Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Are front loading washing machines bad?
vanity | 1-29-2014 | Servo1969

Posted on 01/29/2014 7:47:36 PM PST by servo1969

I'm planning on buying a new washer and dryer in the next few months and my wife has always wanted a front loading washer.

Everyone I talk to including my mother, my sister and my best friend's wife tells me whatever I do DO NOT get a front loading washing machine.

I have been told they get mildew-y, they leak, they tear up easily and that they just don't clean your clothes as well as a good top loader.

All my washers to date have been top loaders and, excluding a part here or there, have each lasted more than a decade. I have never paid to have a washer repaired because I do the work myself. This has made me pretty familiar with their inner workings but I've never owned a front loader and have no personal experience with them.

So, my question is to anyone who owns or has owned a front loading washer. Are they really as bad as people say? Because the impression I keep getting is that they start out fine but end up being way more trouble than they are worth.


TOPICS: Chit/Chat
KEYWORDS: front; frontloader; frontloaderwasher; machine; washer; washing
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-20 ... 81-100101-120121-140141-150 next last
To: USNBandit
One note on the Duet (and several other brands I have read about). My duet stopped draining properly and the door stayed locked with clothes in it. Of course this happened to the wife while I was gone on a business trip, two days later I got home and got to pull the thing apart to drain the tub.

My duet has a trap to keep the pump from ingesting materials. You need to clean that every once in a while. If it gets jammed up with junk and the tub is full there isn't really a good way to drain that tub.

Thanks. I noticed the same thing. Our kids have done their own laundry since they were very young... I couldn't believe the junk that had collected in that trap-- but good thing it did-- rather than ruin the impellers. Luckily it's not a big deal to clean it.

101 posted on 01/29/2014 9:53:10 PM PST by IncPen (When you start talking about what we 'should' have, you've made the case for the Second Amendment)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 91 | View Replies]

To: Zionist Conspirator

You know when your grand-kids get to acting up you can throw them in there too.

102 posted on 01/29/2014 9:58:30 PM PST by McGruff (I'm a conservative. Not necessarily a republican.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]

To: servo1969

If you get one, take the time and effort to read and follow the operating, care and maintenance instructions. I know a lot of people think this is nerdy, and oversized egos resist the implication that they don’t inherently know everything already, but following the few critical tips that you wouldn’t get if you fail to do this makes all the difference.

“There are thousands of ways to do things the wrong way but only one or two ways to do it right.”


103 posted on 01/29/2014 10:07:10 PM PST by fwdude ( You cannot compromise with that which you must defeat.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: servo1969

My wife loves hers. The darn thing gets clothes clean I’ll say that. You avoid mildew by leaving the door open.

Model is Kenmore HE5t.


104 posted on 01/29/2014 10:18:43 PM PST by Royal Wulff
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Wyrd bið ful aræd
the door opens the other way than her dryer so the door gets in the way, making switching laundry from washer to dryer that much more of a chore.

The doors open in the direction you specify when you order them.

105 posted on 01/29/2014 10:28:11 PM PST by Jeff Chandler (Obamacare: You can't make an omelette without breaking a few eggs.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 9 | View Replies]

To: dandiegirl
Doors get in the way.

Our washer opens to the left. Out dryer opens to the right. To transfer the wash, we grab the laundry from the washer and put it into the dryer without even moving our feet.

106 posted on 01/29/2014 10:30:28 PM PST by Jeff Chandler (Obamacare: You can't make an omelette without breaking a few eggs.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 18 | View Replies]

To: servo1969

We are happy with ours. Maker sure and order them so that the doors open outward. Also spend the money and get the pedestals. They raise the openings to a nice level for transfering laundry without back strain, and they provide a LOT of storage space.


107 posted on 01/29/2014 10:39:04 PM PST by Jeff Chandler (Obamacare: You can't make an omelette without breaking a few eggs.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: boxlunch
I’d like one that actually lasts several years without breaking down, like the old ones from the 1960s and 10970s.

Even the top loaders don't last that long any more. Read the reviews. it's hard to find a top loader that doesn't leak without spending as much as you would for a front loader.

108 posted on 01/29/2014 10:42:57 PM PST by Jeff Chandler (Obamacare: You can't make an omelette without breaking a few eggs.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 86 | View Replies]

To: pingman

BTW, for anybody who lives in the Phoenix area, go to Spencers. They’ll give you a good deal and won’t high pressure you.
.
(I have no connection to Spencers, other than buying appliances from them over 30 years, after price checking every time.)


109 posted on 01/29/2014 10:46:00 PM PST by Jeff Chandler (Obamacare: You can't make an omelette without breaking a few eggs.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 81 | View Replies]

To: servo1969

Have had a Kenmore(sears) since mid-1999, at that time they near top rated. Used at least three times a week, no repairs at all. The soap is more potent now—so use less.


