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Sansaire or STEBA V100 Professional ?

cocinaor

By cocinaor
in Kitchen Consumer

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cocinaor

cocinaor

Posted
Posted

Hello!

 

I know that I don't write a lot here. Well, this is the first time. :laugh:  But because I read you a lot, I plan to buy an immersion circulator.

 

We don't have a lot of choices here in Spain, people tends to cook in "the traditional way", and the available circulators are really expensive.

 

I'm trying to decide between Sansaire (220V version) and an unknown (at least for me) Steba V100 Professional, that I think it's german. I don't know if any of you have experience with it, if so, I would like to know if it's good.

 

The only thing that I don't like about Sansaire is its plastic case. I don't know if the plastic in contact with the water is really resistant. Any info on that? I plan to use it 1 or 2 times a week.

 

 

Can you help me?

Thank you, and greetings from Spain!

 

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pbear

pbear

Posted
Posted

The Steba looks like a nice little machine.  I assume it's more expensive, but if you can afford it, that's what I'd get.  In particular, it seems to me you'll have a much easier time getting support and repairs if needed.  And these are machines, after all.  They're not going to last forever without service.  That said, I wouldn't worry too much about the plastic housing of the Sansaire.  Most restaurants use plastic tubs for the water bath.  It's not difficult to find a plastic that will stand up to sous vide temps, so I assume Sansaire got that right.

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Martin Fisher

Martin Fisher

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Aside from the voltage the Steba V100 appears to be nearly identical to the VACMASTER® SV1.

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~Martin :)

I just don't want to look back and think "I could have eaten that."

Unsupervised, rebellious, radical agrarian experimenter, minimalist penny-pincher, and adventurous cook. Crotchety, cantankerous, terse curmudgeon, non-conformist, and contrarian who questions everything!

The best thing about a vegetable garden is all the meat you can hunt and trap out of it!

 

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Shalmanese

Shalmanese

Posted
Posted

The 220V Anova one is available now and the 220V Anova Precision will be available in Jan 2015 and they ship worldwide. Personally, there doesn't seem to be much that you get from going more expensive. Accuracy is pretty good at every level, you can heat up pretty pretty huge baths if you're willing to insulate and the controls are mostly the same. Noise is one issue and build quality can be better on more expensive units but the technology is dropping in price so quickly you're better off buying the cheapest one you can now and replacing it when it breaks.

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PS: I am a guy.

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cocinaor

cocinaor

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The Steba looks like a nice little machine.  I assume it's more expensive, but if you can afford it, that's what I'd get.  In particular, it seems to me you'll have a much easier time getting support and repairs if needed.  And these are machines, after all.  They're not going to last forever without service.  That said, I wouldn't worry too much about the plastic housing of the Sansaire.  Most restaurants use plastic tubs for the water bath.  It's not difficult to find a plastic that will stand up to sous vide temps, so I assume Sansaire got that right.

 

No, they have nearly the same price. The thing I like from Steba is its metal housing and the buttons, that silver ring from sansaire looks too fragile to me.

 

 

Aside from the voltage the Steba V100 appears to be nearly identical to the VACMASTER® SV1.

 

You're right! I'll check for reviews on that model. Had found it with the name "allpax sv2" in german forums, so I assume this is a Chinese model with a lot of different labels. 

 

The 220V Anova one is available now and the 220V Anova Precision will be available in Jan 2015 and they ship worldwide. Personally, there doesn't seem to be much that you get from going more expensive. Accuracy is pretty good at every level, you can heat up pretty pretty huge baths if you're willing to insulate and the controls are mostly the same. Noise is one issue and build quality can be better on more expensive units but the technology is dropping in price so quickly you're better off buying the cheapest one you can now and replacing it when it breaks.

 

I can't use Anova's web, I don't know why. I'll try again to see what happens.

 

I love my Sansaire... I'd suggest you'd not go wrong getting one for yourself.

 

What about the control ring? Does it work good? Looks too delicate to me.

 

 

 

Thank you all!!

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EnriqueB

EnriqueB

Posted
Posted

Hi cocinaor.

 

If you look in the threads you will see that Anova has a good reputation in this forum. Several friends in Spain also bought their first model and are quite happy with it. I have backed their kickstarter second model, as I find the moveable attachment makes it a very useful unit, and am waiting for it being delivered.

