New Washer/Drier?

Looking at replacing our old washer & drier & was thinking of a front loader but read reviews about water staying in the tub & mildew smell unless you keep the door open...Anyone have any recommendations as to type (Front or top loading) & specific models? (like to keep it under $1200.00/pair)

Keeping it under $1,200 for the pair leave out the front loaders that I've seen. Last year we almost bought a new washer. My cousin comes here to do her laundry & thought we should have a new one. (and she'd pay for it). We looked long & hard at front loaders & just couldn't make ourselves happy. They are more efficient, less water, less soap, but have some issues. As you mentioned, some seem to hold water. Also they spin much faster and if off balance will shake the rivets out of the refridgerator. One model, if it senses it's off balance, refills with water, sloshes, and tries again. After three tries I guess it leaves a note on the kitchen table telling you to go hang them on the line. The other thing I've read is that they spin so hard the clothes need to be individually shaken out before they go in the dryer. So we decided on another top loader, then decided if we were going to do that, we didn't need a new one. We told her to keep her money until this one dies.

Someone.... Yanche?.... has a front loader that's different than most. Perhaps he'll chime in and tell us about that.

Dick

I don't have one myself but I know several who do. Most bought Bosch and love them and the ones who didn't now said they wished they spent a little extra and got the Bosch. Personaly, if there's only 2 of you using it I don't think they're worth the extra money.

Dick,

We bought an LG front loading set 1 year ago and leave the washer door open for an hour or so and have no problems with mildew. I make a mess of my clothes because my wheelchair rubs on my pants and everything I carry goes in the lap, so wood, tools etc are always making a mess of things and I finally have clean clothes, even my white dress shirts no longer have the ring around the collar. We got them because I have a hard time reaching the bottom of the washer from the wheelchair, but have found we really like the clean clothes too. I guess my arms are shrinking with age.

We have had no problems like Freddy mentioned, and I have washed king size comforters, 10 pair of jeans etc. I loed the hell out of it and it seems to do very well. Just make sure you balance the feet, otherwise it will rattle your teeth. We had that problem with the first load.

kootch88 wrote:We bought an LG front loading set 1 year ago and leave the washer door open for an hour or so and have no problems with mildew.

Thanks for the replies.........After doing some research online, it appears that this mildew smell problem is systemic to front loaders.....They are evidently prone to retaining water & require special procedures, like your keeping the door open, etc. I guess my attitude is that if we can land men on the Moon, we should be able to make front load washers that drain completely!
Our washer/drier is about 10 years old & still works, so.............I'm not going to go out & throw money away on more products designed by accountants rather than engineers!

Unless they solve the draining problem b4 we need to buy new equipment, I'll just go out buy the old, tried & true....top loaders.

We have a Maytag front loader, keep the door closed all the time , never had a problem in four years.
Ray

I have a Staber brand front loader style washer. See:

http://www.staber.com/product/810024

It's a front loader style but you really don't load it from the front. The drum rotates on a horizontal axis with support bearings on both the front and back. I bought it because of that design feature. It's unlike all other front loaders which have a single rear support bearing. You load it from the top, through a door that's part of the drum. My wife and I both love it. It uses much less water than a conventional agitator washer. You must use HE detergent, bleach and fabric softener. I bought it at list price from a dealer. It was hard finding a dealer that had one in stock and I had a several hour drive to get there. Most buyers just have it factory direct shipped. It's pricey but it's well designed and can be repaired by homeowners. It uses a high torque DC motor that is controlled in speed and direction for the various wash cycles.

First I agree with Freddy, keeping it under 1,200 for the pair is a problem. I can tell you what brand and model NOT to buy. Don't buy a Maytag Neptune. They were one of the first front loaders out there and I bought them to save water etc. Every part on this piece of sh*t has been replaced at least once. They are lemons. Do a google search on maytag neptune and look at all the class action lawsuits. The washer alone was 1,000.00

coalkirk wrote:First I agree with Freddy, keeping it under 1,200 for the pair is a problem.

I was looking at the Whirlpool Duet series & they make a smaller pair that would be just around my price range, on sale....but now I'm leery of spending that kind of money to buy a headache!
Anyone else have good luck (no smell) from a front loader?

Front loader smell - use organic detergents. Seriously. The ones like Tide and other regular detergents often contain animal fats and by-products which contribute to the smell. Once we figured this out, we eliminated all odor problems. They cost a bit more but are worth every penny.

We have a Frigidaire set. It's okay except that it doesn't have a soak cycle on it and is really finicky on being off-balance. You definitely need to have a couple heavy items in the washer to balance things.

A regret is that we didn't foresee the release of the steam clean varieties they have out now.

We have the steam clean/dryer and see little advantage in the dryer, but the washer gets anything out.

Anyone know anything about this GE?

http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/sto ... 500022+780

Never have had any kind of problem with the maytag neptune in the four or five years ..... nock nock on wood. Oh yea, we use Tide... no smell problems, maybe its the bleech that does the trick... don't know never heard of it before till I read the posts.

"We" bought the Kenmore 417 series in 2005 and "we" are very happy with them. No mold problems. The dryer will sound like a helicopter if the legs are not adjusted for level. Very little soap to wash, and very little heat to dry. Very happy with the combo.

Price was $1050 for the set, about what they are today with their 3 Day Sale going on right now. We negotiated the price down at the local store. Throw them a grand, bet they'd bite. The set is cheaper because it uses a dial rather than electronic buttons. Maybe it is just me, but don't you prefer knobs on your car radio? Sales guy said it was a face saving way to market to tightwads. (Like coal burners )
We like the dial just fine.

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_1260 ... 000P?mv=rr

coalmeister wrote:"We" bought the Kenmore 417 series in 2005 and "we" are very happy with them.

Thanks for the info.....

Seems to me that these models are all the same..made for GE, Sears, Frigidaire, etc.
I wonder if they are all the same but with different names on them?