The employees…. Sure we could focus on the raw specifics of this marvelous tool, but doing so, simply leads us right back to their inception, the employees. The Vita-mix® Corporation was founded on the sole belief that beauty extends from within.  A healthier exterior is a direct result of a healthier interior.  Since the company’s inception in 1921, the family-owned powerhouse has practiced the basic belief of actually believing in their employees and their consistent success proves it further.  It is the direct result of the Vita-mix® family, including its extending family of employees that their 90+ year history has blossomed into supplying the best blending equipment on the planet!

A Vita-mix® 5000/5200 is 20 1/2 inches tall, 7 1/4 inches wide, and 8 3/4 inches deep.  The unit weighs 11 lbs., and the Super 5000/5200 weighs 13 lbs., including the dry blade container.

The motor is an open frame brush universal with a 2 peak motor horsepower rating and a blade tip speed ranging from 11 mph to 240 mph. The US model is 120 volts, 60 Hz, 11.5 amps, and 1380 watts.  The Vita-mix® Corporation also offers the Vita-mix® in a 220 volt for international usage.

The Vita-mix® machine is built with a high efficiency radial cooling fan and has a built-in thermal protection system to prevent overload and burnout.  If you do indeed overload your machine, the good thing is that you did not ruin your machine.  The machine will need to cool down and will surely return to normal working status once properly cooled.  You can speed up the cooling process by blowing a hair dryer through the air intake hole which is at the center of the bottom of the machine, or you can easily take the motor base and place it in your freezer for about 5 to 10 minutes and that will expedite the cooling process.

A Vita-mix® comes with a unique variable speed control dial which enables the machine to perform 35 different kitchen tasks without having several different attachments.  Due to this unique feature, a Vita-mix® chops, whips, blends, freezes, cooks, stirs, purees, and so much more.

The Vita-mix® also comes standard with a patented 64 ounce polycarbonate container which allows you the ability to make a recipe that is as little as 4 ounces and as much as a 1/2 gallon.  The company also offers 32 and 48 ounce polycarbonate containers as well.

Also, the Vita-mix® comes with an extra long 6 foot, 3 prong safety cord with a special hideaway feature that keeps the unused cord safely stored under the motor base versus being an unsightly wad of cord resting on your counter top.

The Vita-mix® machine is built with a high efficiency radial cooling fan and has a built-in thermal protection system to prevent overload and burnout. If you do indeed overload your machine, the good thing is that you did not ruin your machine. The machine will need to cool down and will surely return to normal working status once properly cooled. You can speed up the cooling process by blowing a hair dryer through the air intake hole which is at the center of the bottom of the machine, or you can easily take the motor base and place it in your freezer for about 5 to 10 minutes and that will expedite the cooling process.

It is simply a matter of life and death. We all have heard "You are what you eat!"

Whole food juice is the combination of the juice and fiber from either fruits or vegetables prepared in the Vita-mix® machine.  Because the Vita-mix® 5000/5200 stainless steel blade tips travel at 240 mph on high speed, the tremendous force of these customized hammermill and cutting blades literally pulverizes the food down to the cellular level.  Therefore, all the vitamins, enzymes, and nutrition are fully intact and packed full flavor in the finished product.

Vita-mix® whole food juices include both the juice and pulp from your produce. The pulp contains valuable nutrition that is missing in extracted juice. With that being said, Vita-mix® whole food juices make it so much easier to achieve the FDA recommended 5 to 7 servings of fruits and vegetables we need daily for a healthy diet. And just like anything else in life, it is easy to do, you might just do it!

The Vita-mix® comes standard with what is called a "wet" blade and are ideal for processing "wet" foods, like juices, soups, nut butters, and frozen treats. The wet blades pull food through the blades during processing. On the other hand, the dry grains container has blades specially designed for grinding hard herbs, coffee, sugars, as well as whole grains and kneading bread dough. The dry blades push foods up and away, making it the better choice for dry grinding or kneading sticky dough.

When making really thick drinks in the Vita-mix®, a trick of the trade is to use the tamper while making the drink to help reduce air-pockets or frozen pockets, and better the flow of the contents in to the blades.  What happens often in a Vita-mix® is that because the blades homogenize the ice or frozen fruit so fast with the liquid and fruits that the machine might either create an air-pocket, or the bottom section of the container (bottom 3 cups) might be really thick and frozen and it will appear as if the machine does not look like it is doing much. But actually, it is doing exactly what it is designed to do.  During this process the machine is breaking down the food or ice to a perfect creamy state. If you do nothing at all, as the machine runs on high speed, the friction will gradually take over and thin out the drink.  As the bottom section starts to thin down the food will start to rotate on its own.  You will see 2 different colors in the drink as the machine vortexes the food.

When making soups or any thinner recipes (meaning minimal to no ice or frozen fruits) you will find that fruits and vegetables tend be naturally frothy. Therefore, if you are blending these ingredients on high, it is usually going to leave about a 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick foam layer on top. However, when making such recipes, when your recipe is complete turn your machine down to variable speed 1 and then turn the dial toward 2, 3, etc., until the layer of foam circulates down in to the funnel toward the blades. This process will allow most of the foam to dissipate in to the broth or juice. Lastly, simply lower the blade speed back down to a variable speed 1, and then serve.

