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.
I got an LG front loader about six months ago, and so far so GOOD. Love it. No issues yet with smells. I think it comes down to letting it dry out and following recommendations for cleaning.
Unless you are willing to hand wipe the gasket on the door after every use, get a top loader. When water sits in that warm dank environment you are asking for smell.
We’ve had a Maytag stack, washer/dryer, for 15 years. No problems whatsoever.
Be prepared to repairyhe door latch within a year frim the pressure.
they are fine just dont try and cram it to the gills on the other hand top loaders give a bigger thrill on spin
I don’t like mine because of the mildew problem you mentioned. However, it seems to do well cleaning the clothes.
I saw one kick a puppy once.
One thing she's always bitching about -- 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. I don't know if a lot of front end loaders have this feature, but its something to watch out for.
Do a Google search of “top load vs front load”. You’ll find 1000’s of reviews, with professional input on many.
Had ours for 3.5 years now. Love it. We leave the door open after the weekly washing.
That’s all we’ve had for many many years. Never a problem.
In college, they had the commercial front load washers in the dorms. Never had a problem with them getting clothes clean the first time, as long as you loaded them properly. Can’t speak for any maintenance or smell issues, but I know they did have a contractor come out do to preventative maintenance and break/fix work.
be prepared to get some typing classes
and as far as cleaning cloths, watch one in action, the cloths tumble over and over not just sloshed side to side like a top loader
Our top loader LG washer has no agitator in the middle, first time I have seen that.
They make it easier for little children to get a good bath.
I don’t have issues with my front loader, but after having it for about 8 years, I will go back to top loader when this set wears out. I find it uncomfortable ( if that’s the right word) to transfer the wet to the dryer in a lateral move. I have to take all wet out to a basket then move basket to bottom of dryer to load— a pain. Doors get in the way. I really wish they would make a top loading dryer too.
I do not know anyone who would not rather have their old
school machine back.
I researched like crazy 2years ago and bought speed queen.
A bit noisy and only comes in white but it is Awesome ! You can put as much water in as you like, start it and stop it when and as you wish. Great machine. May bu
y a second one for my kids. The EPA will do away with them as soon as they can cause they do not want you being in control.
I suppose it’s theoretically possible to design a good one, but the MBA’s they let in the executive suites fired all the real engineers that know stuff, and replaced them with CAD operators. Hey, if you can work the CAD program, that should automagically turn you into not only a good draftsman, but a good engineer, right?
Anyway, the upshot is that they don’t know how to design the support for a cantilevered rotating load, so the drum bearings all go to hell (and are VERY expensive to impossible to replace).
They also use crap material that goes to shit in the damp and chemicals, thus further complicating repair.
Add to that, that EPA is influencing the design of new appliances so of course they’re going to cost a fortune and not work (think the Obamacare of appliance design). Just get a used Maytag Dependable Care or an old Whirlpool.
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