Keurig Questions

[smokeyblue]

My mom's b-day is coming up and she has repeatedly expressed that she wants a Keurig. I have the Rivo espresso maker and I'm fairly satisfied with it, but I have no experience with the coffee brewers. A lot of reviews for the brewers are very negative and there are many reports that they fail within a year.

My parents winter in Florida and stay in their 5th wheel so space is tight. The personal brewer would be the best size, but I'm leaning towards the K45 Elite because of the reservoir. The reviews I've read for the 2.0 machines have been pretty bad, and it seems like you can't use the fillable K-cups in these machines but the little carafe is nice, especially since my parents probably both drink 2 cups each in the morning. However, they can be a bit picky about their coffee and I don't know if they will like any of the carafe k-cups that are out.

To get to the point. What are your opinions on the Keurig machines? Have you had good luck with them?

 

[SandyinMonterey]

I have the personal brewer, I'm the only coffee drinker in the house. I got mine after visiting my mother in law. We've both have had ours for some time now and happy with it. I got one (personal brewer) for my sister for Christmas last year. She's very pleased. Right now QVC's TSV (Today's Special Value) is the Keurig 2.0. Comes with extras like coffee and filters. You can see it on TV or check it out on your computer. They have videos to go along with it. The TSV ends today, 9 p.m. PST and 12 EST.

 

[North of Mouse]

My mom's b-day is coming up and she has repeatedly expressed that she wants a Keurig. I have the Rivo espresso maker and I'm fairly satisfied with it, but I have no experience with the coffee brewers. A lot of reviews for the brewers are very negative and there are many reports that they fail within a year.

My parents winter in Florida and stay in their 5th wheel so space is tight. The personal brewer would be the best size, but I'm leaning towards the K45 Elite because of the reservoir. The reviews I've read for the 2.0 machines have been pretty bad, and it seems like you can't use the fillable K-cups in these machines but the little carafe is nice, especially since my parents probably both drink 2 cups each in the morning. However, they can be a bit picky about their coffee and I don't know if they will like any of the carafe k-cups that are out.

To get to the point. What are your opinions on the Keurig machines? Have you had good luck with them?

I've had the personal size Keurig for over two years now and have had no issues - I love it, use it at least twice a day. The main thing is to remove the K-cup each time and not let the dried coffee stay on the 'needle'. That's what I was told and it sure works for me!!

Yes, you 'can' use the fillable cup in the one I have - have used it when I just want to try another ground coffee which my DH uses in his coffee pot.

 

[smokeyblue]

I've had the personal size Keurig for over two years now and have had no issues - I love it, use it at least twice a day. The main thing is to remove the K-cup each time and not let the dried coffee stay on the 'needle'. That's what I was told and it sure works for me!!

Yes, you 'can' use the fillable cup in the one I have - have used it when I just want to try another ground coffee which my DH uses in his coffee pot.

EEEEK! I never get rid of the Rivo cup in my espresso machine right away. In fact I've left them there for weeks since the machine is more of a novelty to me. Never thought about there being issues with that, but it makes sense. I'm going to make sure to dispose of them right away for now on! Good tip.

 

[wdw4rfam]

I've had my Keurig for 3 years with no issues' and we make 6-8 cups in it per day. We have the refillable cup too, but don't use it much. I just bought the new 2.0 and I will warn you, you can not use the refillable cup or off brand cheaper cups in the new brewers. But I did stumble across a way around that on you tube

 

[Muushka]

Does your mom realize how expensive these K-cups are?

I have a Keurig because I'm the only one who drinks it and I may have up to 2 cups a day.
But if I had a drinking partner , I would just make a small pot.

Just wanted to throw that out there.

 

[msmama]

I think Keurigs are best for people who drink one cup of coffee, most mornings.

If your parents both drink 4 cups in the morning, that's either 4 K-cups (the kind I buy is a a 24 pack on Amazon for about $16 and it lasts me a month). 24 K-cups would last them 6 days!! That'd be $64 a month on K-cups!!

For that much coffee I think they'd be better off with a small pot.

That said, I've had mine for 2 years and I love it, but I'm a cup a day drinker (if that).

 

[StitchesGr8Fan]

I think Keurigs are best for people who drink one cup of coffee, most mornings. If your parents both drink 4 cups in the morning, that's either 4 K-cups (the kind I buy is a a 24 pack on Amazon for about $16 and it lasts me a month). 24 K-cups would last them 6 days!! That'd be $64 a month on K-cups!! For that much coffee I think they'd be better off with a small pot. That said, I've had mine for 2 years and I love it, but I'm a cup a day drinker (if that).

The new keurigs have a carafe setting and k-cups so you can make a pot to share. You can also get 2 cups of coffe from 1 k-cup.

 

[North of Mouse]

Does your mom realize how expensive these K-cups are?

I have a Keurig because I'm the only one who drinks it and I may have up to 2 cups a day.
But if I had a drinking partner , I would just make a small pot.

Just wanted to throw that out there.

I 'never' pay anywhere near full price for my K-cups. We have great sales coupled with coupons plus 'online store' coupons - always keep a stock of boxes for between sales!!! I'm very frugal - could never pay the full price - they're 'very' expensive!

Always shared coffee pots with DH until he started wanting his stronger and stronger - finally gave up and use my own pot.

 

[HizMinnie2015]

I have a Keurig B60 that I bought in October 2011. It is still works and works well. I change the water filter every 6 months and clean it at that time as well. I brew one 16 oz cup of coffee daily to take to work and on the weekends my fiance and I brew 2-3 cups. I love the convenience of the plastic cups. I don't have time to measure out coffee, and clean up a wet paper filter.