 

All sous-vide models from Steba can be found under other companies, so I also assume they are all branding the same machines made in China. For example, their water bath SV2 can be found under the following different brands (aspect and measures are exactly the same, but power varies...):

 

Steba SV2: http://www.steba.co.uk/themen/sousvide/251/

VonShef Premium: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VonShef-Premium-8L-Sous-Vide-Cooking-Water-Bath-Oven-Slow-Cooker-800W-/351097020789
Garhe Compact: http://www.envasadoravacio.com/Equipo-domestico-Sous-vide-Compact-de-garhe
 

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My blog - Dorar no sella los jugos

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cocinaor

cocinaor

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Hello EnriqueB,

 

I've seen Anova and now I can buy it (I had a browser problem), but I've some questions and maybe you can help me:

 

- As I can see, Anova is sent from USA. Had you any issue with Aduanas? Sansaire comes from UK ;)

- What is your opinion about the touch screen? It's very close to the water.

- Do you know if there is any store in Spain to look/touch it?

 

Now the choices are (in preference order)

 

1) Sansaire

2) Anova

3) Steba

 

If any of you can post your preference, I'll be happy to know it.

 

Un saludo!

 

 

 

Hi cocinaor.

 

If you look in the threads you will see that Anova has a good reputation in this forum. Several friends in Spain also bought their first model and are quite happy with it. I have backed their kickstarter second model, as I find the moveable attachment makes it a very useful unit, and am waiting for it being delivered.

 

All sous-vide models from Steba can be found under other companies, so I also assume they are all branding the same machines made in China. For example, their water bath SV2 can be found under the following different brands (aspect and measures are exactly the same, but power varies...):

 

Steba SV2: http://www.steba.co.uk/themen/sousvide/251/

VonShef Premium: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VonShef-Premium-8L-Sous-Vide-Cooking-Water-Bath-Oven-Slow-Cooker-800W-/351097020789
Garhe Compact: http://www.envasadoravacio.com/Equipo-domestico-Sous-vide-Compact-de-garhe
 

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EnriqueB

EnriqueB

Posted
Posted

ANOVA is sent from USA. My experience it that it will be stopped in the borders and you will have to pay 21% VAT taxes plus some fixed fees. With other kickstarter projects I did not have to pay, so I expect to save that also with Anova, but with regular online shopping yes it will be stopped. I thought the other "unexpensive" circulators like Sansaire and Nomiku could only be bought from US, but if there are UK shops selling them that implies a lower cost.

 

I don't have the unit so I don't have any opinion on the touch screen.

 

No, there's no place in Spain that I know of where you can try these.

My blog - Dorar no sella los jugos

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Keith Orr

Keith Orr

Posted
Posted

Count me as a very unhappy Sansaire customer. Several calls and emails over a period of two months have gone unanswered while trying to get it repaired or replaced.

 

The adjustment wheel works a gear and potentiometer on a circuit board. The assembly is pretty flimsy. My Sansaire was standing on end and got knocked over on the counter and it's kaput. 

 

A friend of mine has an Anova and it's design appears to be much sturdier. The new Anova has a bluetooth interface. I'm planning on buying an Anova.

 

I'm not impressed with the durability or the customer service from Sansaire!

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cocinaor

cocinaor

Posted
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OMG! Two user posts and two problems! Sorry Keith for your broken Sansaire.

Cdh, had you any problems for getting a new unit when you contacted the support team?

Sorry for my english, It's too early in the morning and I'm asleep :(

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cdh

cdh

Posted
Posted (edited)

No problems or delays with Sansaire for me at all.  When I wrote in to ask about whether there might be a loose connection causing the display flicker that I might reseat myself, they immediately offered me a replacement unit.  I held onto the unit for another month and a half and the flickering did not get worse, but did not go away, so then I did take them up on the replacement.  It arrived without incident.

Edited by cdh (log)

Christopher D. Holst aka "cdh"

Learn to brew beer with my eGCI course

Chris Holst, Attorney-at-Lunch

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cocinaor

cocinaor

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It's good to know that!

 

Are those heaters made by a manufacturer using the anova/sansaire engineering plans? Maybe because of that, they can only replace units and do not repair the defective one.

 

I'm really concerned about the technical support :(

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Keith Orr

Keith Orr

Posted
Posted

I contacted Sansaire vai their twitter account late last week and finally got a response. I was told that I could get a replacement unit for the one I have if I provided some information. I provided it promptly and am awaiting a response. I'll post updates as or if appropriate. At this point I'm still up in the air, but I have a glimmer of hope.

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cocinaor

cocinaor

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Good to know that.

 

I think I'm gonna do two things with this "water heater problem"

 

1) buy a Sansaire unit. I don't want generic products for this.

2) work in a unit manufactured in Spain, using resistant materials and simple electronics. I want a really hard unit, I don't care about LCD screens nor blutooth. Maybe it becomes in a serious commercial project.

 

I'm really frustrated by the fact that "unexpensive units" are not sold here. 

 

Still here reading your reviews and experience!!

Cheers!

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