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Posted by Don Klipstein on November 24, 2007, 9:11 pm
>
>Just wondering, because I'm having terrible luck with anything made in
>China. In most cases I have no choice, but to buy the junk that fails a
>month after the warranty.
>
>About a year ago, I got two small space heaters. Both made in China, but
>different brands. They lasted one winter with only occasional use.
>
>One failed completely - this is one from Target, made by Midea Fan Mfg. The
>one-shot thermal protector opened. Second was made by (rather marketed by)
>Holmes, but also made in China. The Holmes unit burned one of the heating
>elements and was only putting out low heat.
>
>I bought the Holmes, because the last heater I had from them lasted 15
>years. The difference seems to be where they are made. Even if China
>sourced products are sold at half the price, my cost over 15 years will be 5
>times.
>
>Both are very simple appliances. Can't the Chinese make anything that will
>even approach what was on the US market before?
I once got a Chinese hacksaw that was very well-made. It got stolen, so
I can't identify a "brand" now. I also see Chinese hacksaws that I would
call stool specimens - I had experience with one highly prone to popping
apart during use, along with the blade being prone to twisting badly
enough to make it very difficult (almost iompossible?) to cut straight.
As for Chinese compact fluorescent lamps:
Every spiral one I ever saw nationality of was made in China. Some are
made for GE, Philips and Sylvania, and those tend to be made reasonably
to outright well-made. (I am aware of a bad run that had some units
getting GE's name on them, but that was in 2001.) Philips even has
some impressive limited warranties for some of those.
On the other end are dollar store compact fluorescents. I have yet to
see one significantly outshine a better 40 watt incandescent, nor have I
yet to see one with a light output claim meet its claim, and I have seen
some with color badly described, some with rotten color rendering, and I
already had one give a scary failure (lots of smoke and a burning orange
glow in the base that did not stop until power was shut off), and I know
someone who had one die early with three loud pops and two of these pops
were almost bangs, and he had another die with a lot of smoke output.
- Don Klipstein (don@misty.com)
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