Customer Reviews

Rowenta Pressure Iron & Steamer

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

 

 

I purchased Model DG5030 to replace my old Rowenta Pressure Iron and Steamer (with blue water tank). My old iron was perfect and I expected this new one to be even better. However, much to my chagrin, it has two major defects: no matter what the iron temperature or steam settings, water drips (sometimes quite a bit) onto the fabric to be ironed. Also, since the water tank is completely enclosed, one cannot see how much water remains in the tank. Upon contacting Rowenta, I was told that these 2 defects are being "duly noted" in their customer files and that I was not the only consumer to complain. I am greatly disappointed that a company with the stature of Rowenta would not either offer to fix the iron, considering its cost or let me return it. I have written and e-mailed them with the further information that I knew of several other consumers with the same problem(s) so this iron obviously needs re-designing. Until these problems are addressed, I would not advise purchasing this model.

I returned this iron the day after I bought it. It leaks water no matter what setting it is on....leaks is too mild a word. It pours water...and the vertical steam option is laughable. It absolutely does NOT even relax the wrinkles in curtains or any other fabric. When I tried to iron on the low setting, white marks appeared on the fabric. There was nothing about this iron that pleased me. I called customer service and they went through the same things that the pamphlet in the box tell you to do. Nothing improved the iron.

I've recently started ironing everything I wear. This made me yearn to ease the job with high end equipment. I bought this steam generator after reading the "professional quality for the home" reviews along with a Rowenta expert ironing board.
After ~10 tanks (which go much faster than I expected) of tap water I can say that this is a VERY good iron and will get your clothes looking good...but not as if they were done at the cleaners. Compared to my girlfriends extreme budget iron I can see a difference...but compared to my Mother's Rowenta iron(non-steam generator type)..I can tell little difference.
I took one star for the high cost and another due to the LONG waiting periods for the "steam generator" to generate steam, about ~10+ minutes when filled completely.
For your average user, save some $ and get a typical iron as it is much more convenient as well.

I've owned several Rowenta irons, including an earlier model Rowenta steam generator and have been pleased with all of them. When I purchased this model to replace my earlier model, I expected to be as happy with it as I have been with the others.

It does produce lots and lots of steam. More than earlier models of steam generators, and the water tank cap has been re-designed and is easier to open. It should be just the ticket for the seamstress and professional dressmaker.

Unfortunately this one has dimples on the bottom of the iron which is not always a good thing for the dressmaker because it tends to 'emboss' delicate fabrics unless special care is taken. Earlier models did not have these dimples.

This model also drips water along with the steam. This is the bane of -anyone- who uses an iron and was a problem for Rowenta in the '90s but they did fixed that problem in the late 90's. However, it's back now and in an expensive model. There are trouble shooting solutions in the owner's pamphlet for solving this problem but none seem to work 100% of the time, just occasionally and not for long.

I'll continue to use the iron. I like the abundance of steam and the fact that I can use it for some time without refilling it but I'm not happy that I have to cope with the dripping problem. Rowenta *can* do better!

I have purchased this Iron and it works perfectly. I keep the base unit on the floor the cord has enough length to adequately reach all aspects Ironing board. I think the poeple who said it leaked keeps the unit on the ironing board. Keep the unit on the floor and you will guarantee that only seam will rise and exit the Iron. I fill it with warm water to cut down on the amount of time it takes to heat the water. It works at lighning speed. one swipe and your done. My Ironing lady now takes half the time to Iron 4 baskets of clothes. Highly recommended. Also remember to clean and empty the container after use. Go get one.

I like the steam that the iron puts out, but if not careful, you will get lots of water marks. I also think that for the price of this iron it should have included a water level so that you can see with the water gets low. I also do not like the amount of time you have to wait for the iron to be ready (7 minutes or more). Not having to fill the tank so much is a plus when you have a lot of ironing to do. When using the right amount of steam it does a great job.

I was so excited when I saw a Bloomingdales store demonstration of this item and bought it on the spot. What a disappointment. This iron leaks water, no matter what setting you put it on. I have ruined several clothing items, due to either water spots or burned water spots. Waste of money.

