electric blanket getting significantly weaker over short period of time (2023 Update)

Same here. My wife and I have used the dual control Sunbeams, and they do indeed get weaker over time. I'm kicking myself for not taking a resistanc e check of the wiring part when new and comparing to the old. The problem is that the new blanket uses a different connector than the prev gen, so sw apping the controller can't be used as a diagnosis tool.

Our Sunbeams normally lasted a few seasons getting weaker each year. Addin g a second comforter on top of the regular bedspread is a good way to trap heat.

This year we bought a dual control heated mattress pad instead of the blank et and I'm sure it'll suffer the same fate. I no longer put it on anything above 4 (out of 10) and never use the admittedly handy preheat feature bec ause it also runs the blanket or pad at 10 for half an hour before dropping to the preset temp. In any case, manually preheating at 4 and dropping it to L when I get in bed is enough to take the chill out of the sheets. I'm hoping that not using the automatic preheat and adding another comforter on top will extend the life. Time will tell I guess.

When this one craps out/gets too weak I'll do a post mortem, but I suspect it uses resistance wire which changes resistance over time. If the problem is that, then there's no fixing it.

DID YOU KNOW THAT SITRE MAGANA LIKES TO PLAY WITH HIS OWN SHIT?

This might be a good excuse to buy a kill-o-watt meter.

Also you could use a regular ohm or volt meter clipped to a hat pin -- well I guess it's hard to find a hat pin, but you couldl use a corsage pin == with a nice enlarged head and I think you could puncture the insulatio at various places along the route until you find a spot where it's not proportional. I don't this would cause any visible harm or any danger. (once you take out the pin, that is.) Then you could cut into the blanket and figure out what's going on. Or maybe, the litle devils is in the control box. Might be even easer to debug and disarm.

When I first started on electrical repairs, not counting the Lionel train, it was the family's '52 Hudson. The battery was dead every morning. All I had for test equipemnt was an AC cord, a socket, a 40 watt lighbulb, and an icepick. But it was enough.

Join the club. :( :) I've had 4 or 5 (yeah I'm a sucker for Sunbeam blankets) but don't want to be too critical of Sunbeam - they have replaced several under warranty and replaced one totally.

Thee typical symptoms are that they do tend to get weaker over time, but some die totally. The weakening may be related to the PTC (Positive Temperature Coefificnt) of resistance of the wire used as the heating element. It's self limiting so claimed to be safer since even scrunching up the blanket should not result in an excessive temperature rise. However, the change in resistance may not be totally reversible. I doubt using preheat makes a big difference. Since the power to the heater is pulse width modulated (around an 80 second cycle - yes, that long!), running at lower heat doesn't necessarily help either.

When they totally die, I assume it's a bad connection issue, possibly at the "module" - the wart attached to the connector, which has a couple of discrete components inside and nothing else.

And I do now record the current used when new. ;-)

Google "Sunbeam blanket problems" or something like. There's a lot out there.

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I haven't done any real testing Sam, but just spitballing I'd guess that th e more the Sunbeam is used, the faster it becomes inert. So, if run at low er temp settings, less heat/time will be supplied by the blanket and the lo nger it will last (?). I suspect it's decline is not linear, so keeping th e temp down by half may quadruple the life..

At least that's my theory and we'll see how this new Sunbeam mattress pad h olds up. We had two blankets before this heated pad (both Sunbeam) and bot h went *very* weak before being replaced. Neither showed any error code at the controller nor went completely cold, so neither suffered a broken wire anywhere. But even at level ten they barely got warm.

This new Sunbeam heated mattress pad we picked up last fall will be used no more than a max of 4 out of 10 (no preheat which does a level 10 for 30 mi n).

That's quite possible. All I was suggesting is that forgoing Preheat (which is my favorite mode!) may not do that much comparing it's 20 minutes with the rest of the 10 hours on period even if at the 4/10 setting.

Depending on size, the normal current when in the on part of the cycle is order of 0.5 and 1.5 A. However, since the current decreases as it heats, it's not really possible to provide exact values. But measuring and recording it when cold at the start of each season could be useful.

When first turned on, regardless of whether Preheat is selected, some of these (or all) turn on at a constant (though possibly not full) power for a minute or two before the PWB kicks in.

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We're preheating at 4 and turning down to L before turning off the TV. Ours will never be above 5 unless it starts going weak like the other ones we'v e had. There is a big difference in initial comfort if the pad or blanket i s preheated (even at a low temp) with a comforter over the top of the regul ar bedspread. For aesthetic reasons, my wife has a half comforter that cov ers the lower half of the bed, and there is a distinct difference in temp b etween the lower half and upper when first getting in. With a second comfo rter on top, you don't need to go above half for preheating if the blanket is still fairly new.

I bought an electric blanket several years ago that did the same thing. I'm not sure what brand it was. From what i have read online, this seems to be a common problem with most of all electric blankets, regardless who makes them.

I wont buy another electric blanket. I just adjusted the vents in the house so more heat comes to my bedroom, and bought a nice quilt.

It's not a matter of insufficient room heating; at -10F outside I can get m y upstairs to 85F if I was so inclined, plus there are an infinite number o f possibilities for space heating these days, including pseudo fireplaces w ith heat for those with older more drafty homes.

My second floor is about 1600 sq ft, and I like to keep the temp down at ni ght to save heating costs in the NE U.S. and the wife and I like sleeping i n a cool room.

The problem is that I don't like getting into a 62F bed when my feet are al ready cold from the day. An electric blanket or heated mattress pad allows a nice warm bed to get into without heating the entire second floor of my home. Lots of people like these things. Too bad they can't perfect them.

Just to update that I gave up on trying to find the right electric whatever that will work correctly and I am currently trying out down and down alternative comforters. This also seems to be an area needing study and it's not as simple as just picking out one without knowing what you need beforehand. However, I'm very close to a reasonably costing winner so my problems are almost solved.

I would believe that AFTER SIX YEARS his blanket is no longer a problem.

That, or another case of spontaneous combustion!

Surely that would have gotten a mention here...

John ;-#)#

As long as the thread has been resurrected, let me report that the new Sunbeam mattress pad we got when I posted in 2017 lasted three seasons when it wouldn't be warm enough even at 10.

We replaced it with a Beautyrest mattress pad, and we are finishing up our third winter with it. On a scale of 0-20, we preheat at 10 about half hour before we go to bed, and I put it on 3 to sleep. So far, I don't notice *any* loss of heating capability with the Beautyrest as I did with repeated Sunbeam products (at least three maybe four all told), which slowly seemed to go inert.

So the Beautyrest seems to be a far better product at least by my small sample.

I had a heated waterbed for about fifteen years - that was great! Never had any trouble with the heating element, but then it was buried under the mattress on wood side of the water isolation bag and not subject to stress from sleepers or folks being more active than sleeping.

Now we have a down comforter which feels warm in about twenty seconds...and the room is kept to around 17C (roughly 62F) for the night.

John :-#)#