110 posted on 01/29/2014 11:01:58 PM PST by Scram1
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: servo1969

We have had the Whirlpool Duet front loader for seven years now and have not had a single problem with it. Newer front loaders have fixed the smell issue by designing the gasket to drain away all standing water. When we move to Arizona later on this year we will buy another set of Whirlpool Duets.


111 posted on 01/29/2014 11:13:15 PM PST by AlaskaErik (I served and protected my country for 31 years. Progressives spent that time trying to destroy it.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: servo1969

The most important thing to get in a front load washer is a self heating washer for the sanitary cycle. Really really hot water will clean everything. Really well. In Europe I learned this, where chemicals and bleach are illegal. Not all loads need the sanitary cycle - use them for really dirty stuff or towels (bacteria) and cleaning cloths, sheets, etc.

Also, more water equals better cleaning, so press the extra water button with every load. Don’t fall prey to the save the water freaks.

Next, safety issue: if you have two tiny tots, keep your laundry room locked if you have a front loader. One tot could theoretically put another tot in the washer and turn it on and kill her. Only one tot, they are perfectly safe.

To prevent smells forever, always keep the washer door open. That’s why the previous paragraph is important. If you do get a slight mildew smell from leaving a load overnight in there or something, do a sanitary cycle (empty or with things that need it) with some bleach in there. Try to not let the door stay shut for very long.

We use ours a few times a day and between loads we keep it open and it doesn’t smell. We have had the occasional mildewed load and a hot bleach load will fix it. But people who keep the door shut always WILL get a mildewed machine that may be hard to ever get the stink out.

Rolling the cloth over and over in the drum really cleans it. That stupid “agitator” in the top loaders doesn’t do anything.


112 posted on 01/29/2014 11:46:10 PM PST by Yaelle
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: servo1969

Bought 2006 model in 2007 from Sears. Fantastic machine. Just leave the door open between loads to let the tiny little pool of water in door catch evaporate. No mildew, no odor. These washers give your clothes a clean shower rather than washing them in their own dirt. Whites are whiter, jeans are softer and underwear is a dream :)


113 posted on 01/30/2014 12:20:34 AM PST by poobear (Socialism in the minds of the elites, is a con-game for the serfs, nothing more.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: servo1969

we have one. it leaked. i fixed it. now it works ok for the moment.


114 posted on 01/30/2014 12:20:49 AM PST by dadfly
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: servo1969

I just got done tearing mine apart down to the drum.
Found the mildew - it SEEMS like it is the door gasket, but the real mildew is in the hose leading from the pump out to the top of the back of the washer.

That thing was absolutely filled with rings of mildew.

After cleaning that and the pump basket (omg! How did a ball point pen get through there?), the smell went away.


115 posted on 01/30/2014 12:22:35 AM PST by ImaGraftedBranch (...By reading this, you've collapsed my wave function. Thanks.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Jeff Chandler

I have seen a couple replies on this, but if his Washer and Dryer are opening against each other, they simply need to switch sides. He likely has the dryer on the left, opening to the right, and the washer on the right, opening to the left.

Just swap them. :)


116 posted on 01/30/2014 12:34:05 AM PST by ImaGraftedBranch (...By reading this, you've collapsed my wave function. Thanks.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 106 | View Replies]

To: servo1969

I live in Italy where you can’t buy a top loader. I own a typical European “green” front loader. Bought a decent one; a Samsung. Compared to a US-style top-loader, it sucks. The only wash cycle that seems to get my clothes clean runs for 1 1/2 hours. Unlike a top loader, you can’t fit much in it. It has been reliable, though - no smells, no leaks. But I’d opt for a US-style top loader if I could get my hands on one.


117 posted on 01/30/2014 12:37:15 AM PST by Rocco DiPippo
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: servo1969

Bought a front loader in 2009. It took an obama in 2011... top loader all the way in this house!


118 posted on 01/30/2014 12:46:32 AM PST by JDoutrider
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: servo1969

Yes. Avoid Bosch like the plague that it is.


119 posted on 01/30/2014 1:16:39 AM PST by Check6 (United States of Moronia: A nation of morons ruled by a gang of communist thugs.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: servo1969

we have both kinds - one at camp and a traditional at home - I love the front load because it spins incredibly fast saving fuel on the dryer side - I feel it doesn’t agitate as well since the water volume is not what youd expect - BUT - it get s everything clean...you just have to leave the doors slightly ajar when done or else it will get musty. I prefer it to the traditional


120 posted on 01/30/2014 3:42:47 AM PST by Revelation 911
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-20 ... 81-100101-120121-140141-150 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson