Review on simplehuman 45L / 12 Gal Semi-Round Auto Sensor Trash Can, Brushed Stainless Steel by Stephanie Smith

Worked VERY well. until this happened. Our experience was similar to some other 1 star reviewers, the lid stopped opening normally after less than a year. Sometimes it opens halfway, and sometimes it doesn't open at all. Eventually, after 15 months of use, it failed to the point where the lid wouldn't open at all, and yet it flashes a blue light, indicating it can see very well. Decided not to contact Simplehuman due to other reviewers bad experiences. A while back I got tired of replacing small AA batteries and upgraded our trash can with a 4-cell D battery pack. This goes great with another modification: adding a raised, ventilated wooden floor to the inside bottom of the trash can, so more normal Kitchen waste bags fit better, eliminating the need for J$'s special bag and their storage bag where I installed the battery holder. So our trash can worked great for a while, used inexpensive regular 13-gallon kitchen trash bags, and the batteries didn't drain as quickly. But after owning it for less than a year, intermittent problems started. Sometimes it would only open an inch or so, but then after sitting for a day or so it would work properly again. We also tried many different batteries. The bin has finally reached the point where it won't open at all, but the blue light indicates the sensor is working. So yesterday I did some more troubleshooting: 1) I checked the voltage across the batteries to see if those unbranded alkaline batteries are failing under load of the motor trying to open the lid. No voltage drop was detected, so the batteries weren't the culprit. 2) Remove the inner purple liner, unscrew the 4 screws holding the back cover/lid assembly, then slide it up and out of the jar. 3) Remove the 2 screws holding the back panel together and disassemble to access the main control board. 4) The supply voltage of the board has been checked. Same as battery voltage - within specs and will not drop when motion is detected and the blue indicator lights up. Therefore, wiring is not a problem. 5) Measured voltage coming from the PCB to drive the motor. Too low, approx. 0.25 V. 6) Battery with direct connection to the motor. The engine ran well and the lid lifted as expected. Conclusion: your circuit board has probably failed. My guess is that it might have a design flaw that causes it to fail after less than a year of operation. Solution: We'll buy a stepped box instead. Having a high-tech contactless trash can was fun, but not worth the hassle and short lifespan.