Gadgets that were a waste

January 27th, 2006 at 10:35 pm

I figured since I talked about gadgets which have made our life easier, I should talk about gadgets which were supposed to make life easier, but which are never used.

1) FoodSaver. DH insisted we get this. I knew it would be a wasted $150. We don't freeze that much that would go in those bags and who wants to drag the whole thing out for such a small amount?

2) Food Processor. This was an xmas gift. I did ask for it, though. I thought we'd use it to process veggies from the garden (grate zucchini for zucchini bread, etc), but it is rarely used. We do use it to make pesto, so it does at least get some use.

3) Dehydrator. DH insisted he would use this "lots". He brought home a big bag of jalapeno peppers and dried 2 batches and then let the rest of the peppers mold. He's never used it again.

4) Cuisanart Ice cream maker. We did make some ice cream with it early on, but found that it's actually kind of expensive to make good homemade icecream and is cheaper to buy the storebrand (which is really good).

5) Pampered chef ice shaver. Used only in product demonstrations. I'm holding onto it for now (we have the room) in hopes that my boys will get some use out of it as they get older (they're 5 & 7).

So, almost $300 spent (if not by me, by someone) on gadgets that aren't used and only take up space. Everyone of these gadgets was supposed to help save us money. And I'm sure that some people do save money using them, but so far it hasn't worked for us.

Posted in The Good Life | 15 Comments »

15 Responses to “Gadgets that were a waste”

PrincessPerky Says:
January 27th, 2006 at 11:58 pm 1138406291

I used to have a hard time with gadgets too, I kept the icecream maker (the kids love it, lots of use in the summer) but other than that THe only gadgets I have is my kitchenaid mixer with a slicer attatchemnt.
baselle Says:
January 28th, 2006 at 04:45 am 1138423551

Electric pepper grinder. Push a button, get a tiny amount of fine pepper. Yawn. DH loves it, but I love pepper! and my food will mold on the plate in the time it takes to give me the pepper that I want.
Anonymous Says:
January 29th, 2006 at 05:50 pm 1138557053

I got an ice cream maker for Christmas and have found the same thing re: the expense of homemade vs. the quality of store-bought. We're going to try making sorbets, which I'm hoping will be equally good, not as easy to find commercially and cheaper!
kashi Says:
January 30th, 2006 at 05:34 pm 1138642463

Send me your food processor! Just kidding. It's something you rarely use, but when you need it, it is awfully handy. Making coleslaw, pureeing chunky soup, whipping up some hummus...yeah, I wish I had a big one. I'll trade you that for my seldom-used quesadilla maker!
Sarah Says:
January 30th, 2006 at 05:51 pm 1138643519

I use my food processor all the time, and it actually does help save money when I buy the 5 pound block of cheese and then use the food processor to shred or slice it all up. We freeze most of it until we need it.

On the other hand... I have a pasta machine, a yogurt maker, and a sandwich griller that I never use. The dehydrator I use sometimes, enough to justify its sale price, anyway. I have a little George Foreman grill that I didn't use at all for about a year, but discovered that it's perfect for cooking up our veggie sausages, and now I use it every morning. I'm hoping I'll eventually have this experience with some of my other gadgets!
Meredith Says:
January 31st, 2006 at 01:49 pm 1138715367

Wow! I agree with the ice cream maker. I thought we could make our own sugar free ice cream for my diabetic, but just when we figured out the cost of all the ingredients, the low-carb craze hit the stores. Good thing we bought ours at a yard sale!
muse Says:
January 31st, 2006 at 07:16 pm 1138734987

I have a small food processor, keep it out and rarely use it, but it's helpful. If it was in a closet, I'd never use it. No mixer, I mix by hand when I bake.
Cathy Says:
February 1st, 2006 at 01:32 pm 1138800745

If I could marry my food processor, I would. I use it all the time.

I'm glad to hear about the FoodSaver though. I've always wondered if they were worth it.

I never 'got' George Forman grills, sandwinch makers, quesidilla makers, pizza makers, etc. What for? Can't you use a frying pan?

Also bread makers. I know people who think you can't make bread without one. You can, and it is much easier than you think.

Something that I don't use often is our toaster oven. A simple toaster would work as well, and take up less space.
kashi Says:
February 1st, 2006 at 04:53 pm 1138812780

I adore my bread maker. I would never make bread if not for that gadget. The quesadilla maker was a gift - I never would have bought it!
cercis Says:
February 1st, 2006 at 10:31 pm 1138833105

I know my inlaws get a lot of use from their breadmaker. I finally gave mine away. One thing I think they can be good for, though, is if you have a house with loose pets - I've never lost a pan of bread to a cat, but I've heard of it happening.
diana Says:
February 6th, 2006 at 06:20 pm 1139250020

We actually love our Foodsaver, but we put out a huge garden and my husband hunts and fishes so we freeze a lot. the George Foreman grill my mom gave us for Christmas was cool for about 5 minutes, found out the same as evyone else on the ice cream maker. Food processor is for shredding cheese(I do a lot at once) and slaw in the summer.
fowlerjenn Says:
February 6th, 2006 at 08:00 pm 1139256045

I use my foodsaver all the time, but not those little expensive bags. I got the canning jar attachment and now I use canning jars instead of tupperware in my fridge. The foodsaver has a permenant place on the counter now just for that.

The reason this is beneficial is because leftovers last 2X to 3X as long when they are sealed in a canning jar as when left in regular tupperware. Since unlike canning you can reuse the lids all you need is a onetime investment in some jars and lids and you can use them forever.

Since I started doing this a few years ago I throw out much less food from the fridge.
Mama Squirrel Says:
February 7th, 2006 at 01:16 pm 1139318218

Re the toaster oven: oh no, I love ours and use it all the time when I don't want to heat the big oven. I've baked EVERYTHING in it that would possibly fit. It's also really helpful when you've got things to bake at two different temps.
Kim C Says:
February 7th, 2006 at 01:28 pm 1139318914

One gadget I didn't really think I would use but ended up *loving* is my Pampered Chef food chopper - you know, the one you whack on top and it springs up and down? DH encouraged me to buy it and 2 years later I'm still thanking him!
It's fast and easy to pull out, use, and clean up afterward, and it's really versatile. I use it all the time for nuts, onions and garlic (just take 5 seconds to rinse right away and there's no lingering odor), cranberries, herbs, etc. It's great for small quantities but I often do reasonably large quantities (cooking for a family of 9) and it still saves time over pulling out a food processor.
cercis Says:
February 7th, 2006 at 10:36 pm 1139351810

I have that chopper but the plastic sleeve broke (at the top). It's still usable, but it's somewhat of a pain.

I use my toaster oven A LOT (or did before we moved, it's still packed right now). I agree, it's great for baking things without heating up the whole house. We have one with the convection feature and it gets things nice a crispy - so if we want to make fries for the kids, we can get them crispy instead of soggy.

We also use a roasting oven (like an electric skillet only deeper). It doesn't heat the whole house and we can put it outside if it's particularly hot in the house that day.

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Cercis' Journal

Living the Frugal Good Life

Gadgets that were a waste

15 Responses to “Gadgets that were a waste”

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