Black Decker SDC740B SpaceMaker 12Cup Coffeemaker Black

Black & Decker spacemaker coffeemaker
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
Coffeemaker works great, only issue is the scratches that are appearing on the top of the coffeepot – don’t know if it is rubbing on something or if the sponge is scratching it when we wash.

Nice alternative to the SDC850
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I’m one of the reviewers of the SDC 850 that had a leaky pot. Thankfully, this one doesn’t leak and indeed uses the same holes as the SDC 850-I even kept the screws I had to hacksaw for the SDC 850 and used them on this one. Works well, doesn’t leak. Wish it had the stainless steel trim of course and also wish it were thermal like the SDC 850 because on my last two B&D ODC440B’s the warmer plate rusted out in a few months. If the warmer plate does not rust out this is indeed a viable alternative to the SDC 850. Hopefully B&D reads these.

Wonderful update of the old model. Love it!
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
We bought this new coffee maker in August. I bought some icemaker plastic hose at Home Depot and cut it down to make spacers in order for it to be installed under our cabinets which have a deep over hang. It only took an hour to install it.

This coffee maker is superb! Its more modern and contemporary looking than our old white one, and it takes up less space! It makes great coffee! We use it daily and have had ZERO problems. I would certainly recommend it for others.

We have had none of the problems mentioned in previous reviews. I think the trick is to make sure its installed LEVEL. Then the carafe fits like it should and exerts the proper pressure on the whatchamicallit that makes it turn on.

It sure wakes me up
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
My new coffee maker snaps and crackles while making coffee. reason is

unknown. My old one (also a Black & Decker) was leaking the coffee while

it was making coffee, so, I bought a new one. I saved the box for a while

in case I decided to return it. But, I am getting used to it “snapple &

crack”. So far so good. No coffee is dripping off the bottom.

mrs. Pa.

wishing it was a little better
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
I bought this unit two months ago due to the none counter space…this has proven to be ideal but as previous reviews show it is not the easiest thing to install…just be prepared and cut the screws prior to and you will be thankful you did! After it is up it looks nice and makes a nice pot of coffee…well at least for a month, I am hopeing that I have a flaw in mine and am working with B&D to resolve but as the coffee is brewing the filter part slips allowing the water to continue into the filter but not into the pot causeing an massive overflow!!!! So, if it is a flaw then I will hopefully be very happy with my coffee maker again!

So Far — So Good
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Had the B&D previous model, lasted 11 and a half months. Wanted to buy another, but not available,(no longer made) — what a coincidence! Wanted to use the same rails, but had to drill new holes.

Have had it for about 3 months, hopefully I will have better luck this time!

Black and Decker 12 cup Spacemaker Coffeemaker
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Black & Decker SDC740B SpaceMaker 12-Cup Coffeemaker, Black I purchased this coffeemaker a month ago for my very small RV kitchen. Virtually no countertop at all. It has worked out wonderfully, giving me a full sized coffeemaker that eliminates the need for countertop space.

The only problem I’ve encountered is the “SNEAK-A-CUP” feature that enables you to get a cup of coffee before it has finished perking. The spring that activates this feature is too strong and pushes the pot back, causing water to overflow onto the countertop below. We eliminated that problem by removing the spring.

Under the counter Coffee Maker
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
It is a good coffee pot but the heating element doesn’t keep the coffee pot real hot only luke warm. Otherwise it seems to be a real good coffee maker

Great Coffee Pot
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I bought this coffee pot as a replacement for my sister and brother-in-law after another B&D one recently died (it was less than one year old). They absolutely love the new coffee pot. B&D products have always been great products.

suprisingly happy
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
With all the negative reviews I felt compelled to respond. After our old B+D crapped out wifey said she had to have another ‘under the cabinet’ one. After 10 good years with the old one I was amazed to find no other brand except B+D to choose from-wow. I read many BAD reviews but hesitantly pulled the trigger anyway. I’m glad I did. Let me address some of the major ones

Yes, its true the installation sucks! But with a hack saw a screw driver and a beer it came out fine–the beer is only to relax you .

