I had a Shark before my Rowenta. I miss the Shark and I loved that it came with a long cord. I'm not as impressed with the Rowenta. It seems to leak water all the time although it does have good steam.

I have had my Rowenta for 14 years now and use it regularly without any problems at all.
I use the steam a lot but also sometimes use it dry with a spray bottle.
I love the heaviness of the iron and how well it sets seams.....Would I buy another Rowenta?
You bet I would:)

I had leaking with my first Rowents and found that itcouldn't handle my hard water. Mixing my water half and half with distilled water made it work much better-no leaking. I buy new ones with coupons at Joanns. Love the steam.

My newer Rowenta is terrible - leaks horribly - just not the same quality as the Rowenta I had for 10 years. I, too, bought a Shark and love it!

For those of you who have Reliable irons, which model do you own.

Trashed 2 Rowentas, both leaked terribly. I think the older ones made in Germany were of high quality and lasted. Not sure where the new ones are made, but they are not of high quality. imho.

I recently needed to buy a new iron, too - and I stood there in the store and read every operation sheet of all the models. It is amazing some of the auto turn-off times, and there was one where you needed to physically unplug from the wall and plug it back in again to restart. I ended up with a little Rival from Walmart and so far it is doing just fine. I, too, have a Rowenta that leaks like a sieve. Dry heat is okay except things seem to stick to it - very disappointed in that iron but can't get mad enough to throw it out!! I do a lot of piecing and running around and don't need an iron that shuts off in 5 mins and then wait 2 mins to reheat. So far, the little Rival is doing fine. :-)

Marysewfun

I have been using a cheap black and decker as long as I can remember, most likely longer than 20 years now. I guess with the features and benefits of the high-priced irons come more things that can go wrong. Good luck with your next one!

I"ve had my Rowenta for 17 years, and have NO problems, only if I over fill it does it spit a bit, my fault not the irons fault.
mine is made in Germany, as are my Pfaffs, and Gingher's and I really do love them!!!

I had one from Costco that was made in Germany and it bit the dust in about 8 months. However, I must say they took it back no questions asked and without a receipt. Love Costco! Hated that Rowenta!Sorry that was in reply to Neverenoughquilts comment about Rowentas made in German"

Thanks for posting this - I was just getting ready to ask for recommendations myself as 2 Rowentas in less than 2 years have gone belly-up for me. :thumbdown:

I'd be happy to trade you 2 Rowentas for your Eliso!! LOL!! ;)

I've had 2 Rowenta's and will never have another one. The first one lost heat and the second one started leaking after about 6 mos-this seems to be a common problem I've heard from many on sewing groups. I now have a Reliable which is great even though it is heavy--I've used cheaper irons and have been quite happy with those. I've used the Eliso at the quilt shop and they are nice--if I bought another iron I'd like one of those.

Sorry--I messed up on this post. Marlene C--Alaska

I have the Shark Professional. It was $40 at either Target or Walmart. Designed with steam in mind so it has a larger reservoir and the steam really shoots out if you want it to. I've had mine almost a year now and still going strong.... unlike my $100 Rowenta's I've bought in the past.

I also like the weight of the Shark too. Nice heavier weight (like the Rowenta) so I don't have to press down hard to get those pesky wrinkles out.

Sorry your Rowenta died. I have one I love but it started to loosing water. My Hubby bought me a Eliso 1600 for my B-day (it was on sale) but it had a rattle so I took it back. In April around the 12th the girl at my local JoAnnes will be having a sale on the Eliso 1800, I just picked up one of them I had a coupon and the young lady gave me a good price because of me having to return the other one. Still a high price for me but I have to remember it is a B-day gift from my hubby ;~) I have read when you are getting a new Iron make sure it is made in Germany, A lot of Irons are made in china and other places and the have a lot of the problems that all of us have been having.

My guild had an iron discussion not long ago. Seems half the members have had a leaky Rowenta. I bought one in Costco last year, and only use it occasionally, and it hasn't started leaking yet, but it seems I'm always filling it with water, no matter the steam setting. I have an old Sunbeam I got at Costco many years ago for $20, and it's still going strong. It's not as hot as the Rowenta, but does just fine unless I have really stubborn wrinkles in my fabric, then I pull out the Rowenta. I also have a Panasonic iron which is cordless and comes with a cover which turns the charger into a case, and that is really great for taking to sewing days. However, it doesn't get as hot as the Rowenta either, but I still like it a lot. The Panasonic cost around $70 on Amazon. Oliso's are nice and hot, but expensive and you have to remember not to tilt it up like a regular iron. A friend who brought one to a guild sewing day says hers is now acting up, and she thinks it's because others left it standing upright out of habit with others. The matriarch of the guild considers irons disposable, so she only buys inexpensive ones (like my Sunbeam). I think she may have something there. But be sure you unplug them all when away from your sewing room. A friend had one that was switched off but started smoking because it was still plugged in!

I'm using the same GE iron that I got 41 years ago as a shower gift. Yup, you read that right. This thing is nice and heavy, I've cleaned it maybe 6 times over the years with vinegar and it still steams just fine.

95% of the reviews of Rowenta's that I've read are bad. It's a mystery to me why anyone buys them anymore since they are known to leak.

