HomeRight Steam Machine other appliances

The reports, as CPSC published them

1. No one hurt

   Made Nov 17, 2014 · , sent to the company Nov 26, 2014 · , published by CPSC Dec 11, 2014

   The product, in the report: This is a small blue steam cleaner, used for steam cleaning floors and steaming off wallpaper. It is on wheels and has a variety of attachments for steaming various surfaces

   On Sunday, November 2nd, I was using the Steam Machine to peel wallpaper. I had used it in this room during this past week on five days - each time about 45 minutes, without concern. This is the third room I had used it in since purchasing it at the end of last year, without concern. I had used it earlier in the day, for about 45 minutes, taking a break for about 1.5 hours. I had been using it for about 20 minutes, when I suddenly smelled a plastic/electric burning smell. I immediately turned it off, then unplugged it. Between turning it off & unplugging it, my sister called. After unplugging it, I told her to hang on so I could look at what just happened. When I turned the machine over, the bottom was clearly melted, still quite warm, concave, with one whole area melted completely through. In this area, it looked like there was what appeared to be a battery (although I know that’s not what was in there). I peeled away the sticker to find that the brown spot on the sticker was a scorch mark. You could see where the Machine had been resting on a towel as there were “towel” impressions in the melted plastic. As this was a Sunday & the Customer Service not available, I called at 9:33 a.m. on Monday, the 3rd. I spoke with a {REDACTED] (name confirmed on Tuesday, the 4th), to report the hazardous event & that I wanted a refund. She said they usually just replace it & I told her I would not be interested in that option. I added that it should not be me paying for the postage & registered mail to get back a defective product that they should be concerned about. I said “this cannot be the first time this has occurred?” & she replied, “there have been other times the heating unit overheats.” She said she could not make the determination re: refund or replacement, asked me if I had used it to steam floors or just take off wallpaper, if I had an invoice, receipt or packing slip. I told her I did have the [REDACTED] charge info. from when the online Home Depot purchase of it. She said she would need to ask “upper management” re: next steps & would call me back on Tuesday. She did call back on Tuesday to inform me that “upper management” okayed for a [REDACTED]call tag to be issued, that I should box the Steamer/accessories up, along with the copy of the receipt for the item. When I asked if “upper management” had agreed to a refund, she informed me that the steamer would have to be inspected first before a refund could be issued. At that time, I informed her I had looked up on line how to report a safety hazard, that I was concerned that I had not read about any issues in the comments section when purchasing in from Home Depot (pertaining to the concerns she had spoken of yesterday) - if I had, I would not have purchased it. I re-interated my concerns & added, “what if the next user does not have an acute sense of smell? There will be a fire.” She said “upper management” was at a trade show & that when the return next Monday & the Machine has been checked by the technician, she would give me a call by next weekend, Friday the 14th. The Machine was packed up & [REDACTED] picked it up at 1929 on 11/6/14. On Wednesday, November 5th, she called to say that “upper management” had agreed to refund the purchase amount & a check would be cut right away. A letter & check was received from [REDACTED], Risk Management for HomeRight - was sent on 11/6. In it she states “I assure you that HomeRight is serious about the quality of our products. As a result, we will be sending your steam machine on to our Quality Department for inspection and resolution as soon as it is back in our possession.” I can make that letter available as well. Her direct number is [REDACTED].

   Model

   Model #C800880 M

   Serial number

   Sorry, did not keep these #’s

   Bought from

   Home Depot

   Bought

   Dec 28, 2013

   Where

   West Springfield, Massachusetts: Home/Apartment/Condominium

   Who was involved

   Age 65, Female

   The reporter’s relation to them

   Self

   As this report names them

   Brand HomeRight Steam Machine, made or sold by Diversified Dynamics Corporation dba HomeRight

   How badly, in CPSC’s words

   Incident, No Injury

CPSC’s disclaimer

Sources