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Mine is broken! I've spent two days shopping around and apparently top-loaders do not use agitators anymore and have thus gained capacity in the drum. However, many reviews I have been reading say that these machines are rougher on clothing and do not clean clothes well. Reviews on front-loading machines have many complaints about noise and mold. What I need to take into consideration most from any machine is vibration/noise since the laundry room is on the main floor instead of the basement. Like, tolerable vs pictures falling off the wall. I don't care which type I buy, but I would like some honest feedback from real people on the internets. What model do you have and do you like it or regret it?
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| # ? Jan 24, 2013 07:01 |
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| # ? May 20, 2013 00:55 |
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I have a top loading one and that's the way to go. Front loaders use a flexible bladder to hold the cloths and water, and if that were to burst(they do, more than you'd think) then the amount of water damage could be extreme. They gush water and if your laundry room is anything but an unfinished room in the basement you're hosed.
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| # ? Jan 24, 2013 13:17 |
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When I moved to my apartment some years ago I needed to buy a washer & dryer set in a hurry, but I still made sure to do research before buying in Consumer Reports, which you'll probably need to see it in print at a library since it's not free online. They are different from user reviews because CR can stress and abuse the machines to simulate years of use. What matters is reliability and price. It's a bitch to move these machines, so you want one that will last. If a certain brand or model is at the bottom of the list, it's there for a reason. Consumer Reports does have a forum, though. Here's a thread that might help. At the time I when I was shopping, CR favored Whirlpool brand, while Maytag was poo poo, needing frequent repairs. But I couldn't afford Whirlpool (they're not cheap). So I found Whirlpool's value product line called "Estate." These are very basic boring white machines. It was about $700 for a washer & dryer pair. Maybe it's silly, but I'm rather proud to own them.  Don't believe everything that store salespeople tell you. If a store offers you a protection plan or service plan or whatever, say no. It will only last during the early life of the product when nothing's going to go wrong. The manufacturer's warranty is more important. As for the noise, what you may need are special floor mats to dampen the sound, regardless of which model you get.
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| # ? Jan 24, 2013 14:57 |
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I've got a front load LG Steam washer (and matching dryer in apple candy red) with pedestals. I got them when I bought my first house (6 years ago). My prior experience is with cheap top load machines inside my apartment building laundry room. No problems but they do get moldy if you don't follow the instructions and sanitize the machine. It runs a special cycle with bleach and steam to clean the tub. The noise of the machine when in use is minimal. When it spin dries it can get noisy if the load is off balance. It can be set for a lower speed spin cycle if you can't handle the noise/vibration. The only drawback is that the pair weren't cheap. I don't know if that means they'll last but the set cost me $3K with pedestals installed (gas dryer hookup).
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| # ? Jan 24, 2013 15:59 |
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I work in the appliance repair industry and my experience is that the more options and electronic parts the machine has, the more that's likely to go wrong with it. For what it's worth, my own washer is a low end Frigidaire front loader which I bought because it's cheap and the parts (if it ever needs it) are cheap and easy to find. I've had no problems with it in the three years I've owned it. Front loaders CAN have problems with mildew but it's easily avoided if you just leave the door open a bit when it's not in use. It certainly uses much less water than a comparably priced top loader, and it seems gentler on my clothes as well. FYI Whirlpool owns the Maytag, Inglis, and Crosley brands (among others, but I think those are all their washer brands).
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| # ? Jan 24, 2013 16:17 |
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Badmana posted:I've got a front load LG Steam washer (and matching dryer in apple candy red) with pedestals. I got them when I bought my first house (6 years ago). I too have this set. We didn't get the pedestals because I was too cheap to spend an extra $500 for what amounts to two drawers. Also, my mom has the pedestals and said when she took them off, the vibration/noise stopped completely. Mine run pretty darned silently. I clean the drum regularly, and so long as you do that, there's no mold problems. They clean great, and I love them. I got a floor model washer (no box, small dent) and ordered the gas dryer. The pair cost me $1800 from Best Buy about 6 years ago. I bet they're cheaper now.
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| # ? Jan 24, 2013 16:47 |
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Can someone explain to me why top-loading washing machines/Tumble-dryers are so popular in America, but I've yet to visit a household in the UK (and the parts of Europe I've visited) that has one. This has bugged me for sometime.
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| # ? Jan 24, 2013 17:19 |
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More space in America? We don't usually put our washing machine in the kitchen either.
