Front loading washers

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Originally Posted by Irulan

Time to buy. Who's got one, love it, hate it, what do you have....right now it's a tossup between Fridgidaire and Whirlpool...

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We have a Frigidaire front load (Affinity model). It's great. As others have said...less water used, clothes are spun nearly dry, so there's less dryer time, too, and everything (except the wool suits) goes in ... we have a 35 minute delicate cycle that's great. Front load machines have a heavy gasket at the door - a water tight seal is much more important at the door than on a top load machine. The Frigidaire does collect water in the gasket (and soap bubbles, too, if we use too much detergent :rolleyes:), so we keep a roll of paper towels handy to soak up the excess. So far, no mildew issues.
They can be expensive to repair, however. We had a Kenmore front load, and the drum needed repair, but it cost more to repair than it did to buy the thing :eek: so we gave it away to a handy guy and got the new ones.

I like mine for the same reasons other people like theirs, but it has had a few problems. I would go with a higher-end model if you can, and try to buy from a family owned local business even if it's more expensive than a big box store. Customer service is everything, and I have had the WORST possible customer service imaginable from Best Buy.

I looked at the front loaders, and REALLY wanted one when my machine went a couple of years ago. DH did some research though, and I ended up with a top loader washer and dryer (yes, the dryer is also a top loader) - they are Fisher & Paykel. Very energy efficient, and auto-sensing for water and drying.

Why do I love the top loaders? No more bending! Open both and the laundry goes from the washer directly to the dryer without bending over. I've been very happy with these.

SheFly

We have an LG front-loader that we're very happy with. The wash cycle is definitely longer than our old top-loader, so that takes some planning around, but it's worth it. It uses less water and is much gentler on clothes.

My parents have one of those Fisher-Paykel top-loaders, and are pleased with it.

We have Kenmore front-loading washer and dryer. Love them for the same reasons the others have mentioned but I think the lack of beating up on the laundry is the best. Things do not need to be replaced as often. All those work clothes that say "hand-wash" turn out just fine in the delicate cycle of the front loader - something I never would do when we had the top. As others have mentioned, we also leave the door of the washer open when not in use.

Wahhh, I so want a front-load washer!! But our laundry room is too small to fit one without the door banging into the water heater. :(

Maybe someday we might move the water heater into the garage, or get one of those newfangled tankless water heaters. Either way it'll involve lots of plumbing work, so odds are slim.

So I'll just live vicariously through you all.

Altho, Trek's stacking setup has got me pondering ... :)

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Originally Posted by Trek420

The whole remodel idea started when I realized how much more space I'd have, have much more user-friendly the half bath/laundry could be with a stacking washer drier combo. :rolleyes: little did I know what I was starting with that.

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Isn't it funny how major remodels can sometimes begin from the smallest projects?

We just finished a full remodel of our master bathroom, which started out when Lee was going to replace the floor tiles and found rotting wood under the tiles. :rolleyes:

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Originally Posted by jobob

Isn't it funny how major remodels can sometimes begin from the smallest projects?

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It started with one word.

After my 5th ALC (counting the one I crewed and the one I led training rides. I now count those because crewing is harder) "coach" Spazzdog ordered me in one word:

"nest!" :cool:

For years my condo was where I ate and slept. :confused: make that slept because the kitchen was non-functioning.

I worried with stacking w/d could I reach the drier. I'm five foot nuthin' but it's very easy.

We bought LG about a year ago I think they were the next down from the top of the line because we didn't want to pay extra for the fancy, full lcd display panel. We've been quite happy with them, but like someone said, there's a potential for problem from left-behind water. We wipe down the door and gasket after each load and leave the door open to air dry.

I have the Kenmore Elites H4 series along with the pedestals for each. I've had them close to 3 years I think. I would go out tomorrow and purchase them all over again if they broke down. I am amazed at how they wash and dry the garments. Yes they are an investment compared to regular washer/dryers, but I so love them. The pedestals make the dryer/washer sit at least a good 1 to 1 1/2 feet off the floor, so there is hardly any bending over for me at all when I do the laundry. NOT that I couldn't use the bending to improve the core strength but I'm wimpy:D. I use one pedestal for all my detergents/cleaning supplies and I keep all my bike cleaning stuff in the other one. Good luck with your purchase, you won't regret it.

We have a Miele 4660. We chose it because the drum is designed to put less wear on clothes than many other machines; it has a good wool cycle; and it has a superfast spin cycle, almost as fast as our previous machine which was a top loader with a separate extractor. We're very happy with the Miele. Does a nice job of cleaning. Uses less water than our old machine did. And the clothes come out of the spin cycle pretty much dry enough to iron. Not that I ever bother to iron anything :rolleyes:, but this probably saves time and energy on the dryer step of the process.

We're going to be buying one shortly, we were thinking about Bosch.

Bosch, yup.

I have a small one but am pleased :)

We have Maytag front loaders. We have the Neptune washer and the less expensive Atlantis dryer (same profile - so they basically match). The washer spins out so much water that the clothes are practically dry when they come out! Most things are totally dry after just one night on the drying rack or in about 15 minutes in the dryer. Amazing! It really does get clothes cleaner than our old model, too.

I don't leave the door open because the light would remain on. Doesn't anyone else have that issue? I've never had a mildew/mold problem except for the one time my H ran a load and then forgot about it for a week. Ick. One bleach load of white towels and we were back in business (I no longer use bleach and still have no mold issues). We've had ours for just over 5 years now...

At work we had a Maytag Neptune. It cleaned those dog-poopied blankets right up. The only problem in 3 years was when a ball-point pen came apart and the little plastic ink cartridge/ballpoint got jammed in the pump. Otherwise if dealt with a lot of filth just fine.

At home, when our 28 yr old top-loading Maytag died, we figured we would never get anything that would outlast it, but we did want to use less water. We got a Whirlpool Duet HT, that we have had for about 3 yrs now. It is great. I particularly like that for bed sheets and towels you have the choice of a cycle that lasts longer and the washer heats the water above what your hot water heater is set for. Since it is a point of use heater, it only heats the water for one wash, so you get the benefits of a really hot wash, without wasting energy. We have not had any problems with it.