I’ve had this iron for over 3 years now, so I figured that was long enough to form a real opinion on it. I also want to say, I’m not being paid or endorsing Rowenta. I just wanted to give an honest opinion about the iron. Before this I had a cheap $10 iron from Big Lots, so this was a MAJOR upgrade!
I checked online and this retails on Amazon for $270 and JoAnn for $200. I luckily found mine brand new on Craigslist for $40! SCORE!! I met a sketchy couple in the K-Mart parking lot with my friend Ashley (from Sewn By Ashley). I was worried it wouldn’t work or something may be wrong with it, but once I got home I filled it up, started using it and it worked great!
That being said, I eventually did run into an issue. About a year in the basin started leaking. It wasn’t terrible but there was water on my cabinet and the steam wasn’t coming out full force anymore. I honestly was heartbroken because I knew I couldn’t spend $200 or more on a new one. I decided to call Rowenta and see if they would help. I called them and they asked for the serial number on the bottom of the unit. Luckily it was under warranty! They sent me a shipping label through email and I shipped the entire unit to them and then waited. Then I waited some more. And a little more. I checked and it had been a week since they received it, so I called again. They ended up transferring me to repair. I talked to a man and he said they were ordering a new part and it would be there in a couple days, so call in about 3 days. I called back 3 days later and got the same guy, he remembered me right away. From the sound of it he may have been the only guy working in that department, it sounded really small. He said the part didn’t fix the iron so they would just ship me out a brand new unit. Within a week I had myself a new unit! I can’t remember what was wrong with it, but it was a rare issue that typically never happens. Either way, their customer service and repair is AWESOME!
So onto the iron. I didn’t let the issue above deter me from ever recommending the iron. I really think that was a fluke because I searched Google and didn’t see others with that issue. I can say this thing is fantastic – I give it 4.5 stars out of 5. The only reason that I don’t give it 5/5 is because it spits… yes, like a camel, you have to beware of the spitting! When you push the trigger to use the steam you need to point it away from your garment for a good 15-30 seconds until it is done spitting, if you don’t you will end up with something like this:
Overall the spitting issue isn’t terrible if you just remember to spray it to the side at the beginning of each use. This is a known issue and seems to be common. I’m assuming it has something to do with the build up of the steam and water in the compartment, but honestly I don’t know for sure.
Let’s move onto the pros. I love how the basin can hold up to 33oz of water. I hate having to refill the damn thing over and over. I would say I fill this up about once a week when I’m sewing a lot. It comes with a little funnel that lets you know when to stop filling it, so you don’t need to worry about overfilling. Sometimes the threads on the lid are hard to line up when you put the knob back on. I will warn you though, if you run out while the iron is hot and try to unscrew the lid, there is massive pressure in the basin so wait until the entire unit has cooled down! I tried to do that once and the hiss scared me to death!
Here are some of the specs (per Amazon):
– Provides up to 90 minutes of continuous steam.
– Stainless-steel soleplate glides over fabrics.
– Pressurized steam quickly penetrates fabric, smoothing out tough wrinkles and pressing in sharp creases.
– Vertical steam feature for hanging garments, draperies, slipcovers, and bed skirts.
– Handle trigger delivers steam on demand, without waste.
– Steam output is adjustable according to fabric weight.
– Allow iron to cool before refilling with water.
– Fits easily on most ironing boards; can also be placed on the floor.
– Measures: 12 3/4″ x 10″ x 11″ high overall.
– 6′ steam cord.
– 12′ power cord.
– 33-oz. water tank.
– 1750W
The steam that comes from this is powerful and will even get your toughest wrinkles out. You can use it vertically too, which is helpful for steaming hanging garments.
Above are the different settings that are on the actual iron. You can see it has the typical settings and also settings for the steam. Below shows the settings on the base, which are more steam settings.
Another thing I love about this is that there is no auto shutoff. While some people may hate this, I love it. When I’m sewing all day it helps that I don’t want to wait for it to heat up. Granted, the “heat up” only takes about 3 minutes – but I don’t have a lot of patience. I’m also forgetful, so I plug this into the outlet that is controlled by the wall switch. I always have to turn the light on/off with that switch when I’m down here, so it helps verify that the iron is off.
Overall, this is a great iron and I highly recommend it. I would suggest to find it on sale at JoAnn or maybe you can use a coupon there? Rowenta’s customer service is great and they honor their warranties – which I feel is rare anymore. I didn’t even have to show a receipt or anything!
In the past I have had three different Rowenta irons and each of them malfunctioned within a few weeks. I had gotten each of them at Bed Bath and Beyond and each time I returned one, they had me select another. After the third time I decided to research the “best iron out there” and chose a wonderful Black and Decker Digital Advantage that I’ve had for three years and it’s a work horse. It doesn’t spit, heats quickly, has auto off, has vertical steam and can be used either dry or with various levels of steam.