I have looked extensively at the Keurig 2.0. You can use regular K-cups in it for a single cup of coffee. However to brew the carafe, which is 4 cups, it does take a different K-cup. One that is bigger and meant to make 4 cups of coffee.

I have asked Santa for one of these and will be giving my daughter my Keurig as she drinks coffee as much as I do lol.

 

[disneyfab]

I think Keurigs are best for people who drink one cup of coffee, most mornings.

I agree with this. I may drink a cup of coffee 2-3 days a week at most. I am the only coffee drinker in my house, so I find the K45 Elite works fairly well for me. I stock up on a few K-cup packs when they are on sale and they last quite a while.

Right now, publix has a buy 2 get 1 free in-store coupon and I have a printable $3 off two and $1.50 off 1 coupon to stack with this offer.

 

[ksh1111]

I used to demo Keurig machines, so have a bit of experience with them.

If space is an issue, the Mini (personal) is great. It also.comes in a lot of fun colors. It also.doesn't have a water reservoir which can be a drawback for.many. Kohl s has great prices on them when on sale.

Costco has the best prices on K cups, but variety is limited.

 

[smokeyblue]

Lots of good info, thanks. I think I agree that for the amount of coffee they drink this is probably more of a novelty than a convenience or money saving appliance. It seems that most of you like your machines and have had good luck with their operation. I think people more likely to write a review if theirs fails which may explain the bad reviews on the Keurig site and Kohls.

I think I got a pretty good deal. I got the K45 elite model and a 48 cup assortment box $100 and change at Kohl's and I'm getting $20 Kohl's cash and $5 of rewards back, plus went through skymiles shopping and picked up a few miles!

 

[scard192]

I 'never' pay anywhere near full price for my K-cups. We have great sales coupled with coupons plus 'online store' coupons - always keep a stock of boxes for between sales!!! I'm very frugal - could never pay the full price - they're 'very' expensive!

I have not paid full price either and have had my Keurig for almost 2 years.

Don't forget if you buy a new one to register it at the Keurig website and you will get an e-coupon for buy 2 get 2 boxes of kcups. Or at least they used to. I learned about this deal on this board.

 

[Calliaz]

I love my Keurig. I'm the only daily coffee drinker. DH has one once in a while and DS drinks tea sometimes. Mine has "failed" from time to time. Some people might throw theirs away at that point; however, it has always been easily fixed after a quick Google search. I have had to take a paper clip to the metal pokey thing because it got clogged with coffee grounds. I also had to turn it upside down to "burp" it (see youtube). As long as you are a little handy, it is easy to get it running again.

 

[Eighty8Keys]

I love my Keurig. I have one at home and we have one in our office at work. We've had no trouble with either of them, other than cleaning the needle with a paper clip and running vinegar through them periodically. The one at work gets used at least 10-12 times a day, the one at home about 2-4 times.

I see Costco's Black Friday ad has the 2.0 model for $25 off the regular $149.99 price so I plan to upgrade mine at home because I like the option of brewing a carafe. It also has a filter, which my current model doesn't have. By not having to buy bottled water, the 2.0 will pay for itself in less than a year.

 

[North of Mouse]

I have not paid full price either and have had my Keurig for almost 2 years.

Don't forget if you buy a new one to register it at the Keurig website and you will get an e-coupon for buy 2 get 2 boxes of kcups. Or at least they used to. I learned about this deal on this board.

Yep, we must think alike!! I also heard about the registering on here and the B2G2 which I did. Being a southern girl I almost exclusively (now anyway) use Community Coffee K-cups (dark roast) seldom use flavored. I do enjoy the Natural Cider ones in the winter though!! Love my little 'red' Mini!!

Eighty8Keys, do you really use bottled water in your coffee maker? Wow, that would make it expensive! We have our own well water, so has no bad taste or odor - guess I didn't think about the chlorine aspect.

 

[Muushka]

I 'never' pay anywhere near full price for my K-cups. We have great sales coupled with coupons plus 'online store' coupons - always keep a stock of boxes for between sales!!! I'm very frugal - could never pay the full price - they're 'very' expensive!

Always shared coffee pots with DH until he started wanting his stronger and stronger - finally gave up and use my own pot.

Oh my gosh. If I had to pay full price for them there would have to be someone there to administrate CPR on me!

But not everyone is like us. Some people actually go to the store and ...gasp.. just buy something off the shelf and not wait for a sale!

 

[Eighty8Keys]

Eighty8Keys, do you really use bottled water in your coffee maker? Wow, that would make it expensive! We have our own well water, so has no bad taste or odor - guess I didn't think about the chlorine aspect.

We started using bottled water after we'd had the Keurig for about a year. Even though our water tastes fine, we have old plumbing and could see what looked like rust build-up on the screen inside the reservoir. After a good cleaning we started using the bottled water to try to prolong the life of the machine. We go through 2-3 gallons a week. I just absorbed it into my grocery expenses, so I didn't really give it much thought until I started to add up what we spend in a year and it was an eye opener.

 

[tinkerone]

another factor is how strong you like it. dh uses the same pod two to three times. myself, I drink tea in the k-cups and for the first use I do 4 oz brewed and 8 oz of hot water and work from there. its way to strong for me so one pod lasts me all day.

dh also makes use of the cup you can refill yourself (not sure what its called) so he will switch up the pods with his own brand putting in just the amount of grounds he prefers.

we also have found Costco to be the best place to purchase k-cups. they will sometimes have a $5 off coupon. they offer an assortment pack around xmas. recently I purchased 3 boxes of mixed teas for $9.99 at Costco, it was a clearance sale. awesome buy.