Washers & Dryers (1 Viewer)

[Jeff Perry]

I'm in the market. Tell me about your clothing maintenance machines: The good, the bad, and the ugly. What do you use? What's good? Is a $1,200 washer really worth the money? I'd rather go top of the line here than buy cheap, but only if it makes sense to do so.

My washer & dryer are Whirlpools. They're 7 years old and cost about $800 for the pair when they were new. I've had to fix the washer on several occasions: A wire came loose and let the motor sit and burn for awhile; now the contacts on the motor start switch are oxidized and have to be cleaned with sandpaper every few months to keep it going. There is some rusty looking stuff on the plastic, which doesn't make sense. To top it off my wife complains that the dryer doesn't dry as well as it should.

So let's hear it: Which machines care for your clothes the best?

 

[JustinCleveland]

I'm a bit biased, but I've used Speed Queen machines for the last 5 years and have very few problems, even with horrendious abuse from college students and neighbors.

 

[Francois Caron]

One word. Maytag. One piece of advice, pass your hand on the side of the wash drum. If the holes scratch your fingers, they'll do the same to your clothes. If everything's smooth, then you're okay.

 

[Todd Hochard]

We've had a Maytag Neptune front loading washer (and the matching dryer) for five years now, and it has been worth every penny.
First, the washer is silent. The loudest noise from it is the water running to fill it (and it uses about half that of a top loader). Small bit of a nearly silent jet engine type sound when it spins the clothes. That's it.
We had one issue, and that was the door seal getting moldy after a few years. I was going to get around to fixing it myself one day, but I happened to mention it on a mail-in survey I got sent (about this time last year). Someone came and fixed it for free (fours years in, it only came with a two-year warranty), and installed some upgrade to prevent it from happening again.
Dryer has worked flawlessly. It's got the drying sensor, which to this day works fine, so we've never had any issues with overdried/crispy-smelling clothes.

If I don't get at least 10 years out of it(two small kids, so these things see some action ), I'll be surprised. I'm anticipating 15 or so, to be honest.

EDIT- I should also mention that about 5 of our friends/acquaintances have purchased these after hearing our luck, and they've all been completely satisfied, as well.

Todd

 

[aaron campbell]

I would stick with Whirlpool. Maytag is not what they used to be. Are these in a basement? Sounds like excessive moisture to be oxidizing wiring. Also the dryer not drying good sounds like a clogged dryer vent. I run an appliance parts store, and have people coming in wanting heating elements all the time, with clogged vent tubes. 40 ft. is max vent length, every bend is considered 8-9 feet. Adds up quickly.

Aaron

 

[Keith Mickunas]

May have been something like a silent recall, where they fix it if you complain because it was really a fault on their part to begin with, but still that's some damn nice service.

Everything I hear about these front loaders sound great. I'm definitely going in that direction in the next year or two. I've got an older set of Kenmore's I bought used 6 years ago. I can't complain, but I'd like something more effecient and more modern. But one nice thing about Kenmore is that some of the stuff is easy to fix yourself, and you can find the manuals, diagrams and parts online.

 

[Mike OConnell]

I have a Kenmore washer and dryer that are nearly 14 years old and the only repair I had to make was to the washer. The solenoid valve that controls the inlet water to the washer was sticking and the repair was easy.

On the dryer - make sure to clean the lint screen often (I do it before each load). A full lint screen or a long dryer vent can casue overheating and a short life on the dryer.

Another advantage I have is that our water is fairly soft and this will held the appliance last longer due to minimal scale buid-up on components.

Good luck.

Mike

 

[Bob Graz]

Maytag here. On second set in 20 years.

 

[Eric_L]

only one piece of advice - ceramic dryer drum - metal ones will eventually lose some of the paint and then leave rust spots on your clothing...

 

[Craig Robertson]

we have a Maytag Neptune washer and i love it. we've got 4 of the 5 kids living at home so we do a lot of laundry and it saves lots of water and energy compared to our old machine. the initial $1k price is high, but we got a $230 rebate from the state for buying an energy efficient model, and the ongoing energy cost savings make it worthwhile. plus, you can stuff the thing with a huge load of clothes. and it saves on drying time (more money saved!) since it spins so fast for the extraction.
we still use our old gas dryer so the only recommendation i can make is to go gas if you've got it, much cheaper to run than electricity.

