Washers - Front Load vs. Top Load

[Dr. Hardcrab]

"David Starr" wrote

You got an Edsel in the driveway too???

;-]

[Doug Kanter]

I'll add one more thing. When the appliance dealer delivered my refrigerator (a really big one), one guy unloaded it from the back of the truck himself, gently and quickly. Very impressive. He told his partner he preferred to do it alone for some reason. Everything went smoothly.

When the same two guys delivered the washer and dryer, they had a devil of a time getting the washer in the house and into the cellar. They both commented that for whatever reason, some front loading washers are a bitch to move, compared with top loaders. If you buy a front loader and intend to bring it home and install it yourself, you might want to have more than one helper around, just in case, and depending on your physical condition.

[William Brown]

They still have an agitator, don't they? I had understood that lack of an agitator was one of the big advantages of the front-loaders, as your fabrics suffer less wear without the agitator, so they last longer.

[Rick]

>

That's a lot of hooey. There's nothing gentle about being dropped 2 or 3 feet hundreds of times (and spun at 1000 RPM) every wash cycle.

[Red Cloud©]

>

The configuration and action of the Fisher & Paykel agitator is completely different than what you are familiar with. I guess you really would have to see one working. It's very kind to the clothes.

rusty redcloud

[Doug Kanter]

> >

My machine rotates the drum very gently, almost to the point where, when I first got it, I wondered if it would actually get things clean. It does. And, the spin cycle is adjustable. For towels, I select warp speed. For pretty much everything else, normal or gentle. No problems with clothing showing premature wear.

[zxcvbob]

It's a big deal when you are washing a quilt or something really big and bulky like that. If it can't circulate in a toploader, the agitator can wear a hole in the fabric in just one washing.

Bob

[Douglas Johnson]

We bought the first generation of the Maytag Neptune in 1997 or 98. This one has the mechanical controls and has run flawlessly. We bought it because it seemed to be better built than the top-of-the-line top loader.

There were screws where the top loader had clips, there were screw clamps where the top loader had spring clamps, stainless steel where the top loader had plastic, and generally beefier components.

Absolutely no regrets.

-- Doug

[Joshua Putnam]

We have an LG Tromm front-loader that's both washer and dryer in one unit. We first looked at it to save space, which it certainly does, but it has other benefits, too.

It uses very little water, especially on less-soiled cycles. Unlike some front-loaders, the water level never gets above the door seal, so you can stop it and add something mid-load.

It uses a different drying system than a standard tumble-dry machine, the clothes aren't continuously tumbled and don't fray off gobs of lint in every load. The other advantage of the drying system is that it doesn't need a blower vent, the water vapor is condensed and goes down the drain.

It has a range of spin speeds -- on the slowest setting it's gentle enough for heirloom patchwork quilts, at 1100RPM it gets towels almost dry enough to use without the dry cycle. And it's direct drive so it's very quiet. Ours is on the second floor of a 100-year- old house, simple wood plank flooring, 2x8 joists on 24" centers spanning 16 feet, so the floor is limber by modern standards, but you can't hear the washer running immediately below it in the living room.

It's extremely energy efficient compared to the traditional top-load washer and front-load dryer it replaced. It doesn't even use 240V for the dryer, a standard 110/10A outlet is plenty.

It has a "sanitary" cycle, with an internal heater that boosts the wash water to 167F. Great for my clothes after working in the crawlspace that used to be infested with stray cats ;-)

My favorite feature is that, since it's washer and dryer in one, you don't have to come back after the wash starts and put everything in the dryer. Load the washer, start it, and come back to a load of clean, dry clothes ready to put away.

[me]

How much does this unit cost?

And where did you buy it in the US?

[Curly Sue]

If the dryer doesn't tumble, do the clothes come out wrinkled? I stayed at a friend's house in Germany years ago and observed the effects of a non-tumbling dryer. I was horrified at the baked-in wrinkles. I can deal with lint. Ironing, not so much.

Sue(tm) Lead me not into temptation... I can find it myself!

[Joshua Putnam]

The clothes tumble, but not constantly -- they're warmed and tumbled gently every few minutes to avoid setting wrinkles. It works quite well in my experience, some shirts that needed ironing after the standard dryer don't in this one.