OT - 'big' washing machines

It'd suit me to have a washing machine that would take more than a nominal

5kg. I'm looking in the range of 8 - 12kg, using JL's site for research, but would like to know a couple of things.

How does a machine that has the standard cabinet (60x60x85cm approx.) manage to take twice as much? The ISE machine has a drum volume of 60li for 8kg and my present AEG a volume of about 50 - 55li (not easy to know how much is available when the door is shut and small child not available). It just doesn't gel on these figures.

There's also the matter of small quantities: 3kg in a 5kg machine is one thing; in a 12kg machine...?

Now, the old question: what make, and possibly range (Bosch springs to mind) would be OK? Miele go to 8kg and the Siemens are also 8kg. Most of the others - AEG, Bosch, LG, Samsung do 9 - 12kg. I'm happy to spend £500 (probably a bit low for a good machine) to £800 or so. Won't look at less than 5 years' warranty - and here ISE begings to look like £300+ for an extra 5 years.

Thanks.

Reply to
PeterC
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Would not 2 normal ones offer more flexibility (at a cost in space obviously)?

Reply to
John Rumm

No it doesn't. My current Hotpoint claims 8kg. My previous Hotpoint with similar drum size was 5kg, quite typical of machines 25 years ago when bought.

I suspect there's actually no difference at all between them, but new machines nowadays have much shorter life expectancy, in which case they can handle larger loads as they're not expecting to survive the same number of loads.

I think I would have struggled to fit 5kg in the old machine (I can't think of anything particularly dense which I ever wash), and it would be even harder to find 8kg to fit in the current one. Clothes won't wash if they're jammed in so they won't move.

I don't think that matters nowadays - it's a long time (more than

25 years) since machines had minimum loads.

Yes, that's probably near the life expectancy of most of today's machines, rather than the 10-20 years they used to be designed for.

Reply to
Andrew Gabriel

I'm guessing the bigger capacity is for the duvet

Reply to
stuart noble

We changed from one Bosch (standard size) to a larger capacity one. Not obvious differences, but I think the tub and drum are a bit larger. Suspect that they have reduced gap between tub and casing, improved suspension to avoid collisions when spinning up with that reduced gap, and things like that.

However, being only two adults, we don't ever need that extra capacity.

Reply to
polygonum

Good idea - cheap, 5kg, machine, pair of scissors and an extension... :-)

Reply to
PeterC

True. Washing action is 'mixing' and that needs 2 different densities (liquid - gas; liquid - metal as per spray paint can), so too much in not only reduces the washing action but rinsing as well.

My ~10yo AEG doesn't like e.g. 3 towels and nowt else. Similar weight of small items is OK.

I do about 70 - 80 washes per year; that's about 20 years' worth cf a family and I'm 66, so it might just last.

Reply to
PeterC

Haven't you tried it with a single big item? I wouldn't put even a single duvet in my present machine. It'll do one pillow, sort of, but the drum needs another 10cm dia. ideally for that - won't go in 60cm.

Reply to
PeterC

Actually, not sure! We don't wash pillows - just use good quality, thicker pillow protectors (and wash them regularly) and replace the pillows after a number of years.

We did not choose or buy the machine so simply use it for what we need, and we probably would not have paid extra for 8 kg had it been our choice.

Reply to
polygonum

We have a 8kg Bosch, but it won't take our double duvet. That's a whopping £18 a pop down the laundrette :(

Reply to
Lobster

Its half true. A jammed in duvet will wash, but certainly not as well. Its workable if its washed twice, ideally with duvet removed and reloaded betwe en washes. Turn spin speed down to avoid overloading the mechanics. Its als o necessary to put a piece of scrap fabric between load and glass to avoid wearing holes in the cloth. An extra set of 3 rinses at the end is a good m ove too. So its doable, if inelegant.

Reply to
meow2222

I've just been to JL. The chap there said that even 11 - 12kg machines wouldn't take a double duvet but would take a single one.

Reply to
PeterC

workable if its washed twice, ideally with duvet removed and reloaded between washes. Turn spin speed down to avoid overloading the mechanics. Its also necessary to put a piece of scrap fabric between load and glass to avoid wearing holes in the cloth. An extra set of 3 rinses at the end is a good move too. So its doable, if inelegant.

And wasteful - all that water for one item. Mind, as I found out recently, washing by hand ain't exactly good, either.

Reply to
PeterC

A few years ago I started to use a thick, padded pillow slip (from Aldidl) and a pillow case. Both are washed every time I change the bed (linen!).

Reply to
PeterC

This thread has degenerated to washing your dirty linen in public...

Reply to
Andrew Gabriel

On Friday 15 February 2013 18:32 PeterC wrote in uk.d-i-y:

It's education to do a hand wash just to remind yourself:

1) How much water it uses;

2) What a tedious PITA it is.

I had that reminder holidaying in Latvia in 1997. Washing clothes in a bath

- horrible. This is just me, rising a couple of shirts, underwear and pair of trousers. Later on, I found myself in theh countryside on the river Daugava. Washing clothes on a smooth boulder whilst standing in the water and rinsing in the river was about 1/10 the effort. Would not do that in winter though!

Reply to
Tim Watts

It is also instructive to look back at how much work one still had to do using a twin-tub, or way back in childhood with a washer (with mangle) when the big step forward was a spin dryer.

Chris

Reply to
Chris J Dixon

. Its workable if its washed twice, ideally with duvet removed and reloaded between washes. Turn spin speed down to avoid overloading the mechanics. I ts also necessary to put a piece of scrap fabric between load and glass to avoid wearing holes in the cloth. An extra set of 3 rinses at the end is a good move too. So its doable, if inelegant.

Not wasteful at all, its water well used. (A large machine uses twice as mu ch water per wash). Water is one resource we have to excess.

Hand washing a double duvet.... I made that mistake once. It weighs a ton w hen wet.

NT

Reply to
meow2222

workable if its washed twice, ideally with duvet removed and reloaded between washes. Turn spin speed down to avoid overloading the mechanics. Its also necessary to put a piece of scrap fabric between load and glass to avoid wearing holes in the cloth. An extra set of 3 rinses at the end is a good move too. So its doable, if inelegant.

water per wash). Water is one resource we have to excess.

and, with that sort of weight and size, there's a risk of damage due to lifting by an edge - this is why a good Wool Wash is better than handwash.

Reply to
PeterC

--snip--

Wow. Are there still laundrettes?

We have a large Bosch (Maxx model) as we are a large household. It doesn't seem to spin as well as the previous machine and did not like being on a suspended floor.

Reply to
Mark

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