Okay you domesticated people Washer/Dryer

[Bob_VT]

I have been through a few sets of W/D over the years. I have an old frigidaire set that was passed to me now and prior to that set I have always had kenmores.

Well the current dryer has had the radish and it's toast. I have researched the parts on-line and it will be quite a bit to get it in shape.... the washer has been repaired too.

Took the wife out this evening and we went shopping. We hit the sears store and though we decided on a standard w/d set. Then I hit the internet and regardless of what kenmore model of washer I looked at nothing stood out as great.

We sort of glanced at a LG front loading set too. I have been impressed by the "energy savings" and found much better reviews. Since I have a well, a septic system and electric hot water heater I am spending a pretty penny on utilities.

Any opinions? I understand the front loaders (direct drive motor) use so little water and spin so fast that the dry time is cut way back. Hmmm less water, less hot water, less electric for the dryer it's starting to look good for the LG

Anyone have LG? It's okay to ask your wife for her opinion

 

[NW Redneck]

Re: Okay you domesticated people Washer/Dryer

Don't know about LG, but we've had a GE front loading set for about 2 years now and it's the sh*t! Uses way less water and dries faster. Although it took a little while to get used to the sound of the washer spooling up in spin cycle. I kept expecting to hear a voice saying "Houston, we have lift off!"

 

[Tail_Gunner]

Re: Okay you domesticated people Washer/Dryer

One word...Whirlpool cheap and 14 years later the pair still run a watch...

 

[Joe&Cindy]

Re: Okay you domesticated people Washer/Dryer

We had two new front-loading washing machines and sent them both back. Both were top-of-the-line Whirlpool. My daughter-in-law has a Maytag. I simply don't believe that these modern front-loading, low-water-usage machines can clean clothes. They don't use enough water to get the job done. I have conducted many experiments and proven to myself over and over again that they don't work. You may notice that people who use the new front-loaders generally use scented detergent. They need to.

Here are two experiments that are easy to run.

First one: take two identical white shirts. Select a stain (ketchup, chocolate, whatever) and put the same amount on each shirt. Launder both shirts in full loads according to manufactuers' recommendations (one in a new front load and one in the conventional top loader). See which machine gets the stain out.

Second test: See how many gallons of water the front-loader you are considering uses for a complete cycle. Then see how much dry weight the company claims for each load (or how many towels). Get a five gallon bucket. Fill the bucket with the amount of water they claim they use (say, for example, 4 gallons). Then put the towels in the water. Note that there isn't any water left over after the towels are wet. So how can that amount of water both clean and rinse the towels and rinse away any soil removed?

Note that the front-loaders at the commercial laundry work extremely well. But they use much more water. If you took any of the new front-loaders and could modify them so they used 3x as much water, they would be fantastic. Whirlpool told me that theirs are built so that modifying water usage is impossible. Otherwise, I would have done it and would love their machine.

After months of trying, we went back to a top loader.

 

[i386]

Re: Okay you domesticated people Washer/Dryer

Yup our no frills Whirlpool set has been running strong for over 12 years. These are both top loaders.

 

[lowkee]

Re: Okay you domesticated people Washer/Dryer

I have a toploader washer set (Whirlpool) I bought for $250 for both at a used appliance place. Had them for 3 years with no issue. I try to stay clear of anything computer driven in the appliance front, as you are just adding the parts to break and the possibility of fixing those things yourself is nil or worse. I'm an IT crazy, so it's more from experience than fear that I avoid mixing the terms 'new fangled' and 'reliable'.

Them shiny new glowing circuit panels on the front loaders look inviting.. but the clothing still comes out clean with my ugly push-button. How much would you pay for that front loader + repairs if it broke (circuit boards aren't cheap) - water savings - elec savings vs. cheap $250 used set? Sometimes the pretty glowing lights trump the cost effectiveness of a toy, sometimes they don't.

 

[rjlipscomb]

Re: Okay you domesticated people Washer/Dryer

We had front loading units in a small house (to reduce space). I believe they were Bosch (?). They were not cheap. Took getting used to but worked fine. The energy and water savings may not be realized if you use more smaller loads.

 

[NoKlu]

Re: Okay you domesticated people Washer/Dryer

Any whirlpool built machine should be the be the most reliable. Some of the Sears Kenmore machines are GE and some are Whirlpool. I don't have any confidence in the GE built machines. Fridgidare are an affordable set with a few corners cut to keep the price down. I don't know about the washing results of the front loaders but they are a better design and most prove to be more reliable. If your laundry is on the same floor as your living quarters front loaders are very quiet compared to the top loading machines and wont shake the house in the spin cycle as a toploader would. If you are on a water meter you will notice the savings a frontloader will give you over the toploader and they do dry better on the spin cycle so the clothes spend less time in the dryer. The wash action is also easier on the material as well. The only problem I have heard with the frontload machines was that they never completely drained the water out of the machine so they tended to get a musty smell to them,over time, that they would pass to the clothes you washed in them. Supposedly they have solved that problem but it is one thing that I would confirm with the service center before I would buy one. You should PM oops! and get him in on this thread as he has repaired hundreds of washers and has in depth knowledge of the wash sets and who builds what machine and how well they build them. For instance, Maytag changed the design of their topload washers so when the tub seal goes the leaking water runs right in to the unsealed transmission and destroys it. Cool huh, I guess their repair guys never sold enough expensive parts so they put an end to that. Things you will never find out till you get to know the repair guys.

