Front Load Washing Machines

[charlz]

My wife bought LG's from Home Depot about 2 years ago. So far so good. She did buy the extended warranty. Front loaders are really intended to go on concrete floors, they vibrate quite a bit more than top loaders. When the washer goes to spin I can feel it in my mouse/keyboard on the second floor if I am on the computer

 

[dmccarty]

We bought a first generation Whirlpool Front Loader back around 2000 or so. We have been happy with it until recently....

The goods:
- Saved us at least $25-50 a month on the water bill. We lived in the city back then and we would spend over $100 a month on water. We did not water the lawn. Using 30 gallons of water to do a load of clothes vs 5-10 adds up quickly. And water prices went up after we left. While we have a well now with good water flow it still costs money to get water.

- With two kids the washer runs constantly even with its large size. The old top loader was not keeping up with the kids 10 years ago and they were just babies. The front loader does more clothes.

- The spin cycle really dries out the clothes. But you had better have the washer on a secure floor. Having it on a second floor could be interesting. Our washer has been in two houses that were built on slabs. So the spin cycle is not an issue for us.

- We like the front loading washer and dryer doors. We find it much easier to reach directly into the machines instead of over and then scrounging around in the washer/dryer to find clothes.

- Cleans the clothes better than our old top loader.

- Could handle the bed spreads which the top loader could not.

The Bads:

- The washer has been acting up lately. It has been getting louder on spin and sometimes not all of the water is out of the drum.

- We had a repair man visit. $1,400 to fix! We are not fixing since a new machine is less than $1,000. The problems are the bearing, a nut holding the drum, the seal, the pump and little of this and that.

- One thing the repair guy said that sent me off. Well there was more than one thing. Was that there are parts of the washer that rust. The washer has stainless steel for the drum but some of the pieces are not SS, rust and cause problems. There are some managers that need to be flogged.

Google whatever brand and model you look at buying and see what turns up. There are very similar problems on most/all of the brands.

Only getting 10 years out of a washer is disgusting. But I will be danged if I know which manufactuer to buy from next. We have Maytag appliances in the kitchen and we have had problems with the dishwasher and fridge. They are five years old. If the fridge's replacement compressor lasts as long as the original we will be lucky to get eight years out of the fridge.

I THINK the Samsung was on our replacement list for the clothes washer. I was looking at Fridges at Lowes quite a while ago and the GE and Samsung fridges were the same. Except in price. GE was a couple hundred dollars cheaper for the exact same model.

We will buy another front loader when the one we have finally blows up. I just don't know which brand.

Later,
Dan

 

[mjarrels]

Just like sun roofs on cars... It's going to leak, just a matter of time.

mark

 

[showcattle]

We bought a first generation Whirlpool Front Loader back around 2000 or so. We have been happy with it until recently....

The goods:
- Saved us at least $25-50 a month on the water bill. We lived in the city back then and we would spend over $100 a month on water. We did not water the lawn. Using 30 gallons of water to do a load of clothes vs 5-10 adds up quickly. And water prices went up after we left. While we have a well now with good water flow it still costs money to get water.

- With two kids the washer runs constantly even with its large size. The old top loader was not keeping up with the kids 10 years ago and they were just babies. The front loader does more clothes.

- The spin cycle really dries out the clothes. But you had better have the washer on a secure floor. Having it on a second floor could be interesting. Our washer has been in two houses that were built on slabs. So the spin cycle is not an issue for us.

- We like the front loading washer and dryer doors. We find it much easier to reach directly into the machines instead of over and then scrounging around in the washer/dryer to find clothes.

- Cleans the clothes better than our old top loader.

- Could handle the bed spreads which the top loader could not.

The Bads:

- The washer has been acting up lately. It has been getting louder on spin and sometimes not all of the water is out of the drum.

- We had a repair man visit. $1,400 to fix! We are not fixing since a new machine is less than $1,000. The problems are the bearing, a nut holding the drum, the seal, the pump and little of this and that.

- One thing the repair guy said that sent me off. Well there was more than one thing. Was that there are parts of the washer that rust. The washer has stainless steel for the drum but some of the pieces are not SS, rust and cause problems. There are some managers that need to be flogged.

Google whatever brand and model you look at buying and see what turns up. There are very similar problems on most/all of the brands.

Only getting 10 years out of a washer is disgusting. But I will be danged if I know which manufactuer to buy from next. We have Maytag appliances in the kitchen and we have had problems with the dishwasher and fridge. They are five years old. If the fridge's replacement compressor lasts as long as the original we will be lucky to get eight years out of the fridge.

I THINK the Samsung was on our replacement list for the clothes washer. I was looking at Fridges at Lowes quite a while ago and the GE and Samsung fridges were the same. Except in price. GE was a couple hundred dollars cheaper for the exact same model.

We will buy another front loader when the one we have finally blows up. I just don't know which brand.