Its true the old holes dont line up with the new ones but it its been 10 years since our last one, hello.

Yes the water holder is a bad design but instead of carrying the water holder, just fill the carafe like Ive been doing for 10

years anyway. Just fill the carafe to desired level (has perfect markings on it) then pour into water holder, it has a perfect spout so no water will be spilled… duh

It has been almost six months now, no complaints, wish I could say I bought from Amazon but was cheaper elsewhere online. Its a great looking design, makes great coffee, If you really want a under the counter model and since there is no other to choose from, you will not regret!

Seller’s review
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Cannot rate the item as it was a gift but I certainly did appreciate the expediency of the seller. Thanks.

Reviewers are Right!
Rating:2 out of 5 stars
I read product reviews on Amazon because they usually right. I saw the reviews that said this coffee maker was hard to install. I also read that it was great. I agree with “hard to install.” My husband spent more than four hours putting up ours (he’s installed many appliances and is usually quick). He fumed the whole time. His biggest problem was the missing screws. He had to go find some in his tool box. The other problem is the pot — it doesn’t fit well on the plate. We’ll keep the coffee maker, but it isn’t a good as others we’ve had. If you hate trying to put together things that don’t fit, don’t go for this machine.

Spacemaker Coffeemaker
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
The spacemaker effect is wonderful. Easy to fill, & program.

Problem: The clock lost 15 min per day, which makes it a problem to use the Auto on function. We had to “cut the cord off & return it. They will supposably send us a new maker. Been 2 weeks, and no coffee.

A bad burn waiting to happen
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
I purchase two of these coffee makers-one for the kitchen and one for my motorhome. I have already replaced the kitchen one once thinking it was defective and now the replacement and the motorhome unit are both going back. Both of the units I had installed in the kitchen spilled coffee and grounds all over the counter. Not only is it extremely messy, but it is very dangerous. I opened the coffee ground tray to start a new pot and boiling water spilled all over my hand. Fortunately I was right next to the sink and stuck my hand in the running cold water to elleviate what really could have been a severe burn worse than what I received. In doing my research, I found that Black and Decker have recalled four other models for the very same defect. You would think after they recall four they would get the fifth one fixed….NO SUCH LUCK. I have never been so unhappy with a Black and Decker product. I owned my previous B & D under the counter coffee pot for about twelve years and was excited to get another one. Wish I would have kept my old “on the counter” maker!

Good coffee, bad quality control, public beating?
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
We’ve had a 2 previous B&D under counter coffee makers. All made good coffee but all had serious quality issues.

The last SDC740 we had was not like the current model visually. It was more square and had a more vertical water box. I purchased it despite overwhelming an avalanche of negative reviews on amazon. The reviews indicated several problems:

1. The coffee basket popped out after several days of use, because the snap in feature had been poorly designed and used ABS plastic that was too thin and lost it’s shape under the heat generated by the coffee maker. This caused coffee and grounds to spill all over the counter. I solved this problem by plastic welding 1/16″ ABS strips in the appropriate places, using MEK solvent. It seams that this problem is fixed in the current model.

2. The coffeemaker’s electronics caused a reset in our microwave oven’s timer repeatedly. I put up with this inconvenience, since it only occurred once or twice monthly. It seams that this problem is also fixed in the current model.

3. The carafe had a spout that was poorly designed. It was almost impossible to pour coffee when the carafe was over half full, without spilling coffee all over the counter. It seams that this problem is also fixed in the current model.

When I saw the new Spacemaker SDC740 coffeemaker, during a recent visit at K-Mart, I could not resist and bought it. Installation instructions as on previous models, were a travesty. My cabinets have a frame with a 9/10″ front overhang. The screws and spacers provided are useless. No combination of spacers can make up 9/10″. The long screws are too long and the next shorter size are too short. The supplied mounting template is useless. It has no measurements on it and does not take into account a vertical frame rail with mounting brackets that protrude behind it above the cabinet floor. It should have included a half circular dotted line to be cut out between the 2 forward facing mounting holes. I could have made the required cutout myself, but did not have the confidence in the accuracy of the supplied template due to previous experience in with B&D coffeemaker designers and manufacturing implementations. I knew I could trust my own measurements more and therefore measured the distances between mounting holes of the mounting bracket and transferred them to the inside of the cabinet floor. I made my own rear spacer by taking a piece of 2×3 wood and sawing it down to the required 9/10″ thickness.

My previous experience with under counter coffeemakers pointed out a potentially serious problem as follows:

Do not install it too far back. After some use, when the coffeemaker requires cleaning, it emits a substantial amount of steam. This steam will dry out and damage the finish on your cabinets. I installed mine so the forward most 2 mounting holes are located just behind my 3/4″ cabinet frame. This will keep steam as far forward of the cabinet doors as possible.

At this point my biggest complaint about my new Spacemaker SDC740 coffeemaker is that the clock gains 71/2 minutes a day. That means after a week, our coffee gets brewed 521/2 minutes too soon. I just went to K-Mart and bought a second SDC740. Unfortunately, every SDC740 they had, had a broken seal on the box. Does that mean someone had returned it already? The jury is still out. I’ll check the clock tomorrow. I know that B&D was bought by Stanley recently. I hope they read these posts and do something about quality control.

I’m from the old country where they had no tolerance for defective products and defective quality control. They used to say “In zee old kontry vee shoot zem for zis”

PS. I don’t believe in the death penalty, but could dismemberment or at least a public beating be appropriate?

coffeemaker
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
This is the best coffeemaker I have ever had.It was easey to install, and it does a good job.No problems with shipping , everything went well.

Not one I’d ever buy again
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
We bought a Black & Decker Spacemaker 12 Cup Programmable SDC740 on Dec. 27, 2009. It makes good coffee, but that is where the good part ends. Sometimes the water reservoir will drip water out of the front of the coffee maker. This necessitates removing the reservoir, drying the reservoir area our, and then re-inserting the reservoir. That’s not the worst part. When you remove the coffee filter basket, water that has condensed in the filter holder area, is pulled out, and drips,(runs), down onto the counter area in front of the coffee maker, making a mess. Sometimes it will be 2-3 days between pots, and the water will still come out with the filter holder.

We just returned from a 10 trip, during which time, I unplugged most of the non-essential electronic appliances in our house, including the coffee maker. When we returned, I plugged the coffeemaker back in, to set it for a pot of coffee in the morning. I could not adjust the hours on the program to start the coffee. I could adjust the minutes, but the hour stayed on 12. Not going to work. I realize it is under warranty, but with all the faults this coffee maker has by design, we are just going to get different coffee maker, and charge this on up to experience.

In conclusion, the Black & Decker makes good coffee, but that does not compensate for all the short comings this coffee maker has.

Trouble is brewing
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
I initially had a lot of trouble with this unit. But read on…this gadget has levers that are interlocks (so you can pull the pot off while it’s brewing and steal a quick cup). The levers are spring loaded and when you have it on auto brew, (if it’s not installed correctly) the springs will occasionally push the upper coffee/filter holder out enough to close the outlet but not stop the flow of water so you end up with coffee and grounds all over whatever is under it. What a huge mess.

Here’s the secret. They really don’t say how critical this is…get out your level and make sure it’s perfectly level or even just a hair sloped to the back. If you intall it sloped forward (so the front is low) you will have trouble.

Once I redid ours with just the slightest slope to the rear, we have not had any further trouble.

Great
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
In a word, this product is great. Although it has one minor problem.

We made coffee one morning and coffee leaked everywhere and the coffee had coffee grounds in it. The caraffe is not heavy enough to hold it self in place at the start of brewing. We routinely hold it for a moment until about a cup and a half brews into the caraffe for weight. As I said minor problem. My wife and I love this product.

nice product…instructions really really bad.. go buy screws..and a bottle of wine.
Rating:2 out of 5 stars
A nice product but this one was even tougher to follow the instructions with than the toaster oven. Again, NO SCREWS fit. There were long enough screws but they were too long and the unit would not slide back onto the top mounting piece. And the template didn’t have the measurements on it again. Had to get via email again b/c couldn’t find on their website. You really have to figure this out on your own. I think what worked for me was once you determine which line pertains to the depth of your front hangover, fold on that line and place the folded template behind the overhang up against the bottom of the cabinet. Hope you have a hardware store nearby to run out and get screws in the middle of the installation…or maybe your overhang is less than 1″. the difference in length between the middle screw and the longest screw is an inch if i’m not mistaken. for me, I needed it to be 1/2 longer than the middle one, or 1/2 shorter than the longer one. snipping the longer bolts didn’t work. just screwed up the threads. I guess it would work if you installed the top piece then snipped but once you take it off, you won’t be able to re-install it. plus taking it off my cross thread the nuts then you’re worse off. if you need bolts, suggest just biting the bullet and going to the hardware store.

09/12/09. Tobin’s review is right on. I will add, that I have finally gotten to the point where I am tired of cleaning up water or coffee from my counter. the idea was to keep things off of the counter. it either leaks from the water reservoir or it leaks coffee all over the counter. going out and buying a new coffee maker today.

satisfied customer
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
IBlack & Decker SDC740B SpaceMaker 12-Cup Coffeemaker, Blackt was easy to install, using the templet in the box.i have more counter space with this one then my old b&d spacesaver(which lasted for years).The green light that shines on countertop is cool! Amazon.com was the only place i could find it in black,which is great for me, so i could match my other appliances.

B&D Space Server Coffee Maker
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
The B&D space saver coffee maker is very attractive and fits well under the counter where we had placed our previous B&D space saver coffee maker. It actually gives us more counter space even tho it appears to take up more space than the old one. The water urn is more convenient and easier to use. My wife installed the coffee maker, herself, using a drill/bit, Phillips screw driver, and the template. I won’t go into why she installed it. That would be TMI. The clock didn’t work on our previous space saver coffee maker, but the clock on the new coffee maker works fine. Now, we can automatically set the coffee maker to have coffee waiting for us in the morning. What a treat AGAIN!

Sincerely,

RM

broken coffee pot
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
1st time we got a broken coffee pot and had to return it. 2nd one came in fine.

cheap plastic
Rating:2 out of 5 stars
This is a nice looking coffeemaker but the plastic is highly breakable. Do not accidentally drop any parts or you’ll hear chunks of plastic flying across your kitchen! Don’t even drop it in the sink. The filter came apart in three pieces. Please make one more sturdy since it’s an item that people handle everyday. I’m a nervous wreck whenever I set the coffee!

Instructions
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
The product arrive timely but without any installation instructions or User manual. I went online and the User manual was not available for the product. Called the number on the box and finally spoke with a person who emailed the Manual. Had to figure out the installation for myself. The screws and spacers were in the box. A simple project was a challenge.

Very poor quality control
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
The template for the installation is not correct. The placement of the holes does not match the physical hanger plate. This has been a problem for quite some time and has not been addressed by the company!! I rwead of this problem several months ago.

The clock runs fast: gain 16 minutes a day! Still unresolved by the company. I has been three weeks at this time. —JKR

Review of the B&D 12-cup SpaceMaker Coffeemaker
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
The B&D SDC740B SpaceMaker is the third B&D “spacemaker” I have purchased. I was pleased with the short time from order to delivery. Experience mounting the two previous units helped as I encountered little difficulty. I must note, however, none of the holes drilled previously were useable in this installation. This unit seems to actually “save” a bit more space than previous models. I like the light and controls better than previous ones. The one feature I do not like is the shallow water compartment and the resultant marks for number of cups; it is tricky to get just the amount of water you want when filling it.

frustrating
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
I purchased this coffeemaker for my 82 year young Dad. It replaced his worn out one. Every pot of coffee overflows over the basket. The pot ends up with grounds in it. Doesn’t matter if it is for 4 cups or a full pot. We glued a piece to the back of the release on the filter basket. It works better, but why did we have to do that? My Dad should not have to clean up a mess each time he makes a pot of coffee or stand and hold the pot in place! That makes the timer option worth it! I have read where others have had to make an adjustment to this coffeemaker. I wish I had read them before I made the purchase. Frustrated!