 

[Jeff Perry]

They aren't in a basement, but the floor plan of my house puts the laundry room far from any exterior wall. The vent tube runs under the house and is about 25 feet long. Maybe I should try to blow it out with my shop vac?

I also think a front loader is the way to go; should have specified that in my initial post. I'm REALLY liking the Whirlpool Duets:



Especially the nice pedestals you can place underneath the washer and dryer. Adds $300 to the cost for a pair of the pedestals, but worth it for all the storage space you gain.

We do have gas service here, but they didn't run a line to the dryer (or the range) - only to the water heater and furnace. I know I could have one run, but I don't think I would save that much money. They keep increasing the price of gas and I'm paying the same to heat my home as friends with similar homes pay for electric heat. So I'll probably stick with an electric dryer.

I'll have to compare the Neptunes with the Duets. I like the look of the duets better, but am smart enough to know that washing machines & good looks shouldn't go together and not to pay a premium for it.

Thanks for all of the replies thus far with advice, etc! Keep 'em coming!!

 

[Alf S]

We got ourselves Roper(Whirlpool)washer/dryer set about 3 years ago based on the outstanding reliablity ratings they got in Consumer Reports.

I was surprised how Maytage reliability (especially refridgerators) has gotten so bad...at least according to the thousands of readers who replied to the CR survey. That and Epinions etc.

Anyway, both work flawlessly..best of all they're very friendly to the wallet.

 

[Angelo.M]

Kenmore. Our super-capacity washer and drier are 8 years old and have never needed any servicing. They operate just as they did the day we got them. I seem to recall that our particular model was made by Whirpool.

My parents got 20 years out of theirs.

 

[Brian Perry]

My fear (probably unfounded) with the front loaders is that my kids will run by and open the door and all the water will rush out onto the floor. Are there safeguards to prevent that?

 

[DonRoeber]

I still can't figure out why someone hasn't made an all-in-one washer and dryer. I hate moving clothes to the dryer. I always forget, and then two days later, realize that I have a bunch of wet clothes in the washer that need to be rewashed. Can't someone make a device that is good for a lazy person like me?

 

[BrettB]

Check out the EOC (end of cycle) buzzer on whatever dryer you buy.

We bought a GE washer and dryer a couple of years ago. I swear the EOC buzzer that goes off at the end of the drying cycle is about 100 dB, lasts for about 10 seconds and can cause involuntary bowel movements if you're unfortunate enough to be anywhere near it when it goes off. If you don't get up off your lazy backside and turn the dryer off the buzzer will sound multiple times while the dryer continues to run (for about 5 minutes) to prevent wrinkles.

Last weekend the wife couldn't take it anymore and demanded action. I called GE and they said they wouldn't help me as it's "modifying the product" or somesuch. So I cracked it open and found a wiring schematic which I was able comprehend just enough to allow me to disable the horn from hell.

 

[Francois Caron]

IIRC, today's front loading washers only fill up to the bottom of the door. This way, you won't have a sudden flash flood in your basement if the door suddenly flies open.

 

[Jeff Perry]

Here you go Don: http://www.lgwasherdryer.com/

Speaking of, has anyone heard of this LG Electronics? Their machines have the best energy ratings by far of any I've seen. (http://www.lge.com/)

 

[Leila Dougan]

LG is none other than Lucky-Goldstar, the electronics company that's been around for years. I can't vouch for any of their products as of late, but having owned some really bad Goldstar products in the past, I am left with a bad taste in my mouth.

 

[Lew Crippen]

They have and they are very popular in places like Singapore. I absolutely dislike them in the extreme. As with many multipurpose machines, they are not particularly outstanding at either job (IMO) and what is worse, it takes forever to get a complete cycle. Plus to you to wait for the drying to completely finish before you start the next load.

Overall we have expensive front loaders and love them. I’m not sure if we will ever get the money back on reduced energy/water costs, but it feels good in any case. Plus they are the quietest machines we have ever had. And front loaders cause significantly less wear and tear than top loaders (with agitators).