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Okay you domesticated people Washer/Dryer

I have a front loader(Maytag made by Samsung) and love it. Just bought another front loader(Samsung) for my house in Tahoe. They spin the clothes out more completely than a top loader which is important becuase I am on propane which cost a lot to dry clothes!

Your clothes will last longer becuase they aren't being beat to a pulp by the agitator.

The newer Maytags are not made by Samsung anymore...they are Whirlpools. You can still buy the Amana which is made by Samsung for around $500 when its on sale on the Home Depot website.

 

[gonefishie]

Re: Okay you domesticated people Washer/Dryer

I stayed at my brother's house for about a month and they have a set of LG. I'm like lowkee and not too big on bells and whistles but that set impressed the heck out of me. Everytime I took my cleaned laundry out I always thought it gonna sucks when this thing breaks. It knows how much laundry you put in, you turn the knob to select how you want it wash and walk away. The laundry comes out almost dry, fleece material don't even need to go into the dryer. A large load with jeans, sweatshirts and all took 40 mins in the dryer. I think the dryer got sensors in it that detect how much moisture in the chamber and the load weight, etc...pretty doggone sophisticate stuff. If I got the money, I will buy a set. Otherwise, too rich for my blood.

 

[briguy2817]

Re: Okay you domesticated people Washer/Dryer

I bought a front loading Fridigaie set 6 years ago and the only problem I had wa the dryer main bearing started squeaking. $45.00 and a couple of hours of my time fixed that though. Stick with the front loaders, you won't be disappointed.

Heck, come to think of it, my parents have a front loader set and it's only the two of them.

Brian

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Okay you domesticated people Washer/Dryer

Plus, you can jamb them full and they still clean well. I like the fact that I can put my comforter cover in it and it washes it just fine. No way a top loader could do that.

 

[v1_0]

Re: Okay you domesticated people Washer/Dryer

Since I have a well, a septic system and electric hot water heater I am spending a pretty penny on utilities.

We have a well/septic arrangement at our house. That was one of the reasons we went with a frontloading, low water usage washer. Ours is a GE. Had it for a couple of years, so far the only problem has been the front door seal leaks once in a while when we do a cold wash load. Evidently that particular model is known for that sort of thing.

I've run sleeping bags, comforters, dog beds through it with no problems.

But, I needed to be educated on its usage. Evidently, there is a special type of detergent (HE) that must be used for this sort of washer. I got yelled at by the misses one time when she caught me using left over 'regular' detergent...

Oh, and one other thing to look at when evaluating the washer and dryer is the type of wash/dry cycles they have. You certainly want the usual cold/cold, warm, hot/hot cycles but there are more - some have a "sanitary" where they have a heating unit to get the wash water hotter. The fancy ones have cycles where you can put your "dry clean only" stuff in them. I think its becoming standard to have an automatic cycle as well - where the washer/dryer figures out how dirty/wet the clothes are and adjusts the cycle as needed.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Okay you domesticated people Washer/Dryer

Well I ordered a LG front loader set last night and I should see them mid July. I spent time researching and comparing.

My wife has used these type machines before and it should be a shorter learning curve.

I did notice that the old standard top loaders no longer offer some of the older features.

Time will tell

 

[Drowned Rat]

Re: Okay you domesticated people Washer/Dryer

I bought a set of LG front loaders about a year ago. Went with them because they got the best marks in Consumer Reports. I have noticed a difference in our power bill and our "equalizer" payment has actually gone down which has never happened before. Got them at the HD cause they had the best deal at the time.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Okay you domesticated people Washer/Dryer

Yup same thing .... best prices. I read all the reviews and every traditional washer review from other major dealers all had the same complaints. The LG seemed to have much better reviews and comments. Hey saving on the power bill is something I always pray for.

 

[ToothDocNick]

Re: Okay you domesticated people Washer/Dryer

Bought a set of LG's this past january. Have noticed a small savings in the electrical and gas dept. We have propane and with the way they spin clothes out it takes less time to dry. My only problem with them was when I had to install the propane conversion kit. The guy down the road from us wanted $200 to install it. I figured that since I installed my last one I would do the same with this one.......about 3 hours later it finally happened. Could not get easy access to the darn thing and those korean's must have really small hands and all be left handed. Other than that they run like a charm and would recommend them.

 

[vess]

Re: Okay you domesticated people Washer/Dryer

We also bought front-loaders, and I am glad we did. Frigidaire set last October, and we love how quiet the washer runs. Dryer is much better than the old one I had- has both temp and moisture sensor, so clothes come out just dry, not way overheated like the old one did. The front-load washer uses so little water that I also thought "no way" these will ever be clean, but I don't notice a difference from the top loader we had. I hate that they are all computer-chipped now, but that is the way most appliances are going these days. Good luck with them- I think you will be pleased.

 

[KRS]

Re: Okay you domesticated people Washer/Dryer

The trouble with someone else's comparison is the use the unit will see. Someone who is single or married doesn't use their machine like someone with 6 kids (it runs 18 hours a day).

That being said, I looked at the front loaders and couldn't convince myself that the extra money (for the shiny case) was worth it. I don't buy into the energy savings advertising.

We went traditional.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Okay you domesticated people Washer/Dryer

True. It is just the wife and me...... but we both have work clothing and liesure clothes.

No propane conversion worries with my electric dryer

I am buying into the energy savings since my old ones were so darn energy hungry based on age.