Later,
Dan

Our Neptune did the exact same thing at ten years. Sounded like a jet taking off. Independent repairman said the part was over $600 and on indefinite backorder. Wife stood in line at 4:00 am at Sears on Black Friday and bought a Samsung front loader for $999 for the pair (including dryer). It's not the fanciest Samsung, but is a lot quieter than the Maytag. Does a nice job.

 

[_RaT_]

So lets see, you have two front loaders, a top loader. Seems either your needs are extensive or your really into washing machines or perhaps your house is so big that you can easily fit in 3. Front loaders have been around for a very long time. The large commercial ones are front loaders. Its not so much that there are new ideas on how to slap dirty items around in water although the top loads have had some different methods lately, its mostly that the front loads use considerably less water and without a doubt, can get clothes cleaner with less wear and tear on the clothes. I notice their cycles tend to be longer. Your right about mold, even our top loader gets the lid left open until things air out.

Why are you looking at front loader? I have 2. I often wonder how many ways marketing gurus are going to come up with to sling water through clothes or clothes through water. What good does a front loader do if your wife(mine) continually uses the extra rinse and max extract and heavy soil modes? Doesn't save a darn thing. I have went back to my 35 year old maytag top load that I can repair myself for next to nothing. These new units are POS! For the record my old company had Samsung making machines for them and they were junk. All front loads will eventually have mold if you dont clean/dry out areas in the door. Top loaders do do. Where there is moisture,there is possibiltiy to mold.Save your money.My $.02

 

[_RaT_]

I know several folks that purchased the Neptune's and had nothing but major problems. The door seal tore easily and then that meant water everywhere.

Our Neptune did the exact same thing at ten years. Sounded like a jet taking off. Independent repairman said the part was over $600 and on indefinite backorder. Wife stood in line at 4:00 am at Sears on Black Friday and bought a Samsung front loader for $999 for the pair (including dryer). It's not the fanciest Samsung, but is a lot quieter than the Maytag. Does a nice job.

 

[jwstewar]

Since my wife and I have been married (soon to be 11 years), we have had 3 washers & 2 dryers. First W&D we bought used. Used the washer a couple of years and it crapped out. Bought a new top load top-of-the-line Kenmore. Worked OK, except one hose kept coming loose that was used to run water to push the fabric softener and bleach to the clothes. Had Sears out a couple of times under warranty to "fix" it. Then I worked on it a couple of times and finally figured out what was going on and I fixed it correctly. Dry had to have a new heating element put in. While doing it also put new rollers and belt. Both the new Kenmore and the used dryer then last until the house burned.

We then bought a pair of FL Samsung. It has the vibration reduction in it and it is really quiet. When it starts to spin and it senses vibration it will immediately slow and then maybe stop and switch direction. Pretty slick how it works - and by is it quiet. Can't tell if either one is running except by looking at the pretty control panel. Really gets the clothes dry, dryer has to run a lot less than the old dryer. Only issue we have is with the bleach dispenser. It doesn't disperse the bleach correctly and it will ruin clothes. We have had them out a couple of times to replace stuff but it still does it. Monica has pretty much quit using bleach. Other than that, they have both worked well. Now almost 2 1/2 years of use.

 

[BobRip]

So lets see, you have two front loaders, a top loader. Seems either your needs are extensive or your really into washing machines or perhaps your house is so big that you can easily fit in 3. Front loaders have been around for a very long time. The large commercial ones are front loaders. Its not so much that there are new ideas on how to slap dirty items around in water although the top loads have had some different methods lately, its mostly that the front loads use considerably less water and without a doubt, can get clothes cleaner with less wear and tear on the clothes. I notice their cycles tend to be longer. Your right about mold, even our top loader gets the lid left open until things air out.

We have a Maytag and the mold issue is a problem. We leave the door open when not in use (a nice knee knocker and ugly thing), but occasionally someone will leave it shut. Then we have to run through a 3 hour procedure to remove the mold (start cycle, stop cycle, hand fill with hot water as high as possible, add bleach, run cycle for several minutes, let it sit for 3 hours, and then finish cycle). We do this about twice a year it seems. My wife is upset and will never buy another energy star product. It does clean well, but this mold is a real nuisance. All front loaders seem to have the problem and leaving the door open blocks your walk area.

 

[_RaT_]

We just leave ours cracked.

We have a Maytag and the mold issue is a problem. We leave the door open when not in use (a nice knee knocker and ugly thing), but occasionally someone will leave it shut. Then we have to run through a 3 hour procedure to remove the mold (start cycle, stop cycle, hand fill with hot water as high as possible, add bleach, run cycle for several minutes, let it sit for 3 hours, and then finish cycle). We do this about twice a year it seems. My wife is upset and will never buy another energy star product. It does clean well, but this mold is a real nuisance. All front loaders seem to have the problem and leaving the door open blocks your walk area.

 

[Egon]

We inherited our washing machine from my Grandparents many years ago and its still working fine. It's a top loader with copper tub. No spin dry but has rollers for that. Never had a bit of trouble with it!:thumbsup::thumbsup: