The Great 'Which gadgets were your biggest waste of cash?' Hunt

Carriannelouise

Sensibility wrote: »

Thanks for your help - much appreciated.

for de-scaler i use cheapo citric acid. i got 500g for £3 off ebay and used it in my steriliser, kettle, bottle warmer, washer, coffee machine, steam cleaner... well everything! it was a fab purchase. and has saved me a fortune.

my biggest money wastes were
panini press - fab when we actually use it the once a year or so but cost £30
PDA
dictaphone
deep fat fryer

My favorite purcheses are
all in one food mixer with blender attatchment
samsung galaxy tab 2 7inch - use it daily for internet, e reader, keeping my daughter occupied, sat nav, brilliant.
Tefal actifry - used quite often and saved me a fortune in oil for the deep fat fryer as i like to change it often.

Dexters_Indignation

bibbly wrote: »

Handheld steam cleaner
Battery operated vibrating brush (came free with a vibrating foot pad)
Vibrating foot pad!
Electric mop/floor cleaner thingy

Love
Ipad
Steam generator iron (couldn't do without it as I can iron a short sleeved shirt in 22 seconds!). Yes I'm sad and timed it!

Looking to get an electric can opener and this thread has convinced me

Really????

Use a lot of batteries?

sillygoose

My Hadron Collider, it cost £6.19 Billion, takes up all the garden and all its proved so far is things are made of tiny bits of something, and if you break up those tiny bits they are made up of even tinier bits of something... and if you break those bits up, they are made of even tinier bits of something and....

Steve059

The electric can opener I bought my Mum was great fun to watch it going around and it was never defeated by any tin.

OK, it takes 2 goes to get around big tins (eg. new potatoes) and sometimes needs a bit of help with very small tins (eg. pilchards), but we were most impressed.

Then I came home from work one day and found that she hadn't been able to have any lunch, because she hadn't been able to open the tin, because the batteries had run out. However, this was my fault, not the opener's: I should've foreseen this inevitable scanario.

So, you will also need either 2 spare AA batteries or a back-up hand-operated can opener.

Dexters_Indignation

sillygoose wrote: »

My Hadron Collider, it cost £6.19 Billion, takes up all the garden and all its proved so far is things are made of tiny bits of something, and if you break up those tiny bits they are made up of even tinier bits of something... and if you break those bits up, they are made of even tinier bits of something and....

This could have been done cheaper....

This is why we need MSE all you need is:

1. A cat.
2. A Box.
3. An Austrian (No not that one...)

IDProtected

Solarjunkie wrote: »

Yes, it's a cheerful red Spong that screws on to the edge of the table - the posh 2 bean version! Used every time I have fresh beans.

How fantastic! I thought they only came in blue. Can I come to your house and slice some beans please?!!

Solarjunkie

You're welcome to try it out if you bring a sack of fresh beans!
Apparently they come in green and orange as well as red, you could slice up a rainbow. Here's a red one
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Spong-Co-Vintage-retro-bean-slicer-No-633-/330891174071?ViewItem=&item=330891174071&nma=true&si=surwGSADAV3h3gdvtWOlwdsubcQ%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

MrsAverage

Most recent useless is a NoNo hair remover. it simply burns the hair, awful smell, and yet hubby bought it as a special present at £150. it only glides properly on straight skin such as legs and doesn't work on curves at all. Don't like to tell him I don't like it...

Best buys
1. cheap £15 slow cooker, even for 2 of us I cook double and freeze extra portions. use it for batch cooking onion marmalde, chutneys etc as well.
2. Ice cream maker - if you have freezer large enough to keep bowl frozen in, but I don't use expensive cream or custard based recipes, simple sorbets from home grown fruit or simplest fat free yoghurts just tipped in make tasty healthy cheap desserts.
3. Hand held runner bean slicer, only used in summer but slices home grown beans perfectly for freezing for rest of year.

heart_free

Candy floss maker - desperately needed one, used twice in about 9 years.
Electric boiled egg cooker - used constantly for 2 weeks until we got sick of boiled eggs, been out of the cupboard twice in the 2 years since
Thing to turn your bath into a buuble spa - very noisy and not very effective. Definitely not relaxing
Hair removal thing thats basically sand-paper on rubber backing - too scared to use!
3D TV - for that home cinema experience, or not

BEST
Slow cooker - put on in morning, go to work, come home to hot stew etc
Panini press - use at least twice a week
iPad - of course
Kindle - didn't fancy one, then got bought one as a present and now can't live without it

Lum

Is it just me, or do toasted sandwich makers go through a lifecycle something like this:

*Ooh, I've found the toasted sandwich maker, I love toasted sandwiches
*Spend half an hour scrubbing the damn thing free of solidified cheese and breadcrumbs
*Have toasted sandwiches every day
*Hmm, I should clean this
*You know, what, I don't like toasted sandwiches that much
*Puts it at the back of the cupboard
(a year passes)
*Ooh, I've found the toasted sandwich maker, I love toasted sandwiches