coffeemaker
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
This coffeemaker is the worse I have ever used. I previously had a black and decker under the counter for over ten years and when it burned out, I replaced with this one it is a mess waiting to happen we could not get after two months to quit spitting grinds all over the counter. . .no amount of leveling or twikking fixed the problem I am returning it

Under counter coffee pot
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
I am still getting used to my more modern under counter mounted coffee pot. I got the black one and it is much nicer looking than the old version. I am still getting used to the water compartment. I find it a little hard to judge how much water I have in the container and wish the hole was larger, but all in all I like it and am so glad I found one to replace my other black and decker that lasted for 12 years.

AFTER installation, I love it
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Overall, as indicated by the 5 stars, I am very please with the function and looks of this unit.

INSTALLATION:

Most of the other reviewers mentioned the problems with installation difficulties and I would only add that this has been true of all the Black and Decker under counter coffemakers (I have owned likely everyone since inception). This one was supposed to guarantee that at least 2 screw holes would fit if you had an existing unit but maybe I missed a style along the way because it needed 4 new holes in addition to adding extra spacers.

I could not find the manual initially (hidden under some of the packing) but did notice an arrow on the top bracket near a slot. Using a flat head screwdriver I inserted it feeling for something to push (I had read the reviews about the difficulty getting this off). Finding nothing I finally twisted the screwdriver in the direction of the arrow and the plate magically the plate popped off ;>). Later, I saw that they mention this procedure in the manual.

COFFEE POT: (YES!)

I would subtract a star for the installation but finally getting a coffee pot that pours ALL the coffee into the cup rather than always putting some on the counter added back the star. They stopped trying to make a spout in the glass design of the pot and opted to put the spout on the plastic cover. Not one drop on the counter yet, a first for any of the coffee makers I have owned, regardless of brand.

They must have corrected the problems with the sneak a cup feature because my pot fits in the well snuggly and I have not had any problems with it not opening the water flow valve.

UNDERCOUNTER FUNCTIONALITY:

The pot section hangs down slightly further than the full box of the one I replaced so my small grill no longer fits under it well but the design does give much more height to the counter on the left side.

The water heating section does not seem to put out the steam of my other units and should stop damaging my cabinet door. This may mean the water is not quite as hot but the coffee brews well.

WISH LIST:

The water bucket and coffee ground basket need handles redesigned for ease of carrying but are useable. It would seem that a finger well would have been easy to design into both without giving up esthetics.

I miss the lighted clock but at least there is a light to indicate that it is set up for the AM.

I keep hoping they will put a back-up battery in the clock for power outages so everything does not need resetting after a thunderstorm.

LOOKS:

Excellent and again, make up for any negatives or missing items I have mentioned. I am glad they finally went back to making a coffee maker in black. White plastic and coffee guarantees obvious staining no matter how much I cleaned the last unit.

Hey! It Makes Coffee!!!!
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
Cool Looking…

Install no big deal with a little imagination…

Biggest gripe…brews a little slower than others I’ve had…

It does what it is supposed to do…make coffee!!

I’d buy again for MSRP $59.95…most retailers seem to be taking

advantage of it being relatively rare right now.$$$$

Good Looking, But…
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
It was time to update the spacemaker and I was very glad to see that they made such a nice looking unit. -But there’s more to real love than a pretty face, which is why I had to mark it at 3 stars.

1) The box proudly says that the mounting holes match the previous unit. -Now, anyone that has owned these things will tell you that this has been a problem (and I now have five sets of holes in the bottom of my cabinet to prove it), but they don’t match any of the holes that were in my cabinet.

2) The water reservoir has a loose leaky lid and you almost cannot deliver a full one to the coffee maker without spilling some water. The engineer that designed it should be ashamed.

3) The clock on my unit loses time. At least a minute an hour, but sometimes more (randomly). -You’d think that they would spend more than a dime on a digital clock for the unit.

