Do you love or hate your front loader washing machine

[cookiemonster80]

I've been waiting (impatiently) for my top loader to wear out and it finally did this morning!:bighand:

I've looked at consumer reports ratings, etc but want to know first hand-

What model do you have?
How does it clean?
How long have you had it?
Other things I need to think about???

Thanks!

[MommyAllison]

We have an LG Tromm, bought it 2.5 years ago, cleans well and we love it! We did not get pedestals and don't miss them. Are you putting yours on a concrete slab on the lowest level of your home? If not, you should look specifically for models that are good for second floors. Have fun shopping :)

ETA: After seeing some of the other posts, I thought I should clarify:
- We always leave the door open between loads since it is in a locked laundry room that is inaccessible to the kids, and have had zero smell/mildew issues.
- We cloth diaper and though it took a bit of tweaking, I was able to find a routine that works for us.
- The one thing I can't do in my front loader is an oxyclean soak - or really, any soak. I take things over to soak in my mom's top loader machine a couple times a year.

[ecofem]

I have a Whirlpool Duet Steam front-loader. Bought in December 2009. Hate it.... hate it... hate it...

Smells weird (even after cleaning/leaving door open/etc.) and the detergent dispenser is messed up.

I don't know if I'd go for a front-loader again... our last one was a Kemore something or other and it had the funky smell problem, too.

[AnnieW625]

What model do you have?
We have this model, ours is actually a Kenmore, but Frigidaire makes it and the year we bought it was sold as a Kenmore. It's a middle of the road machine. It has enough cycles and water temps for us, but no sanitize or steam cycle. We paid about the same price for it as it's being sold for now.
Frigidaire 32. CUFT Washer (http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_02602322000P?prdNo=2&blockNo=2&blockType=G2)

How does it clean?
It cleans pretty well and I think I have even gotten a good routine for washing cloth diapers in it.

How long have you had it?
2005

Other things to think about
A. If you have toddlers the buttons are right at toddler level if you don't get the pedestals.
B. I love the delay start options, ours has 4, 8, 14 hours.
C. Our washer is quite loud during the spin cycle esp. if you overload the machine.
D. The plastic is pretty cheap and the soap drawer has cracked
E. The settings for most of the wash settings have worn off within the last year.
F. Overall this is a good basic machine and it does wash clothes well and we've had no mechanical issues with it.
G. I am leaning towards not buying another front loading machine because I just like the simplicity of the top loaders better. I also think the cheapness of the machine has kind of irritated me. I much prefer with the top loader being able to add the soap directly into the machine and there will be less mess because with a front loader to add Oxi Clean after the water has been added to the machine it can spill out of the front of the machine (esp. if you don't catch it right away and the water starts agitating).

I am leaning towards a top loader for next time, but if I do a front loader again I will only get an Electrolux because I have heard very positive things about them.
Electrolux 4.1 steam washer (http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_02606010000P?prdNo=2&blockNo=2&blockType=G2)

[lovin2shop]

If I had it to over again, I would definitely get a top loader (HE without the agitator). We don't stack ours and our LG always stinks, even when I clean out the gasket after each load. I don't feel comfortable leaving the door open all the time as my DS is too interested in crawling in, and it is in the way when it's open. I use an Afresh tablet every week or so to clean it out, but the tub wash cycle takes several hours and it is kind of a pain to remember to do it when laundry isn't already stacked up. I think I would be more apt to air out a top loader on a regular basis.

[dukie41181]

What model do you have?
We went with an LG because it got great reviews. I have also heard great things about Electrolux but they were a lot more expensive. Heres a link to ours:
http://www.homedepot.com/Appliances-Laundry-Clothing-Care-Washers-Front-Load-Washers/LG-Electronics/h_d1/N-5yc1vZbv6hZ21j/R-202666736/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053&superSkuId=202705384

We really like it and its a solid, well made machine. It doesn't feel plasticy or cheap at all!

How does it clean?
Seems to clean very well.

How long have you had it?
About a month.

Other things I need to think about???
AnnieW625 mentioned the buttons being at toddler height without the pedestals which is true, but the model we bought has a child lock feature which locks all your settings so little hands can't change things. Now, that doesn't mean they can't hit the power button or something but our kids don't play in the laundry room anyways.

I would definitely pay attention to brands! I haven't heard great things about all of them. For us it was really LG or Electrolux and the others I steered clear of.

Ours is on our second floor and while the spin cycle is vigorous, it doens't shake the floor or anything so seems to be good even though its not on the main floor or a concrete slab.