I own the Velocity by Reliable. I love the steam. I love that you can bypass the shut off. I do not like where they put the control button. It's at the top of the handle. I constantly accidentally push the button when I'm ironing and when I come back to the iron, it's at the lowest setting. I wrote about this I think on this thread. I still have the box and am thinking about calling the company because I paid $129 and I am unhappy with where the controls are. I'm hoping they may trade me for a different Reliable. One gal that sells them said she had the same problem until she really worked on putting her hand lower on the handle. I've tried doing that, but have failed. I'm just hoping they are a good company and will help me out. I've had it for 9 months and after 2 weeks, put it away and then just recently started using it again, so it's like almost new. The steam it puts out is awesome!!! Nothing like it! It actually roars when you turn on the steam!

I too loved my Rowenta, till the day it leaked water out the back and ruined two blouses. Went to get another at Joanns, but the darling sales associate made a mistake. She told me I could use my 1/2 price coupon on the Eliso. Needless to say I am learning to love it. Does not have the as many holes and is not as heavy, but for $70 less, it'll do. Agnes

I guess I'm lucky. I've never had any problems with my Rowenta and I love it!

I don't know if my Rowenta is fully dead or not. The dial to set the temperature at lost its stopping point. So when you turn the dial around it keeps going around and around. The iron does come on, and sometimes real hot, sometimes not so hot. At the time it did this last, I unplugged it and put it aside to cool down. this is only Rowenta I've ever owned. Not a good impression, I've only had it about a year!

The old Sunbeam my DH bought for $1 at an auction, works wonderfully. I have it plugged into a power cord with a light bulb plugged into it as well. If the light bulb is on, so is the power strip. I haven't left an iron on since my DH gave me that help. This old iron doesn't do steam, but I don't use steam that often. With the power cord system, i don't have to worry about leaving it on unattended.

I had a Rowenta for 16 years. Great. So I bought another one. From the monute I pluggyed it in the water ran so I contacted where I bought it and they had me send it back and they sent me another one. Same story. I am frustrated. You'd think for that price they would make a better iron. So, now I have a cheapie and I'm not totally satisfied but can't afford another one.

I have a Rowenta and will never purchase another one. The first one I had steamed so much there was a puddle on the floor under the ironing board. I retured it and the store gave me another one. THe one I have now is almost 2 years old. It leaks and leaks. Every time you tip it to iron water pours out of the back end down my leg. About a tbsp at a time. It is awful. I can't put water in it any more it is so bad. I emailed Rowenta and they told me I was SOL. I am going to try taking it back to Bed Bath and Beyond. An iron that cost over $100 should last a lot longer. My old iron was a Black and Decker from a yard sale and it lasted 25 years.

I don't mean to be obnoxious here or hurt anyone's feelings, but I just don't understand why anyone still buys these expensive irons. They have to have the worst reputation of any home appliance I've ever heard. I just don't get it. I always read reviews before making purchases, especially for over $100.

I have two Rowentas. The first one is about 12 years old and still going strong.
My newer one,The Pro Master, that I bought for my sewing room is five months old and I truly
love it. The steam is great. I just can't say enough about it. I have heard some say they had
problems with the Rowenta but I recommend it highly.

I've had a Rowenta steam generator system for about 10 years - finally died. BooHoo. Bought a $29 one at WalMart and it's ok but Rowenta spoiled me for steam. The switch went out and I have a friend that may be able to fix it but I'll have to plug it in & out instead of turning it on/off. If he can't fix it - I'll have to get another. Only draw back is that it has a separate base to hold the water & you can't move it around like you can a regular iron.

I can't find it now, but I just read on "Allbrands" website that any home steam iron is designed for use a maximum of 20 hours per week and should be expected to last 3-4 years. Most of the time mine is on longer than that in a typical week for sure....hmmmmm.

Rowenta iron
 

I would contact rowenta especially with sparks for a replacement. Consumer products do not like hearing about sparks. If you think it was really bad contact consumer products safety which might create a recall so that someone doesn't get hurt

Christine,
When you clean the ion with vinigar do you fill it with just vinegar? If you mix what ratio?
Thanks
dawn227

FYI: Another soleplate iron cleaner
I bought a product from Joanns Notion wall a tube of iron cleaner. You put an amount on a clean cloth then run hot iron over it. Smelly but works great.
dawn227

Just a little correction on the vinegar....it is an acid. That's why it removes all the very basic "gunk". It's 5% full strength, but I would dilute it by half with water to clean your iron. (PS- taught chemistry!) If you don't believe me, just add some to bicarbonate of soda (Arm and Hammer) and watch the neat reaction!

My Rowenta just fell apart not long after I got it. I didn't drop it, but the front end just came apart and I couldn't get it to stay together. I bought a Black & Decker and haven't had a minutes trouble with it! Years ago I had a B & D that had a manual shut-off on the side of the iron. I haven't been able to find another iron with that feature, but I just plug it into an extension that has a lighted shut-off and that works OK for me.

Oh please Have you thought of replacing the cord? So much cheaper. Take it to a small appliance guy and he can replace the cord for next to nothing compared to buying a new iron.

Use straight vinegar, no water. If you've never cleaned out your iron before, you'll want to do this process 3 times, making sure you use water to rinse out the chunks that come loose, before starting the next process. This will not hurt your iron, coffee maker, humidifier, etc. It will give your iron a new life! I have a blog post with photos if you can't find the instructions I posted earlier.... http://quiltdasher.blogspot.com/

I have a used Sharks and love it, no spitting. You can get them at Wallmart.
just a happy customer.