Kind of OT - Do you have one of the new front loading washing machines?

[Twin Mom]

My washer broke a few days ago and now we are scrambling to get a new one since the laundry is piling up. I was looking at the Consumer Reports from June 04 since it had the newest washer reviews for some help and they recommended one of the new front loading machines. I was considering getting one since they are supposed to be so much more efficient with respect to water and energy usage, but then I started reading the message boards on consumerreports.org and saw a whole lot of people with negative comments about them. Does anyone have feedback, good or bad for one of the front loading washers?

TIA.

[crl]

We've had a Kenmore FLer for 3 or 4 years now. It's the bottom of the line, cheapest one. I love it. Works MUCH better than our old top loader and uses less water, detergant, etc. And our clothes don't pill as much either.

[DebbieJ]

Have the Kenmore HE3t set and LOVE it!

~ deb
Mommy to my sweet boy
B born 12/03
http://www.windsorpeak.com/dc/user_files/10023.jpg http://www.windsorpeak.com/dc/user_files/10029.gif

[ellies mom]

We have the Bosch front loader. We love it. I always take those reviews with a grain of salt.

[gracelynne]

Ours broke unexpectedly not too long ago, but it was perfect timing because I had just been researching a new washing machine anyway. We ended up buying a Danby from Home Depot. It's great -- it has an internal water heater and it was really inexpensive for a FL ($399). The matching electric dryer (they don't seem to offer a gas one) was only $299. Because of issues with HD, we got about 20% off the washer, so it was an even better deal. Danby washers are very new, so you won't find much info on them, but we read some positive short-term reviews and decided that it was a worthwhile purchase, especially considering the price. FLs can be so very expensive, so even if this one craps out after a few years, at least we have some time to save up for one with more bells and whistles.

In the meantime, however, I love my washer. It's really small and I worried about capacity (DS somehow generates lots of laundry), but the lack of agitator means that it holds a heck of a lot of stuff, probably about as much as my old top-loader. I sound like a commercial!

I've found that That Home Site at Gardenweb is really useful when it comes to researching appliances and *stuff*. Here's a link to their laundry section: http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/laundry/

Good luck with your research!

[bostonsmama]

We also have the Kenmore Elite HE3t washer and dryer and love them! Our electric bill was outrageous right as our dryer was dying. It was only 8 years old, but it ate electricity for lunch!

We decided to make the one-time investment nearly 2-1/2 years ago and haven't looked back. We save time, electricity, detergent, water, and headaches. It takes me almost 3 months to use a 100oz bottle of Tide liquid detergent (6 mos for the 200oz bottle)! The most water efficient top loaders still use between 30 and 45 gallons of water per load. The longest cycle for my front loader uses 16 gallons of water.

The Kenmore (and probably the Bosch, too, which received EXCELLENT marks/reviews from friends) has gentle cycles for your delicates so you don't even have to use a lingerie bag. It has adjustable spin speeds so you won't have to dry clothes in the dryer for nearly as long (saving electricity and wrinkles). It adds the perfect amount of bleach and softener at the precisely the right time (no more downy balls). There are adjustable stain treat, auto soak, second rinse and rinse/spin cycles, too. Anyhow, I just love doing laundry now. Everything comes out so clean, and it's super quiet. I even used the dryer's sweater rack the other day to lightly dry a wool sweater. You can't go wrong with these machines...they're stackable, have storage pedestals if you want to pay extra for them, or you can fold laundry on top of them since you'll never be obstructing the opening. Sorry this was so long, but I love my washer and dryer!

[Marisa6826]

Have a year old set - Kenmore HE3T and LOVE it. Wouldn't trade it for anything!!! It uses dramatically less water. I think for a large load of towels it's something like 16 gallons vs. 44.

Get it Girlie!!!

BTW - It's the same machine as the Whirlpool duet - which they had at my Costco last week!

-m

[mharling]

Another fan here. We have a Maytag Neptune and absolutely love it! Less water, less detergent and SO easy to use. One of the best parts is no more guessing about the water level needed.

Mary
Lane - April 2003
Little sister on the way!!! March 2!

[tarahsolazy]

We have the Kenmore HE3 washer, but not the one with a thousand different cycles. Ours only has 100 or so ;) I only use two cycles, Normal/Casual and Whitest Whites (to wash cloth diapers). I love the machine, it works great, even with tough diaper laundry. We bought ours in OR, and got a nice tax rebate, too, don't know if other states offer those.

[nwaddellr]

We got a Maytag Neptune when the price dropped $200 so it was closer to affordable and I love it. Its taken me a while to get used to how much soap and such to use, but its really easy and quiet and does a great job. I also love how little water and electricity it uses compared to a top loader.

[Zansu]

We have the LGs and I love them!

[hobey]

Have had the Whirlpool Duet for about 2 years now and we LOVE it. I highly recommend the FL route.

Raquel
Nathan's Mom 12/19/03

[cmo]

We are so very happy with our Whirlpool Duet washer & dryer! They are frequently on sale at Sears, often with a mail-in rebate on delivery charges. You can check online to see what's on sale at Sears, and even if one near you has what you want in stock (I think---they used to do this but I haven't checked lately).

[hjdong]

I have the HE3T from Kenmore. I did a ton of research before committing and found the HEs and the Duets are made by the same manufacturer and were highly recommended. And for 6 months, I loved my washer. It cleans clothes much better than our old model (the cheapest we could find at the time and it lasted 12 years - DS was finally too much for it). Then, it started maing this high pitched hum (can you hear the uh-oh coming). Well, four repair men later with four different diagnoses and a machine that still didn't work and I went crazy on Sears. To their credit, they replaced the machine and this time I bought the extended warranty. The woman at the store (and in fact, all four of the repair people, swore that this never happens. I just got a lemon. I have no idea if they were selling me a line or being honest).

Here is, before it died on me, what I kind of didn't like - it takes a long time to wash your clothes. The standard, my clothes aren't very dirty cycle, is 45 minutes. But by the time I done with all the bells and whistles, for sheets and towels I can be up to two hours. One repair person told me that if you really play with the bells and whistles, you can get it up to 2:45. Of course, if I could control myself, it would only take 45 minutes.

All told, I do love the machine, and I would (and did) get it again, but I would get the extended warranty (which I absolutely never do).

HTH,

[Twin Mom]

Thank you ladies. I knew I could count on you for some feedback. I went to Lowes this pm to check them out and the sales guy of course has had a FL for 3 years and loves it. He said most people that have problems with FL aren't using them correctly. I think I am probably going to take the plunge this weekend after a little more research on price and return policies (just in case):-) I do think I will buy the extended warranty though just to be safe since this will be a big investment.

[smkinc]

We have had the HE3t for 2 years and love it. We did buy the extended warranty. I usually don't, but we do a lot of laundry (I use it everyday), so I figured we might need it down the line. I am so glad we got the extended warranty. We've had the repair man out 2 times--for baby items stuck in the drain pump. You need to check the rubber rim around the washer if you've done a full load as small items can get lodged in there and if not removed, can migrate to the pump.

HTH,

Mary