below the level of the intake hole at the bottom of the hopper. Flour coming out of the mill feels warm to the touch, but I have no idea if the temperature is high enough to decrease nutrients. In any case, once you get used to having fresh flour whenever you want, you can never go back, because store-bought flour tastes very flat and stale.

Cleaning the mill is relatively easy. All that is required is to pull out the foam filter and shake the flour out it, take off a plastic cup from inside the reservoir and shake it out, and wipe the reservoir clean. The internal parts of the mill require no cleaning (they're billed as self-cleaning).

The only problems I've had with the mill in 3 years of at least weekly use are with noise and the plastic latches. This is a very noisy appliance, and earplugs are a must if you will be in the same room while it is operating. The weak spot in the mill are the plastic latches that hold the top motor/hopper assembly to the reservoir. Since there is no other handle or place to grip the heavy top, one naturally pulls on the side latches to lift the motor off the reservoir, and this makes the side latches crack. After the latches crack, there is no firm seal between the top and reservoir, so a haze of flour can puff out the sides while the mill is operating. That doesn't result in a significant loss of flour, but it can cover nearby surfaces with flour dust. Still, for the price and convenience, this is a great addition to any kitchen.

I owned and used this mill daily for many years (12 years, I think) - that is 3 of them. The grinding worked great - I have no qualms with that. But it is not the most convenient, nor the sturdiest I've used. (It was back when I got my first one. Before the newer ones came out, I think this was the best.)

It is noisier than the newer mills, and produces more flour dust in the room (though it isn't bad - I've seen far noisier and "dustier" ones). The small hopper is a bit inconvenient, as is removing the mill head to get to the flour in the flour pan, as is the small hole the grain feeds through (you have to pretty much handfeed corn and larger beans to keep them flowing).

The biggest problem we had was the clips that hold the head to the pan would crack, and on one of our mills the underside of the head developed a pretty big crack. This mills were still usable, but you couldn't get as good of a seal (to keep down that flour dust).

The company was great to work with though about getting it fixed - and these problems occurred after a few years of use. So it's a good mill, but not the one I'd buy today. Me and My House now uses and recommends the NutriMill.

We have had this mill for about a year and a half and it has worked wonderfully as far as grinding wheat quickly and consistently.

However, we have had to replace the plastic covering twice due to the clips cracking or breaking completely off. My mother had the same problem with her old one, and so I was extra careful removing or handling the top according to the pamphlet instructions. They cracked anyway; the second time it cracked all the way to the vent. Only on the second fix did the receptionist tell me that if you lift the latch opposite the side where the overflow cup is, and then turn the motor like a hinge, does it minimize that problem (this is not explained in the instruction manual). However, it only took one person to struggle with it for it to break again.

IF YOUR CLIPS HAVE CRACKED: They will replace the plastic covering for free - that is under warranty. So there is no need to deal with flour spraying all over your counter. However, you do have to pay postage to ship it if you do not live near the store. They will pay to ship it back to you.

If not, removing and replacing the motor as described above definitely makes a difference.

The mill has served us well apart from this problem, but we will likely be getting a different one because I am really tired of dealing with this issue every six months.

I really like this wheat grinder. It is quick and the flour is fine. I like how compact it is compared to other ones I've seen. I've only tried wheat so far, but am excited to try other grains and beans. The only downside is that it's loud, but I think that's just the nature of the beast.... my mom has the "whisper mill" which sounds like a jet engine.

I love this mill! I bought it after having purchased a more expensive mill (the Nutrimill; almost $100 more). I used the other mill a lot, but never could get WHOLE wheat bread to turn out any better than a building brick. I always had to add white flour for my bread to be edible. So a friend recommended this one. I sold my Nutrimill and bought this one and I LOVE it. The flour is much finer, resulting in beautiful, fluffy, WHOLE wheat bread! The mill is a little bit louder than the other one, but not much. I would definately recommend this mill to anyone!

I took my time researching & asking friends about several grain mills before purchasing the Kitchen Mill about 7 months ago. I ultimately chose this one because it was the cheapest. I am pleased with my purchase. It grinds the wheat into flour quickly. I usually grind about 8 cups of wheat berries at a time to make bread & store any leftover flour in the freezer. I use it about once a week.