A good rule of thumb on ratio's for juices, smoothie's and ice cream's are as follows:

JUICES 25% frozen / 75% not frozen = A 1 to 3 ratio.
SMOOTHIES 50% frozen / 50% not frozen = A 1 to 1 ratio.
ICE CREAMS 75% frozen / 25% not frozen = A 3 to 1 ratio.

An example would be an ice cream in which there would be 1 cup of liquid and roughly 3 cups of ice. Note: Frozen fruit is considered ice and can be used exclusively or in combination with ice or frozen fruit cubs (leftover juices or smoothies that were frozen in ice cube trays to avoid waste).

To clean the container, put two cups of hot tea kettle water, a squirt of dish soap and a peeled lemon in it, then run the machine on high speed for six minutes. This will make the water boiling hot. After all the soap suds in the container have liquefied, dump out the contents. Using a wet terrycloth towel, rub the container up and down with force and the cloth will pull out all the leftover buildup, returning it to a clear container. Note, this does not work for the mini container after it is used for composting since composting etches the interior.

Your Vita-mix® comes standard with a patented spill proof vented lid and cap system.  The upgraded 5200 lid is a huge improvement in this area.  However, if you currently have a 5000 model, it is a good idea to "season" the lid by simply rubbing a light layer of vegetable oil on the outermost part of the lower region of the lid. When looking down into the container you will see a little lip on the very top part of the container on both the left and right side.  Simply slide the bottom of the lid under one side, then apply a mild pressure on the opposite side, and you will hear the lid click right in to place.  If the lid is on correctly, you should be to pick the container up off of the motors base with the lid only.  To remove the lid, the easiest thing you can do is take the end of a butter knife and insert it just under the lid in the area where the spout is on the container.  Simply press in a downward motion and the lid will pop up in an upward motion.

Most people buy a Vita-mix® from a live demonstration because the recipes they try taste so awesome, all while being healthy.  But, once you get home and start making recipes from the book, they just do not seem to taste as good as what you tried when you saw the machine demonstrated.  As you look through the recipe books that come with your machine further, you can find good recipes, but nothing exactly like what you witnessed when you made your Vita-mix® purchase.  Therefore, that is exactly why our site was created.  With any level of membership you will receive unlimited access and downloads to actual demonstrator recipes as well as discounts to any additional products like the soy or spice used by Vita-mix® demonstrators.

We believe you have made an excellent investment in your health.  As we all know, Vita-mix® machines are not the cheapest things on the planet, but they are worth every dime.  If you truly want to get every dollar back on your investment and then some, then you need to be a member.  The Vita-mix® is awesome, but it is only as awesome as you are able to make it.  The recipes that we have are 100% guaranteed demonstrator recipes.

Some believe that frozen fruits are actually better because they are allowed to ripen fully on the bush and is immediately frozen, unlike fresh berries which are picked slightly prematurely and further ripen while in route and on the store shelf.  Fruits allowed to ripen in their natural state have been found to be more nutrient dense than those that ripen on the back of a truck.  However, if the berries are frozen from raw there should be little to no nutrient loss.  Also note that the anthocyanins, the potent cancer fighters in berries are unaffected by freezing.

Actually, the Vita-mix® blades are relatively dull from day one!  Therefore, there will never be a need to remove or sharpen the blades.  This is a popular question though.  More times than not your Vita-mix® is doing exactly what it was designed to do, and there is just a minor user error at hand.  Before you blame yourself though, lift the empty container off the base and take the part where the teeth are located (bottom of the blade assembly) and turn it with your fingers.  The blade assembly should turn smoothly with a very slight resistance.  If the blade is very difficult to turn or as you turn it you can feel notches or small bumps, then there is a chance that the bearings might be malfunctioning and you should contact Vita-mix® for further assistance.  (Their number is on the back of your machine!)  If you find the blade turns smoothly, then there is a high probability that your recipes are simply suffering from too much frozen and not enough liquid.  Remember, a good rule of thumb is that smoothies are 50% frozen ingredients and 50% non-frozen ingredients.  When you turn your machine on high and the ingredients are not pulling down towards the blade simply use the tamper to help reduce air-pockets or frozen pockets, and better the flow of the contents in to the blades. What happens often in a Vita-mix® is that because the blades homogenize the ice or frozen fruit so fast with the liquid that the machine might either create an air-pocket, or the bottom section of the container (bottom 3 cups) might be really thick and frozen and it will appear as if the machine does not look like it is doing much, or that that machine does not work as good as it did when it was new.  But actually, it is doing exactly what it is designed to do.  During this process the machine is breaking down the ice to a perfect creamy state. You will see 2 different colors in the frozen dessert as the machine vortex's the food.  Just knowing that all the major blending companies use Vita-mix® tells you that these machines can handle plenty of household usage!