EZ-DUZ-IT can opener with a black coating on the handles. The packaging is a piece of cardboard in red, white, and blue and says "The Best Can Opener Made? and "Save Jobs - Buy U.S.A." Photo by Mary Warner, August 13, 2023.
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Can Opener #642

by Mary

I have a gripe. My husband shares it with me. Might you have the same gripe?

Why can’t a can opener last more than a few months?

Over our 3-decades plus marriage, we have gone through countless can openers.

We’ve tried cheap ones.

We’ve tried expensive ones.

All seem to fail by not properly cutting the top off a can or by falling apart.

Our latest can opener was from Ikea. Compared to the previous can opener, it cut very cleanly. However, after a month or so of very occasional use, the crank snapped off.

Mid-way through opening a can, of course. With one can still to open.

Argh!

Metal can opener with handle broken off. A small piece of gray plastic that held the crank on is between the crank and the rest of the opener. Photo by Mary Warner, August 10, 2023.
Metal can opener with handle broken off. A small piece of gray plastic that held the crank on is between the crank and the rest of the opener. Photo by Mary Warner, August 10, 2023.

Rather than go to a store and pick a new can opener in the hopes it would survive longer than a year, I went online to check for can openers based on durability reviews.

I purchased the EZ-DUZ-IT Can Opener. The packaging, which is a piece of cardboard in red, white, and blue, touts that it is made in the U.S.A.

EZ-DUZ-IT can opener with a black coating on the handles. The packaging is a piece of cardboard in red, white, and blue and says "The Best Can Opener Made? and "Save Jobs - Buy U.S.A." Photo by Mary Warner, August 13, 2023.

EZ-DUZ-IT can opener with a black coating on the handles. The packaging is a piece of cardboard in red, white, and blue and says “The Best Can Opener Made? and “Save Jobs – Buy U.S.A.” Photo by Mary Warner, August 13, 2023.Interestingly, the can opener was attached to the cardboard without the use of twist ties or other fasteners, which I appreciated for the sustainability of using fewer packaging materials.

 

The opener cuts cans cleanly thus far.

Now, we’ll see if the opener itself will last longer than a Minnesota season.

2 thoughts on “Can Opener #642”

  1. You sure have been very unlucky with can openers! I’ve had the same one for 23 years, although I don’t use it much as cans often have ring pulls now.
    Time will tell if USA-made will be your last one.

  2. 23 years is amazing, Liz! I hope our new one lasts that long.

    I love cans with ring pulls, partially because of our bad luck with can openers. 🙂

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