I lusted over this iron about a year before I finally broke down and bought it. My husband bought it for me with the warning that it better last forever. I have not had the problems other posters have had. The only time I have a problem with leaking is when I walk away for more than five minutes, and even then I just hit the steam button and wait untill the cool water stored in the steam line dispurses before ironing with it. I love this iron. I love the steam, I love how quickly it does away with wrinkles, and I love how my clothes look after I've ironed with this iron. I can usually iron at least an hour before running out of water....and I usually am ready for a break by then. I find if I empty the tank after I finish, and start fresh with 32oz when I start again, I don't have to worry how much is in the tank. While true that it doesn't give much warning before running out of steam.....I can now judge when it's about to happen. I suffered for years with irons that never got hot enough, steamed enough, or put "rust" on my clothing. I simply can't say enough good things about this iron. My friends love it too and I'm sure I'm responsible for at least three sales. Even my mother in law wants one. She could put the "dry cleaners" out of business with her ironing skill. I iron with the heat set to it's highest setting, and the steam at the halfway mark. Perhaps the unhappy customers did not have the iron hot enough. If I were in charge of improving this iron, I would put a bigger on/off button, and like others have said, a gauge to see how much water is in the tank. All in all, I am a happy customer. I reccomend sending off for the cd from Rowenta before purchasing. It really showcases what this baby does. LOVE IT.
I've owned it about nine months.

Update: August 2009. On/Off switch is broken, and I cannot find anyone locally to repair it. Rowenta wants me to send it to their "repair center" with a $25 check, and then they will call me to tell me how much for it's repair. From what I read from others, that will be an expensive mistake. So I plan to buy another one from [...] with a three year extended warranty that they offer free with purchase. I simply cannot go back to those other irons. My husband knows how much I love this iron, and has agreed to buy me another one. Although I'm dissappointed that no one makes irons that last anymore, even those that cost a fortune....I will buy the same one. I see they have another model out that has a clear tank and heats up faster, for double the price. Ummmmm no thanks, improvements should be make to the QUALITY not the astectics....I refuse to pay double for something that does not affect the quality.

Writing the review I wish I had read a few months ago -

The Rowenta DG 5030 Pressure Iron and Steamer is a little bit different from a regular iron.
- The water tank is external to the iron and the steam flows at high pressure to the iron through a cord that can get kind of hot. Plus - pressurized steam and large water capacity. Downside - hot cord to cope with and some downsides to the cord such as spitting when you first start to iron. Best to put a towel on the ironing board and give it a minute of steam so that you can get past the spitting stage. I have heard that this is easier to deal with if you put the tank on the floor (keeps water from building up in the cord and producing the spitting later), but I haven't tried that. I don't see it as a big deal.

- The iron doesn't automatically turn off. This is great if you quilt or save up all your ironing for one big batch. On the other hand, I accidentally left it on for some undetermined amount of time. My husband has suggested I plug it into a timed outlet where I can control the timing for when it shuts off. I haven't tried that yet, but it sounds like it would work. Then at least it can time out after an hour rather than after 7 minutes or something absurd.

- The water tank sounds easy to fill - but isn't so perfect. You can't see how much water is in it. If you overfill it, it overflows. Put a towel under it when you refill - and always refill before you start to iron. Very annoying to have to quit ironing to wait 10 minutes for it to get ready to iron again.

- And you really want an ironing board that is made of metal mesh so that the steam can go through. Yes, it can have a pad and cover on it - but you want the steam to be able to escape through the bottom of the ironing board.

With all of that said -

I use my iron for two things: quilting and ironing clothes. My husband thinks it is hilarious that he comes in and finds me smiling while I iron. Ironing is so much faster now and my clothes look great. This thing does a great job of eliminating wrinkles. As for quilting - no short timer on this means that I can walk away and come back a few minutes later without losing time. Plus, this can steam the wrinkle out of fabric that has been folded for a long time. No rewashing clean fabric just so that I can get rid of the wrinkles.

Is it perfect? No - but it has exceeded every expectation I had for the job that it does. I'll put up with the quirks to get clothes (and cloth) this wrinkle free.

Just one complaint that I can't seem to get around - the steam makes ironing a hot and sweaty job now...... Best used in front of a fan.....

Mary

P.S. One more thing - My last iron quit working when it fell off of the ironing board. This one is structured in such a way that I can't see an accidental fall causing problems. Another reason to love it - I plan to keep it around for some time to come.

We have owned this iron for about a year; bought it from Amazon. When it worked, it was great, especially for doing lots of ironing at once. But, it has had a chronic leaking problem, with water seeming to end up on the floor right under where I am ironing so I invariably dragged a just ironed sleeve through a puddle of water. Lack of tank gauge window was not a big deal, and you needed to keep it full for good results. However, today the switch went out and it is dead. Horrible product!