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| # ? Jan 24, 2013 17:34 |
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Windy posted:Mine is broken! I've spent two days shopping around and apparently top-loaders do not use agitators anymore and have thus gained capacity in the drum. However, many reviews I have been reading say that these machines are rougher on clothing and do not clean clothes well. Reviews on front-loading machines have many complaints about noise and mold. What I need to take into consideration most from any machine is vibration/noise since the laundry room is on the main floor instead of the basement. Like, tolerable vs pictures falling off the wall. I've got the Samsung 431 series steam washer/dryer set, and they've been great. It's a front loader, and as long as you leave the door open so that the gasket dries, it's fine. We did rent a place with an older front loading whirlpool with a much more complex gasket design, and that did have mold problems, but some of that was also our ignorance about the issue in general. Our laundry room is on the main floor, and as long as you don't overload the washer it's fine noise wise, although the model I have does have some sort of vibration reduction technology built in according to Samsung. We haven't used the steam settings on the washer terribly much, but they've actually been fairly handy on the dryer, particularly for the "Refresh" setting, where you can put in wrinkled/smelly clothes and it will steam them on high for 15 minutes and they come out in much better shape. unam3d posted:Can someone explain to me why top-loading washing machines/Tumble-dryers are so popular in America, but I've yet to visit a household in the UK (and the parts of Europe I've visited) that has one. My guess would be because they're cheap and most people have bigger houses/apartments/whatever with dedicated laundry space (as evensevenone said).
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| # ? Jan 24, 2013 18:56 |
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unam3d posted:Can someone explain to me why top-loading washing machines/Tumble-dryers are so popular in America, but I've yet to visit a household in the UK (and the parts of Europe I've visited) that has one. Front loaders are more efficient and energy is cheap in the US.
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| # ? Jan 24, 2013 22:41 |
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Ema Nymton posted:Consumer Reports does have a forum, though. Here's a thread that might help. I had no idea there was a forum for Consumer Reports. Thank you for this, and thank you all for your replies. I feel much better after reading actual advice and not twenty reviews of "best washer ever" or "this sucks don't buy it!!"
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| # ? Jan 25, 2013 06:40 |
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unam3d posted:Can someone explain to me why top-loading washing machines/Tumble-dryers are so popular in America, but I've yet to visit a household in the UK (and the parts of Europe I've visited) that has one. http://youtu.be/pjHcD-dK9UI Some people use things like this all over the world. Not sure what you are talking about though. We did used to have one like one these, and yeah, believe it or not, it worked pretty drat good. http://youtu.be/EHnffJGN3V0 Ours had a round tube.
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| # ? Jan 25, 2013 10:29 |
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I got my washer and dryer from a Sears 'Scratch & Dent' warehouse. Was around $500 for both washer and dryer. They sit in my basement, so who care if they're scratched and dented. I also got my refrigerator from them, too. Try to see if there is one in your area or something equivalent, if you don't mind not pristine appliances.
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| # ? Jan 25, 2013 12:05 |
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We switched from top-loader to front-loader when our old top-loader gave up the ghost. We have the Maytag model that everybody hates because of mold, but we haven't had a serious problem; there's some mold in the gasket, but we leave the door open when there's no laundry in it. The big advantages, for us, are the lower water usage (we live in an area that has droughts) and that they're much gentler on clothes. I throw all my "hand wash only" in on the hand wash cycle, and they come out fine -- this includes rayon clothes, to give you some idea. You can throw in an underwire bra, loose, and it won't get the wire bent or twisted around itself. The bad thing about the front loader is if you're a crafter. You can't do anything like felting or dyeing that requires you to check in on the wash while it's running. Mine doesn't let you program cycles -- there's no way to tell it "soak for 5 hours" if I'm trying to bleach something really grungy.
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| # ? Jan 25, 2013 20:31 |
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unam3d posted:Can someone explain to me why top-loading washing machines/Tumble-dryers are so popular in America, but I've yet to visit a household in the UK (and the parts of Europe I've visited) that has one. Non-HE top loaders are still the cheapest machines out there. You generally see less and less of them though outside of low-income and rental housing. The last time I actually saw one of these in action I was kind of surprised at how much water and detergent it took just to do a small load. If nothing else, front-loaders will recoup their extra cost just from the savings on laundry detergent within a couple of years.
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| # ? Jan 25, 2013 21:44 |
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AlistairCookie posted:
Did you get the extended warranty?
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| # ? Jan 27, 2013 03:23 |
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FYI, here's a new Yahoo! Homes article with a bunch of free Consumer Reports information: http://homes.yahoo.com/news/impress...-143000241.html All the low-price picks on this page are said to be "relatively noisy." To get the full list of washer/dryer reviews and find a quieter one, you'll probably need to see the full print issue.
