by Sixstrings » Sun 17 Jan 2010, 12:41:51
Ah, I got stuck watching the "Amish Heat Surge" infomercial about a supposedly "miracle Amish invetnion," painstakingly handcrafted by the Amish.
This thing has been selling for a couple years now, so I finally googled up some info, and yup it's a scam:
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'O')riginally, my skepticism was aroused by the portrayal of the Amish in the ads. Most Amish men where I live have long hair that looks like it was hacked off with sheep shears; the men in the Heat Surge ad have short, neatly cut hair. Most Amish don't use buttons; the men in the Heat Surge ad appear to wear button down shirts.
Eventually, I realized that whether the Amish in the ad were real or not was a peripheral issue. Apparently
the Amish do make the mantles for these heaters, although the heaters themselves are made in China. Most likely, non-Amish people are used to portray the Amish in the ads.
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1410293/should_you_buy_the_amish_made_heat.htmlThe infomercial for this thing is a real hoot.. the Amish guy giving the sales pitch has a standard, slick advertising accent. Every Amish person I've met, and I mean every single one, has a very distinct accent. They're also not the kind of people who can give a slick advertising pitch.
So, this Amish "miracle heater" is just a sham on so many levels. They're paying some Amish guys to make the wood mantles, but never mention the heaters themselves (the part that really matters) are made in China.
From their website:
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', '[')img]http://www.heatsurge.com/images/craft.jpg[/img]
The Amish are known for their kindness and humble pride in a job well done. They separate themselves from mainstream society and are recognized for their plain clothing, avoidance of modern conveniences, and superior craftsmanship.
Real Amish Craftsmanship goes into each mantle The Amish take extraordinary pride in their innate craftsmanship ability.
http://www.heatsurge.com/craftsmanship.cfm Ok, so the Amish angle is a sham. But is the heater any good?
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'I')f you simply need a portable heater and don't care what it looks like, then you should forget the Heat Surge. According to the Heat Surge website, a Heat Surge fireplace will cost you between $298 and $348 to purchase, not including shipping. You can buy a portable 120 volt, 1500 watt electric heater at Wal-Mart or any big box store for under $20. And here is the important point that I am capitalizing for emphasis,
.