[hellokitty]

This is my 2nd front loader. Before we got the ones we have, we had a bare basic frigidaire, at the time we bought it (2000), there were very few FL available on the US market. Of course, now things have changed drastically. I liked my frigidair FL, EXCEPT for washing cloth diapers. We ended up getting a pr of electrolux FL W&D (the non-steaming one, there are only two models) and I love, love, love it!

It has a cleaning mode, and it will prompt you to when you need to clean your unit. We've had it for over 2 yrs and it is working quite well. We did get the pedestals, and while I thought it would be a waste of $, I admit, they are really nice and it is nice to not have to bend down. The only thing that bugs me is that my big gallon jug of vinegar that I use for laundry does not fit in the drawer, so I still have to keep a rolling laundry rack next to the unit for that, but basically all other detergent bottles, spray bottles, etc. fit just fine.

One very nice thing about the unit I have is that you can switch the doors. I heard that there are only maybe two brands that allows this and electrolux is one of them. We had to switch the doors for both of our units, since our washer is on the right side and our dryer is on the left side, which is opposite of what most ppl have it set up. It is worth thinking about if you are in a situation like ours, or if you may move and end up in that type of situation.

[Momit]

We had the Whirlpool Duet (5+ years ago) and I LOVED it. But here is my disclaimer: We used it on the main floor of the house (not the basement) and we lived in dry climates out west when we had it. We also had an LG when we lived in a more humid climate and it was in the basement, and it was gross - stinky and impossible to get the mold out of the sealing ring. I don't know if the difference was climate or LG vs. Duet.

[m448]

I have a bosch nexxt 500 series that we bought about 3.5 years ago and I love it. It's in a laundry room right off the kitchen and our home is a one level ranch. We cloth diaper plus do a 1-2 loads of regular laundry per day.

I love that it has an onboard heater and I do leave it open so haven't had any stink issues. If I'm on top of my game I can program a delay start so I can leave a load in the previous night and have it done and ready to dry in the AM first thing. The rubber gasket must be different than others because our never gets gunky and I'm not a big bleach user either. I use oxyclean, charlie's soap and vinegar. Every couple of months I remember to run a cleaning cycle and I'll do that with a teaspoon or so of bleach.

The only thing that took getting used to was the longer cycles but really it's so silent when it's not spinning that sometimes I forget it's on.

[emily]

We have a Kenmore. Not home right now so can't get the exact model. It was mid range price wise when we bought about 3 years ago. As far as getting the clothes clean, have no complaints. It does get a little loud spinning but it doesnt bother us too much. My only complaint is keeping the rubber sealing ring mold free. We've had to replace it once already (didnt know we were supposed to leave the door open). I would buy front load vs top load anyday. We had a top loader when we rented and it was such a pain if the load wasn't balanced during the spin cycle. I also like the timer option.

[kwc]

We have the Whirlpool Duet steam washer/ dryer that Ecofem has but we LOVE ours.
Holds a ton, washes well, very little water use.
I don't know that I would bother with a steam washer but I love the steam refresh for the dryer that reduces things that need to be ironed.
We leave the door open/ cracked between uses and have never had smell issues. Actually, I never do the bleach cleaning cycle because it seems totally clean.
I do occasionally use Arm and Hammer washing soda in my washes, and sometimes I use white vinegar for DH's running stuff.
We've had it since fall 2008. We live in a dry climate, and it is on the main floor.

[sunshine873]

I have an LG - I think it's this model:
http://www.homedepot.com/Appliances-Laundry-Clothing-Care-Washers-Front-Load-Washers/LG-Electronics/h_d1/N-5yc1vZbv6hZ21jZ1z136dn/R-202835509/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053&superSkuId=203055543

It's about 2 years old. We don't have the pedestals & I don't mind being without them. Yes, the buttons are on the front. If you have a toddler, I would highly recommend a lock feature (thankfully ours has that.) Ours is upstairs & I haven't had a problem with that at all. It doesn't smell or anything, but I leave the door open when I'm done washing to let it dry well. I do hate having to do that. It's inconvenient & tends to mess with me closing & opening the laundry room door.

I have to say...I don't know that it's worth the extra cost over a good-quality top loader. That said, I love my washer. I wouldn't trade mine in. It washes great & definitely uses less water.

[lizzywednesday]

We have a mid-range LG model and I like it very much; it's only about 2 years old.

We did not get the pedestals because we saw them as expensive cabinets, which we already have above our machines. We can either close or gate off our mudroom/utility room/laundry area, I don't have any issues with that.

ITA with the PPs who mentioned toddlers liking to climb into the barrels; my DD will try this until I distract her by letting her "help" me move clean laundry from the washer to the dryer. The dryer has a child-lock feature; the washer automatically locks during an active cycle. (I've been able to override the washer lock, but I still get a bit wiggy.)