I have not had problems with the flour dust others have mentioned while the mill is running, so I still have a good seal. My biggest complaint is that it is hard to release the mill from the storage unit once the flour is finished, but maybe I have weak fingers. The only other complaint is the hopper can only hold about 3 cups of grain at a time, so you have to stay around to feed the rest of the grain once it goes down.

A comment about the noise. I have friends who have other mills, the wondermill (a.k.a. whisper mill) & the nutrimill. The kitchen mill is slightly louder then those, but they are all noisy. As are blenders, mixers, food processors... I just warn the family I'm going to use it before I do as not to scare them. :o)

If I had to do over again, I would still purchase the Kitchen Mill because it does what I need it to & the price was the best for the electric mills.

We bought this mill for three reasons: 1. to mill corn 2. Made in USA 3. good price. It gets a 5 star rating on each. The corn is milled perfectly the first time through on the coarsest of 5 settings to be used in corn bread. The noise level is moderate for an electric mill and not at all high pitched nor did it require ear muffs nor did it make the dog howl. Clean up is easy. Follow the directions for removing the top/motor portion and you'll not break the fastener tabs on the clear bucket. It is compact for storage. The rubber feet prevent walking on the counter top. We love this grain mill. Two words of advice: if you are looking to crack grains for beer making buy an inexpensive hand powered mill since this electric mill is designed to mill grain to a flour consistency which is not appropriate for beer making. Also, if you want to grind nuts like peanuts for peanut butter buy a hand powered mill that can grind oily things like nuts and can be taken apart for cleaning. This mill can not be taken apart to clean sticky nut residue so DO NOT mill any nuts in it. For making all types of flour (corn, wheat, rice, etc) this mill is a winner!!!!

We've owned this grinder for about eight years, and it has seen a lot of use. We usually grind 8 cups of flour at a time, and the flour bin could definitely hold more flour than we grind. There isn't a super coarse setting (no cracked wheat here!) but you can get slightly coarse all the way to amazingly fine flour. We mainly grind wheat, but have used it to grind some other things as well, and it's worked just fine. Cleaning it is fairly easy, and it's very quick to set up. The reviewer who said hers could only hold a quarter cup in the hopper and smelled like it was overheating either has a malfunctioning grinder or isn't using it properly. You can fit several cups of wheat berries in the hopper at a time...maybe they did a review on the wrong grinder? Anyway, it's a great grinder for the price.

I've had mine for about 7 years now. Two complaints keep it from getting the fifth star. It is loud, and the plastic latches require that I hold the motor unit down on the bin to prevent a cloud of fresh flour from coating the kitchen. (Parts are easily available, and a new seal helped that a lot.) The good far outweighs the bad, however. It is compact, well-designed, and reliable as sunrise! I fill the hopper to overflowing with wheat, turn it on, and in a couple of minutes I have fresh flour.

It takes about 4 cups of wheat at a time, and the bin will hold the flour from 8 cups of wheat before you need to empty it. I just keep adding until the whole 8 cups is done, and then turn it off to unload. So far I have run a whole lot of wheat and some rice through it.

For the price, it's hard to beat. I haven't tried the newer units on the market, as I have had no need to use anything else. Previous to this, I have owned a Magic Mill and a Bosch grain mill attachment to the small Bosch kitchen machine. The Magic Mill was big, clunky, and awfully heavy. It took up a lot of space on the counter. The Bosch was too small, good for occasional use, but not for grinding flour for five loaves at a time. As Goldilocks would say, this one is "just right!" (I also own a couple of hand grinders, just in case!)

We've had this mill for several years and we love it! The only things that I've needed to replace are the rubber ring (that goes between the plastic lid and the upper part of the mill) and the little filter (that looks like the letter F) which keep the flour from flying out of the vent. The rubber ring (like any rubber product) can get stretched out eventually and not make as good of a contact as it does when it's new. I lost the little F-filter in a move, hence the reason I needed a replacement. Everybody's hearing varies (thankfully mine is still good) and I think the mill is very loud (I wear earplugs when grinding grains) but I don't mind the noise because it's worth it when that wonderful fine flour comes out. K-Tec (now BlendTec)customer service has always been helpful when I've called or e-mailed them for replacement items. I clean it up after each use as best as I can, using a clean (cheap) paintbrush to brush out any flour left in the vents. When I store the mill in the pantry, I always cover it with a kitchen towel so no dust (or flying dog hair) gets into it. You won't be disappointed if you decide to buy this mill.