Re: OT. Need new washer

In article <b7e15$48461240$30852@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>,
Olwyn Mary <Olwynmary@xxxxxxx> wrote:

My washing machine is malfunctioning, and as when I looked up the
paperwork I discovered that it is 14 years old (how did that happen? My
new washer!!)I decided I might as well buy a new one.

I want another top-loader for various reasons, so I need recommendations
from others who have ones they like. The current one, although highly
recommended, is a Sears model, and the bad thing about it is that it
twists the clothes into ropes. I am hoping for one which does not do
that. I don't want TOL - in my book, more bells and whistles = more
things to go wrong. I just need hot, warm or cold water settings and
regular or gentle wash. Everything else I can set up manually.

No doubt you'll hear many people rave about front loaders so I thought
I'd share another view. After two years using a front loader (TOL
Bosch), I have very mixed feelings about them. In fact, I'm not sure
I'll ever get another one... and I emphasize the "not sure" part because
some of my concerns may be brand related.

Not long ago, I learned that more than 80% of water usage in the US goes
into crop irrigation and that the vast majority of that is very
wasteful, overhead irrigation. I admit that made me very resentful that
American women (well we're mostly the ones who do the laundry) seem to
be shouldering the brunt of the responsibility for reducing water usage.
This mostly takes the form of front-loading washers, low water
dishwashers and low-flow faucets. I've seen many people complain about
DW detergent residue problems. And I don't know anyone who appreciates
having to wait longer for the same amount of water to come out of the
darn faucet.

Things I like about my front loader include faster, adjustable spin
cycle, lower power consumption, less detergent and larger load capacity.
What a convenience it is for washing quilts and duvets. My list of
concerns is much longer, however. I do not like all the bending over
(and I do have a pedestal). Light knows I bend over enough doing other
things. I hate that long items like long shirt sleeves get the laundry
all tangled up in a big ball in the tub, throwing the machine off
balance. Then I have to stop it, untwist and remove all the laundry,
and reload it so it can finish spinning properly. Even when I do the
shirts alone, I still have the problem, though to a lesser degree. And
that defeats several of the alleged "features" of FLWs.

More problems. My machine simply does not use enough water under any
cycle or setting. Either the clothes don't get clean enough or the
detergent isn't rinsed out properly (I use only liquid). Early on, I
was starting to get little holes in the clothes from detergent--- and I
was using only 1 - 3 TB per load! So, I have to add water manually to
each load and I have to set it to run the bleach cycle w/o bleach so the
clothes get sufficient water for rinsing. In addition, I now have to
presoak many more things to get them clean.

Another problem is not being able to manually adjust the time of the
soak cycle. One - two hours is all you get; the machine decides. I
cannot leave the clothes soak all night unless I manually turn the
machine off and start it again. I do that often.

In short, I've come to mostly hate my front-loading Bosch and would
certainly not recommend that brand of anything. I never had ANY of
these problems with my Maytag top loader. What a pity Maytag was bought
out. I sincerely hope that others have had better experiences with
their FLWs. I'd like to think there are actually good ones.

Phae
--
"The tree of Liberty must be refreshed from time to time
with the blood of patriots and tyrants."
-- Thomas Jefferson
.

Relevant Pages

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