4) It brews much faster than the previous few I have had and has acceptable speed.

5) It keeps the coffee warm,

6) I love the idea of the extra outlet on the back to reduce cord clutter.

7) If it weren’t for the fact that it makes good coffee, I’d mark it a two or one.

ok but it could had been better
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
I like this coffeemaker but i would had like it better if the light had a on and off button, because the light stays on all the time.and i feel like under the water tank it should had have something else so it would not look so odd.

Nice looking, but does have annoyances
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
I’ve had a few different black and decker under cabinet coffee pots over the years and they were overdue for an update on the overall look of the product. I give the basic design 5 stars in that, the look is more current and if you have had the older version, you do get more noticable increase of counter usability space with this model. On the other hand, there are some annoyances with this new version. (I’m keeping the coffee maker)

For the overall rating that I provided of 3 stars, here is why.

Installation Template… JOKE

Missing measurement legends so was not usable. I held the coffer maker up to the cabinet to determine where I wanted it to be installed, measured from a few places on the coffee pot and cabinet and used the hanging bracket of the coffee maker as the template (pencil through screw holes).

Installation Hardware… screws wrong size

This is a design problem in concept, while having a bag of a bunch of different sizes solves the problem, or in my case, a hacksaw solved the problem. The ultimate reason is that there is no gap between the end of the screw when installed and the coffee pot to slide on. In older models if the screw went into the nut and came out the otherside by a 1/4 of an inch it was fine. In this model the screw must not go much past being flush to the end of the nut…. which is nuts!

Water Reservior… nice idea, but has challenges

a) Since the reservoir has such a large surface area, providing an exact amount of water is not easy. When you set it on the counter and fill it, it doesn’t sit flat, etc, etc.

b) The top of the reservior is removable in order to clean it out. When you have the water around 10 cups, or more likely 12 cups, this lid doesn’t seal the water in very good for a short walk from the sink to the coffee maker. Not a big deal, not a lot of dripping, but you have to pay attention to it.

Sneak a cup… Twice now we have had coffee overflow out of the filter area. This was due to the sneak a cup braket not designed very well. When you put the coffee pot into the unit, it pushes on a little handle/arm… barely. This braket opens/closes a door on the bottom of the filter. If the coffee pot is slightly off being place in properly, plan on a nice clean up of coffee on the counter. I added a little bit of bulk to the face of the bracket and I think it will solve the problem.

Removing top bracket… Geez, one of the first steps in the installation is to remove the top mounting bracket/piece from the top of the coffee maker… OMG, my wife and I were playing tug-a-war to get that dumb thing off. This should NOT come pre-connected to the coffee maker.

Handling of Water reservior and Filter. Neither have a nice handle or way to grip them. The filter part is more awkward to hold than the resourvoir, but it should be looked at.

I know I listed several things, but from the things listed, I don’t think they are show-stoppers, I’ll be keeping the coffee maker.

black &decker coffee maker
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
i am so happy with this coffee maker it got to me in just 3 days and got free shipping i will order from amazon again this coffee maker is just as decribed in the pic. thanks amazon

Great product!
Rating:5 out of 5 stars

I had an old B&D Spacemaker coffeepot in my motor home, but it died. I was really glad because the clock had broken anyway.

I searched everywhere for another one because a Spacemaker is really the way to go.

Amazon had the best price of anyone, so I ordered it. Little did I expect the quality of the new one I bought. It looks great, has wonderful features, was easy to install, and makes great coffee.

I recommend this Spacemaker to everyone, and of course, Amazon is the best!

Some quirks, especially with installation…
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
See my comments on Tobin’s very fine, detailed review. I added to his installation suggestions. I think Tobin would agree that if you aren’t very handy with tools, measurements, and such, then you may have difficulty installing this unit, at least with the current template supplied. If you can’t figure the template out, then pitch it. Just look at what you have to do, and realize that you only have to drill four holes. The main thing you have to figure out is how far back from the cabinet edge to drill. Beyond that, just use the top plate as a template to space the holes out. Good luck with the screw length and the spacers. See my comments with Tobin about making some on your own.