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| # ? Jan 28, 2013 19:04 |
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The_Franz posted:Non-HE top loaders are still the cheapest machines out there. You generally see less and less of them though outside of low-income and rental housing. The last time I actually saw one of these in action I was kind of surprised at how much water and detergent it took just to do a small load. If nothing else, front-loaders will recoup their extra cost just from the savings on laundry detergent within a couple of years. Front loading machines (at least the ones my parents have) are an absolute bitch to fix if they break. The plastic "spider" assembly at the back of the washer broke, it took a lot of effort to repair, we had to hoist the tub out of the washer with a come-along. It sucked to fix.
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| # ? Mar 3, 2013 13:20 |
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, but it reflects poorly on the forums. 
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Angry Pie posted:I work in the appliance repair industry and my experience is that the more options and electronic parts the machine has, the more that's likely to go wrong with it. Quoted for truth. We have a 16 year old Maytag washer/dryer set (I think this was prior to Whirlpool acquiring Maytag). Low end even for their time, with 100% mechanical controls. The only issue we've had is the blower wheel in the dryer decided to crack a few years back. I think it was $25 for a new part locally, and a little over an hour for me to tear it apart, swap it, and put it back together - including vacuuming out about 13 years worth of dust and lint, and having no clue what I was doing. That said, the front loaders are far more efficient, but do have a much higher upfront cost. And they're far less likely to be repairable by a DIY.
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| # ? Mar 6, 2013 08:22 |
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We have a pair of midrange Bosch frontloaders on the floor, and it isn't great on the back, and the washer does like to grow black mildew in the spouts for the detergent, and we leave the door open when not in use to keep it as dry as possible. Not a big deal to clean, I just hit it with a toothbrush and some bleach every 6 months or so, but a little gross. Much easier on clothes than the toploaders they replaced. Not too noisy, and the spin dry cycle is kind of amazing, stuff comes out 80% dry...except for the child-sized socks that get stuck in the edge of the door and stay soaked. All in all new appliances are considerably better than old, but they weren't as "holy gently caress, this is amazing" as the new dishwasher was. Now days a dishwasher actually washes dishes! For my entire used and old appliance life before that, I had to hand-wash the dishes, then put them in the dishwasher...for I dunno what. But now I scrape the bones into the trash, and throw every horrible greasy baked on whatever in, and they come out clean. It is very cool.
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| # ? Mar 6, 2013 09:42 |
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I have Miele full-size washer and dryer. I love it. Quiet, fast, well-made and the silk/wool modes actually work without ruining clothes. Unfortunately, they have stopped offering them for sale in the US market. But they still offer smaller "Euro-style" machines.
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| # ? Mar 6, 2013 17:45 |
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I'm puzzled at the talk of mold. I've never had mold in any of my front-load washing machines. None of my family have had mold in theirs. Does anyone know why some get mold and some don't?
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| # ? Mar 6, 2013 20:46 |
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ljw1004 posted:I'm puzzled at the talk of mold. I've never had mold in any of my front-load washing machines. None of my family have had mold in theirs. Depends on where you live. I used to live in a area that was a rain forest. poo poo molded just being left alone. We would use Damprid in closets (and let me tell you, Damprid was loving awesome) to keep our clothes from smelling funny just from hanging up. Now that I've moved, I bought some Damprid to hang up. And while the bags would completely fill in a couple of weeks at my old place, I don't have a drop of water in the bag and it's been up for months now. http://www.damprid.com/product/hang...83k-fresh-scent In case you are wondering what I am talking about.
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| # ? Mar 10, 2013 20:47 |
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ljw1004 posted:I'm puzzled at the talk of mold. I've never had mold in any of my front-load washing machines. None of my family have had mold in theirs. Front-loaders, by design, have to be water (and therefore air) tight, so if you leave it closed when not in use it will get moldy because it can't air out. I just leave the detergent tray out a bit and the door cracked and I've never had even that musty smell.
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| # ? Mar 11, 2013 17:47 |
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| # ? May 20, 2013 00:55 |
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I've never owned a front-load washer and while they look attractive they just seem like a disaster waiting to happen if the door gasket fails or whatever during a wash cycle, plus we are both tall so pedestals would be a must-have and an added cost. Currently we have a Whirlpool electric high-efficiency top loader washer and front-load dryer - paid less than $800 for the set 4 years ago and we are very happy with them. The washer has enough load options to handle all of my nice clothing and is super quiet. Our water bill is good too. If you're going with a top loader, the high efficiency style is the way to go. My only complaint is that the fabric softener port at the top of the mini-agitator gets gunky really fast, but if you are not as lazy as I am, and bother to wipe your washer out more than I do (never), that would not be an issue.
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| # ? Mar 20, 2013 04:01 |
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