Relaying this experience for a cleaner;

Allan St Denis (mrcarpetcare@netscape.net)

Hi Rob
I owned a Steamway powermatic. I had problems from the first job to day I shipped it off. I spent a lot on repairs and took a hit on the sale off it, but I never looked back when I sold it. If it is that much of a problem it might be something to consider.
I am adding a letter which I sent to someone a few yrs back who was thinking of buying one. Don't know if it will help you but it gives you an idea of what I had to go through
"This in reply to my powermatic 2100 . First off I still own it but no longer use it , because I could not tolerate the stress and aggrevation that I had with it . I used it for 3 1/2 yrs and finally bought a new machine in November. I am trying to sell it throught the dealer that sold me my machine. I feel bad for the next person that buys it . I wish I didn't have to do that. It was at the point where each days what will go wrong next. I had problems from the first job to the last day I had in going . All I can say is good riddance.On the first job after I cleaned I went to empty the water and the pipe after the dump valve was screwed up and water flooded my van. From there it just whent on and on I had 3 gauges go for the generator . I quit replacing them after the 3rd one whent . They had the wrong throttle cable ,would not maintain the proper rpm. Had a flow meter go. (I think that's is what 's called ). Whent through a few TB Woods (rubber gears that go between motor and blower) . Had to lift the motor foward each time to change them. Finally had a mechanic look at it and found the blower and motor were not at the proper high . Had starter problems. Could not figure out what it was . Had to give the motor a boost to get going. Somtimes it would work and other times not. That last several weeks till I isolated the problem . Something was grounding out in the starter. I had a leak on the motor that was never fixed properly even after being in several times . I just learned to live with it . The emergency shut off for the burner did not work properly. They made me by pass it.
I had to get the generator fixed 3 times . I used extension cord for mths at the time because I had a hard time getting someone to fix the generator . I had to change 3 transformers on the burner and several tips on the burner. At times when it was not running properly it would actually explode out the front of the machine from the buner exhaust . Flames came out 4 feet long and big clouds smoke. Thew metering system never work properly . Sometimes it did not work other times it would empty 5 gallon container in no time. I had several oil leaks on the high pressure pump. The small holding tank that the pump drew water from was rotting. At this point this all that comes to mind. It has been gone for 7 mths and I am trying to forget that I ever use it.
I can tell you of sevearla design feartures that I hated . The exhaust from the motor pointed down and would often burn the grass beside the van . The pressure control valve was way over in the center of the unit and you had reach in to change it . The pressures were preset on low medium and high and was a pain in the ass to adjust. The heat would often not work when trying to upholstery cleaning. It was imposible to adjust the rinse meter because the flow would be different from upholstery single or dual wand . It had no built in filter system for the dirty water tank. They have a pouch like a long sock but I never got one . They have a mix tank for you rinse. But it does not allow for changing rinses from job to to job . I pulled it off because it was a pain in the ass. I like to switch rinses from residential to commercial, depending on the job. Tank was akward to clean. Oil filer was on the side , hard to access depending on how you were set up. Burner was at the back as well as the battery , so if you had a problem you had to empty out the van. It took up a lot of space. It barely fit in the side door . I heard from someone post that it did not fit in the side of a ford van .
Basically I hated it . I can go on but I am tired of rehashing all this **** . It had one good thing . Lots of heat. But heat is not everything. My unit I have now is ten times the machine and the heat is almost as good with no headaches. I have Genesis56 and it kicks ass compared to the powermatic . Cost me alot more ,but it was woth it. If you look at the long term cost the differences is just pennies a day . All I can say before you buy look the machine over carefully , consider all the problems you can have with the burner . Look at the Genisis. It is a real powerhouse with no fuel oil to play with . Easy to work on Stainless tank ,52 hp motor for longer life. More Suction than you dreamed for dual wanding. I love it .
Any ways I have to go . If you need more info just write. Good luck with your decision.
Allan "

Allan


No I did not consider suing them .Even if I did, the time, effort and cost would probably be prohibitive.I live 250 North of Toronto Canada and suing a company over 2000 miles away in another country, seems like an impossible task. I'm just happy that I got rid of it.I just look forward and try and not think about the whole thing. It pissed me of for a long time. I always try to steer people away from buying them and even have had a few people write me back and say that I slandering Steamway. I have never said anything bad about them other than make people aware of all the problems I encountered with my unit. I can't understand what people see in that unit. It has a lot of heat, but beyond that it is an antiquated mechanical nightmare. My Genesis is a far superior unit. I am surprised to hear people say that would buy one if they had a dealer nearby. I have no one and I am no mechanic, yet this unit is easy to maintain and work on, even for me.
As for you, if you feel that you have grounds to sue after talking to lawyer , then you should. Having a new unit constantly giving you problems is aggravating, stressful and costly. It definitely should have been field tested before being sold. I think if you can show the lack of this , you probably would have case.
I am curious , I did not see you post anything about how things worked out at the factory . I am assuming it wasn't good. I was wondering what kind of problems you have had. What did they do for you when you went there.
Strange how service can be different from one company to next. I spoke to a guy a few mths ago who bought a Genesis from a dealer. It was supposed to be new, but had 100 or so hrs on it. He called Powerclean to see about having some problem items fixed on warranty. When Keith found out about this he took that unit back and gave him a new one.

Alan