Washer and Dryer - opinions

[Canada 02]

Top load versus Front load

I know the trend is towards front loading machines. They save water and power, less wear and tear on your clothes, but they are a lot more expensive - possibly double the cost of the old school top loading machines, plus you need HE detergent, which is slightly more expensive as well.

Is it worth the additional up front cost? How much do you actually save on your water and power bill? Is there a noticable difference in the cleanliness and wear/tear of your clothes?

opinions please

[llama64]

Soon as I can afford one, I'm replacing my traditional top loading washer with a front loader. Simply because I'm tired of my clothes getting caught in the agitator and getting damaged.

The energy savings are just a bonus.

[Slava]

I switched to front load a few years ago and I'll never buy the top load again. They are just far, far superior! You can cram a lot more into them, and things come out a lot cleaner.

[burn_baby_burn]

I have a front load washing machine. How much water would it save? Just guessing I would say it would use half the amount of water. Doesn't matter how much clothes you put into it. You use the same amount of water.

The thing I like about the front loading machines. You can put a huge pile of clothes in them. Less loads with less water should equal savings on your utilities bill.

I found when I was shopping for appliances. That Trail Appliances had the best prices.

[return to the red]

what's this about HE detergent?

[Canada 02]

^high efficiency detergent. Some (maybe all?) of the front load machine require it, and may void the warrenty if you don't use it

[Fobulous]

I just purchased a pair of front loaders... I won't be able to give you an opinion on them until next year since that is when my house will be built. From the research I did I found that chepest pair of front loaders are still better then your best pair of top loaders...

[redforever]

I got a new washer and dryer this spring. I was not sure which kind do get. Recently, 4 of my friends got the front load. 3 out of 4 are not satisfied at all. They do not feel clothes wash as clean. And there was the problem of adding a missed item to the wash once the cycle had started.

Anyhow, I went with regular top loading, but commercial ones. They have as large a capacity as the front loading, not nearly as expensive, do a great job, went with Maytag.

And dont cheap out on the dryer. My dryer has the sensor control, so I no longer set the time by the minute. It senses the moisture left in the clothes, turns off heat when appropriate and then goes into the mode where every minute or two, it cycles until the clothes have cooled down. With this program, it does not matter if you are not there right away to fold your clothes. Once dry, they can stay in the dryer until you have time to fold your clothes, no longer have to worry about wrinkles.

The other reason why I was not particularily drawn to the front loading is because of the size. They are considerably taller. My laundry room has a very large deep sink right beside the w/d combination. And it has a cupboard and folding area beside that. If I went with the new high w/d combo, that nice flat line would be broken up, not at all as easy to fold your clothes etc.

[corporatejay]

we were just looking at them this weekend.

a stackable "condo" style washer/dryer combo (non energy rated top loading) uses 45 litres of water per cycle.

a larger, front loading washer uses 15.

[urban1]

The HE detergent doesnt have the foaming additives in it.

[I-Hate-Hulse]

I've got the Whirlpool Duet set and and quite pleased with them. Not shredding my shirts and ginch has been great, I've noticed quite less wear and tear from washing.

Although I find things work better when you don't cram it completely full, a lot of the washing action comes from clothes sloshing around in the drum, and if you cram it to full you don't get as much of that. HE detergent is a must, I get the SUDS light all too often if I use a lot of the regular soap.

[return to the red]

Originally Posted by Canada 02

^high efficiency detergent. Some (maybe all?) of the front load machine require it, and may void the warrenty if you don't use it

so now I have to switch my detergent as well?

We purchased the LG front load washer and dryer for our house that is finally nearing completion.

[Canada 02]

Originally Posted by corporatejay

we were just looking at them this weekend.

a stackable "condo" style washer/dryer combo (non energy rated top loading) uses 45 litres of water per cycle.

a larger, front loading washer uses 15.

those are roughly the numbers I'm hearing from the sales people, but they can't tell me how that translates to $ saved. Will my water bill be cut by $10 per year or $100 per year or whatever?

[redforever]

Keep this in mind too. The new front loading w/d might be more efficient regarding water use, but you pay for that up front, with the machine, with the detergent you will have to use.

I waited until Trail had one of those super sales, I got my w/d for a total of $1100, commercial, work very well. You will be hard pressed to even buy a front loading washing machine for that price.

[Canada 02]

Originally Posted by redforever

I waited until Trail had one of those super sales, I got my w/d for a total of $1100, commercial, work very well. You will be hard pressed to even buy a front loading washing machine for that price.

wow, I miss my home country, but not the price of goods. down here, south of the 49th, I'm looking at a top loading Whirlpool W/D set for about $650 and a Bosch or Whirlpool frontload set for $1400-1500

[Slava]

For me the money saved was not even a consideration. When you get yours, just throw your clothes in with no soap and watch the suds form from the soap residue...you'll be sold right there if you weren't already!

[return to the red]

Originally Posted by Canada 02

those are roughly the numbers I'm hearing from the sales people, but they can't tell me how that translates to $ saved. Will my water bill be cut by $10 per year or $100 per year or whatever?

well your water bill is calculated using cubic meters and there are 264 gallons in a cubic meter. Approx 4 litres per gallon.

Savings really depend on the frequency you do laundry and the cycles you run.

A quick calculation Based on my house hold

conventional

11.25*156 (52 weeks * 3 loads per week) = 1755/264 = 6.64 * $1.185 = $7.877

front Load

3.75 * 156 = 585/264 = 2.21*$1.185 = 2.62

saving for year = 7.877-2.62 = $5.25 per year

now keep in mind that in some places you also get billed for the amount of water put back into the sewer system and you also have to add in your power savings

I hope I didn't screw any conversions up

[habernac]

I'm getting a front loader next time just so I can throw my hockey equipment in it. Large comforters and such will also fit. The water savings is a nice bonus as well.

[bigtmac19]

I would definitely go for the front loader next time. Just the quantity of clothes that can be washed in one load would be great. A lot less time spent doing laundry would be my ideal.
I have found the few times I have used one, they seem to get the clothes a lot cleaner.

[Canada 02]

Originally Posted by return to the red

saving for year = 7.877-2.62 = $5.25 per year

thanks for the calculation. That's the kind of info I was looking for; just to dumb to figure it out on my own.

Seems to jive with info here : http://michaelbluejay.com/electricity/laundry.html

looks like the savings on my utility bills will be minimal - 10-20 cents per load; $5-10 per year

So I guess it comes down to the quality of the wash, and wear/tear on my clothes - is that worth the extra 800 bucks.

thanks to every one for their opinion