NBR: washing machine

jen4ny · May 2013

I have to buy a washing machine for our new house. So I have been researching different types of washers and there are so many choices and opinions about what is the best. I have read a lot of reviews that the newer HE machines aren't that great- they don't clean clothes well because they use less water, the computer parts break frequently, etc. Then I read reviews that say they are great. Other reviews say stick with an old fashioned machine that isn't HE and has an agitator.

So please tell me the good, bad, and ugly about your washer. What brand/type do you have and do you like it?

Has anyone ever heard of Speed Queen washers? They are the old fashioned type washing machine and seems to get great reviews online.

ldcoffel · May 2013

cmoosey:
We have an LG HE front loader. I've never had issues. The only thing is that we keep a towel down with it so we can wipe down the washer door and rubber seal so no mold issues come up. We leave the door open when we don't use it too.

Same!

LG HE Front Loader. No problems at all, and I've had it 3 or 4 years?

I do leave the door open when not I use to prevent mold. And I have ad a funky smell, but I bought "Washing Machine Detergent" and put it on clean cycle and resolved it easy.

If you get a front loader, I would recommend the pedestal that go underneath. I don't have them and you have to bend down pretty low each time you reach in.

SusieBW · May 2013

Just hearing about the mold issues and everything else about the newer HE front-loader machines has me unwilling to get one. Also, for me, I can't stand bending down to put clothes in and take them out of my front-loaded dryer and I can't even imagine the hell on my back that would be doing that with a front loading washer of heavy wet clothes. So if I were to ever get a front loading washer, I would need it to be up on a platform or something so that I didn't have to bend down.

We need a new washer, too. The one we have now was left at our house by the previous owners, and is probably 15 years old.

I just found this Consumer Reports article, in case you haven't already done enough research. Wink

MsCrispy · May 2013

We have an HE front-loader. It is either a Samsung or LG...I don't remember. We've had it about 4 years and have had no problem.

I think it does a great job. We use it for cloth diapers as well and we have pretty much no stains. It gets our cloths clean and I think it is nicer on the cloths since the agitator isn't beating the crap out of them.

For the mold issue, our laundry room is in the basement, so people don't see it, so we just keep the washer door open. Leaving the door open until it dries should work. If your washer is more visible and you keep the door closed, you are supposed to clean it about once a month with bleach or something like that.

Ours is a pretty fancy one with lots of options. It has a steam function that we never use, so I'm not sure I would recommend that feature. Ours does have a button for extra water, which is a great option. People often complain that HE washers use too little water for towels, so ours has an option to override that.

Amelia4 · May 2013

A year ago I bought a Maytag Bravos XL top loader without agitator. It's huge with a 4.6 cu. ft. capacity. The fact that I went from 8-10 loads a week to 3 is amazing and a serious time saver. Everything gets cleaner than before, too, so no issues with that here. This type doesn't seem to have as many mold issues as the front loaders and I haven't had a problem at all. In fact, I usually leave the lid down and never noticed so much as a smell. Time will tell how they hold up, but I bought mine from a local place that does their own repairs and I have a good warranty. They won't last 20 years, but that's fine with me.

A coworker just recently bought a Speed Queen set. Those might actually last 20 years as there are no plastic parts and they are built very solidly. However, the capacity is much, much less than my capacity and so that's the tradeoff I made. Good luck with the decision.

My only other advice is to ask where the closest repairmen are for a particular brand. I initially fell in love with an LG set. However, there are no LG repair techs in my city; the closest are 2.5 hours away. Thus, once the 1 or 2 year warranty is up, it's not worth it to get it fixed as the cost to get the repair man to you is insane. Home Depot and Lowe's were dodgy on this point, assuring me there were "a number of LG repairmen in town" but couldn't come up with a single name.

mnewlee · May 2013

I'm just going to suggest that if you get an HE get a good one. I have a cheapie HE top loader and while it works fine for clothes there is no way to override the settings and that gets aggravating with diapers.

One thing I love about the top loading HE is that I can fit a king sized comforter in it. Otherwise if I had it to do again I'd get a regular washer.

My mom had a Speed Queen vacuum. That thing lasted like 20 years before it finally gave out. (I suspect it would have lasted longer if she didn't have 2 daughters who were pretty hard on it). It's a very good brand.

Pips09 · May 2013

We have a HE top loader. I don't like the front loaders, so we go tthe top loader, and it is great!

ETA- we have never had a mold issue, but we leave the top open often when it's not in use.We also clean it regularly with a washing agent. The top loader is bigger, and has a bigger opening, so it can take bigger items and larger loads.

shelley1002 · May 2013

We have just a regular top loader from GE. We have had no issues. My only complaint is that I cannot put our king size comforter in it. But a trip to the laundromat every so often is not awful to wash it.

Cotton · May 2013

I've had a HE front loader for over a year and have never heard of keeping it open to dry out and prevent mold.....then again, the whole "when not in use" concept is unheard of to me, too. Stick out tongue

memali26 · May 2013

ldcoffel:
cmoosey:
We have an LG HE front loader. I've never had issues. The only thing is that we keep a towel down with it so we can wipe down the washer door and rubber seal so no mold issues come up. We leave the door open when we don't use it too.
Same!
LG HE Front Loader. No problems at all, and I've had it 3 or 4 years?
I do leave the door open when not I use to prevent mold. And I have ad a funky smell, but I bought "Washing Machine Detergent" and put it on clean cycle and resolved it easy.
If you get a front loader, I would recommend the pedestal that go underneath. I don't have them and you have to bend down pretty low each time you reach in.

We have an LG set, too. We've had it for 4 years, though it spent one of those years in storage, and I'm really happy with it. We do leave the door open when it's not running, and no mold issues so far. It does large loads and everything comes out clean. And it's really pretty compared to the old crappy set we used to have

missbrightside10 · May 2013

We have an HE Kenmore top loader. love it! It fits so many more clothes than one with an agitator. I can even wash my big queen comforter.

jen4ny · May 2013

Thank you for your opinions and info! It helps to hear about different experiences with washers.

SusieBW- that article was great- thanks for sharing.

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NBR: washing machine

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