Customer Reviews

West Bend 86604 Programmable Steamer

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

It works fine but if I had seen the way it is shaped before buying, I would not have bought it. The 3 parts have rings that need to be fitted under them, otherwise they will collapse into each other. However, you have to take off such a ring to fit a part into the lower body or to put a cover on it. I cannot even explain this right, it is just too complicated of a system. The result is that you keep putting in and taking out these rings. When you are cooking and it is hot, this is not only unwieldy, but you can risk a burn too.

sadly this great looking and seemingly great functional, 3 tier steamer was a disappointment. within 3 weeks of purchase the sensor went out, saying it needed water at all times and ceased to operate. calls to west bend were lead to calls to amazon who said to return it to a target brick and mortar store. i showed up there with it they thought i was nuts, they don't even carry steamers of any kind and send me out the door tail between the legs.

in the end it was much simpler to send it to the recycling bin and purchase a new one, obviously not a west bend. also the buttons were applied upside down and with the words / graphics in reverse. that call to west bend was also a waste of time. the time spent to resolve the matter, i would have earned enough to have purchased 3 or 4 of them over.

ridiculous? made in the US? sigh.

This gizmo was bought for much cheaper and it is the same great one! Very easy to read instructions. Very simple to use and the food always comes out great! I have enjoyed using it and it has not been that difficult to clean. I also like that fact that it comes with several trays so that I have plenty of cooking space. A must have item!

Great product. Will steam cook 6 nice sized potatoes in about 45 minutes. The squash we did had such a much better flavor compared to microwaving it, and it was cooked very uniformly. Would higjly recomend this steamer.

This is a good-enough product. Overall, it serves its purpose well enough for me to be ordering a second unit after the first nuked itself - my fault in a way, but also its fault!

Pluses: Good size, easy to operate, fast, easy to clean, overall effectiveness great if you're interested in preparing foods healthily. Well, except for...

Minuses: The steamer baskets are made of BPA, so if you have kids in the family, fuhgeddabout this steamer or you may disrupt their endocrine systems. For adults the risk is probably quite low and will rapidly diminish as the monomer slowly leaches from the plastic, giving it a slightly translucent appearance. Steam it without contents for an hour or so before first use. Other minus: The display is hardly legible except at a particular angle which you are unlikely to be at unless you're a midget. And...

Our unit worked well for ~4 months then, as other reviewers have said, it started squawking its low-water alarm, then proudly turned itself off, as soon as it started to steam. Typical ghastly Chinese quality, but what else is available these days? Being of a technical bent, I disassembled it, found the malfunctioning temperature sensor jammed in the boiler element, carefully removed it from the element, and secreted it in a safe place inside the cabinet where it would stay at room temperature. Worked like a charm.

BUT I would advise you NOT to do this! First, because unless you know what you're doing and take the usual precautions, you may kill yourself, and serves you right. Second, because it removes an important safeguard. I discovered this when my dear and highly intelligent but decidedly non-technical wife used the steamer for the first time just after I'd cleaned out the water reservoir. She filled the water overflow tray but left the steamer reservoir empty, and a minute or two later called me urgently to the kitchen where the West Bend steamer was putting on an entertaining smoke show.

Well, I still have a nicely leached set of relatively BPA-less steamer baskets, and am ready to re-order another unit. When the seemingly inevitable low quality Chinese workmanship rears its head yet again, as it almost always does with almost all products available in the United States, I will move the heat sensor again and trust that the memory of the last mishap will minimize the importance of a safety back-up.

EDIT: I received the replacement and it lasted barely two weeks. Then it died without warning - completely, absolutely dead with no sign of life. I returned it as defective, and have gone back to using a stainless steel steamer on a stovetop. There is something wonderfully low-tech and RELIABLE about this method. Yes, you have to pay attention to a timer, but what's not to like about being free of the ghastly quality of can't-give-a-damn appliances?

I hope you have better luck than I did! My advice, gentle reader, FWIW, is to go low-tech and buy a stainless steel steamer and a good kitchen timer. Or you may find yourself doing so anyway after spending $79 on this shoddily-made device.

I just got this steamer after going thru 3 of them in the past 13 yrs and I really like this one. Solid and sturdy plastic, great delay timer. Steamed our artichokes beautifully in 35 minutes. The only problem was that I had put too much water in and it wouldn't work...so I dumped out some of the water, turned it back on and it still shut off. Had to take it all apart, pour out the water then let it cool down for sev. minutes.... after all that, it worked!!! So, don't ever overfill with water!

Easy to set up, operate and clean. Heats up fast, and there's no need to thaw frozen vegetables beforehand. Read the instruction manual thoroughly before using. Do NOT overfill with water. Use the minimum recommended time when steaming a particular item for the first time.

Received this as a gift for Xmas 2010. Worked on 1/21/11, as of 1/22/11 I get the H2O beep as soon as the water heats up; which has to be a sensor issue of some sort. Cannot get help from manufacturer.

When it did work, I wasn't impressed by the two extra tiers - used it as a single unit for most of its limited life.

I have been using this steamer a minimum of 3 times a week since I received it and it's done a wonderful job! I have been very pleased with all aspects of it up to this point. Great investment!:)

This product is absolutely amazing. I was skeptical when I first ordered it..even though it had great reviews. Well, I have to say that this is the best appliance I own AND one of the greatest inventions of the 20th century!!!! It is easy to use, easy to clean... just put everything in and voila! I barely use pots anymore!!! I use it 3-4 times a week, every week. Even though the manual warns to be careful cleaning the plastic pieces in the dishwasher, I put mine on the top rack. Definitely the best buy, especially if you have kids and want to make sure that they eat nutritious foods.