We believe a tamper or wooden dowel is really needed at times when through an error or incorrect operation the ingredients get stuck. You can make yourself one very easily. Please be aware, when using this design, make sure the lid is in place. When you make yourself this tamper stick make sure it has the right length from the cross to the bottom to reach as far as possible into the container during the blending process while not touching the blade. Otherwise, if the wooden dowel touches the blade during the blending process you might end up with some wood in your smoothie. Well, that may not be so good, but plastic from a Vita Mix tamper, for example is not better either. And you won't believe me, when I tell you that hear stories about blended up tampers all the time.

About the Total Blender

The 3 hp blender made by Blendtec is a strong blender. Recent reviews however have shown that 3 hp Vitamix Vita Prep 3 / 1005 blows the 3 hp Blendtec HP3A and Total Blenders away in a power comparison. The Blendtec Total Blender costs about $ 100.00 less than the Vita Mix Prep 3. As you can imagine, in order to cut costs, the blender has to be fabricated also cheaper somewhere in some respect. The containers are made with thinner Polycarbonate. A Vita Mix container weighs about 50% more than a Blendtec container. I have found that a Blendtec container also scratches easier. The blade is not replacable. After the blade bearings have worn out the container becomes a throw-away item. Replacement cost of a Blendtec container, either for the HP3A or the Total Blender are about 1/2 the price of a Vita Mix Container. And in the Vita Mix container the blade assembly alone, when replacing it, costs as much as the total Blendtec container.

The Total Blender has 6 blending cycle programs on 6 keytouch buttons to choose from and they basically represent 14 different menu blending applications as you can see in the image on top of the page. Most consumers have a little hard time to figure out how to use these controls. They are great once you have learned your blending routine with the right amount of ingredients and then selecting the appropriate program. And if you don't want to use these 14 blending applications, then you can just fall back onto the good old up/down speed control on the top left side of the keypad. Blending ice works really well with the Pulse button, but you need to make sure you have a little water in it. Blending raspberry seeds or blackberry seeds is however little difficult as they tend to stick to the container wall. Using a spatula and scraping them back inside your smoothie sauce and repeating this process a few times will take care of any of these flakey raspberry seeds, trying to get away from you.

Blending soup with the rather gimmicky blending cycle provided appears to work well. The soup cycle times out after 90 seconds. 90 seconds however is not enough to heat up soup in this blender. It will take more likely the use of 3 to 4 of blending cycle repetitions (of the soup cycle), if you want your soup hot at about 140 degrees. And in my opinion, this defeats the raw-food consumption purpose anyway. Why making soup hotter than 110 degrees F when the nutrients begin to die off at that temperature? Some people like it hot, others like it warm... Please note the food handlers and your local Health Department regulations regarding the temperature of foods to be served to the public.

Now this does certainly not mean that the Blendtec blenders are bad. Quite to the contrary, they are great blenders for the money and the power that it can deliver. But the Vita Mix blenders are in my opinion sturdier, heavier duty, last longer, containers scratch less, and the robust blade assembly holds up longer as well. And as always, there always lots of variables subject to usage, frequency of usage, what ingredients, and how well you maintain it. And of course I am always happy to learn that I was wrong. Proof me wrong in a fair comparison test.

If you like electronic sophistication and want to save some money over a serious blender-enthusiast purchase of the Vita Mix Vita Prep 3, consider the Total Blender, or the HP3A with a 3  hp motor (and 13 amps and 1500 watts). The Total Blender is a fine choice for many consumers who are just starting out. Alternatively, the OMNI blender starting at $ 250.00 makes a great robust high speed high performance blender choice for those that are bound to a $ tight budget.

You can purchase the Total Blender at Costco for about $ 370 to $ 390 plus tax. Blendtec also sells it, however for little more. We do not sell this blender because we think the HP3A blender is better, newer, and has more advantages. The HP3A Blendtec blender comes with 25 blending cycle programs that can be selected from a drop-down menu. And the sales price is more flexiable. See more HP3A features!

Warranty