Yes, there's no soak feature, but I rarely soak anything that can't be soaked in a washbasin. If I need something bigger, I'll just use the tub!

We replaced our dryer at the same time as we replaced the top-loader we junked due to mold-stench (it came with the house, which we bought in 2008.)

We have a tub-clean cycle in addition to a sanitize cycle; I've only used the "sanitize" cycle a few times to prep new cloth diapers.

If you cloth diaper your DC, it might take a little fiddling to get a wash routine down, but my machine hasn't given me any cause for concern, even with gone-too-far-between-washes diapers!

[crayonblue]

We were debating getting a front vs. top loader a couple of months ago. We went with the high efficiency LG wave top loader (without the agitator). LOVE it. Clothes get clean. No smell. HUGE. Seriously, I'm in love!

[daniele_ut]

I just replaced the old front loader that I bought used 4 years ago (so it was about 8-9 years old) with a new Whirlpool Duet front loader and I'm very happy with it. We've had it about a month and it has a huge capacity and seems to clean very well. It does not have the steam feature, but it does have an onboard heater that heats the water for the sanitary cycle. This is great for washing kitchen towels.

My washer and dryer ARE stacked so a FL was pretty much a necessity for me to get a decent capacity washer. I really love having them stacked. I always left the door cracked open on my old washer and never had a smell issue. This washer has a "clean" cycle that I can use with Affresh or another washer cleaner, but I haven't run it yet. We bought it at Costco and Costco extends the manufacturer's warranty to 2 years.

Mine is this one:


Model: WFW9451XW
ENERGY STAR® Qualified
Energy Guide (http://www.costco.com/images/content/misc/PDF/569896.pdf)
Ultra Capacity: 4.5 cubic foot capacity
Front controls with cycle indicator lights
12 Cycles
4 Spin speeds
3 Soil Levels
4 Water temperature levels
1,300RPM Spin Speed
Sanitary Cycle

[hoodlims]

I have a Whirlpool Duet Steam front-loader. Bought in December 2009. Hate it.... hate it... hate it...

Smells weird (even after cleaning/leaving door open/etc.) and the detergent dispenser is messed up.

I don't know if I'd go for a front-loader again... our last one was a Kemore something or other and it had the funky smell problem, too.


HATE IT! I have the Whirlpool Duet with steam and our machines are 3 years old. The bearing just broke off in my washer, which meant that the drum fell off where it was supposed to be. We called the Whirlpool customer service, and they sent someone out, who advised me to get a different machine. Why? Because just the parts to fix it alone cost...$1,400. The repair was about $200. The damn machine only cost be about 900 to begin with! When we called customer service to see what we could do about this, they said we could buy the extended warranty service for $130 for 1 year, and they would retroactively let us get our machine fixed under that. Of course, they said they would not service it until 90 days AFTER we purchased the extended warranty. I cannot and will not live without a washer for 3 months, especially since I have another baby coming in December.

I don't think these front loaders are made to last. If you think about it, we all probably only lived with one washer and dryer the entire 18+ years we were with our parents. The fact that so many of us are now on Washer #2 speaks to the quality of these things.

[ohiomom1121]

I'm on my second set of LG front loaders and I love them. I got the pedestels because I'm tall and they would be pretty low without them. They are on the 2nd floor and I'm so surprised how quiet they are. They are the red ones from Home Depot.

[SpaceGal]

We have LG Tromms from 7/8 years ago. They clean well and I like them. We keep our washer in the basement so I leave the door open to air out. No funny smells nothing. I probably should keep the rubber seal thing cleaner. I don't always remember to wipe it out and clean it but it's never given me problems. I do use my washer practically every other day. Compared to my SIL's top loader my clothes don't look half as beat up as hers do. The agitator makes a huge difference.

[squimp]

I have an LG front loader that is probably 6 years old and it's got the funky smell. I really wish I could get rid of it.

[Melanie]

HATED IT. It ruined and ended my cloth-diapering days. And I felt like it beat my clothing up more and now that all the t-shirts are made in that annoying paper-thin fabric it seemed they didn't last but six months to year (okay, for me, that is short for a t-shirt) or less. AND I often had to re-wash things. It was a Bosch and a total splurge which haunted me daily for the next 4 years. I would prop it open by hooking it to a wire coat-hanger I'd stretched out that then connected to a shelf. Classy, right? It didn't smell though.

Happily we got a Mayag top loader last year when we moved. :heartbeat: I have to trick it into using more water (so annoying) but at least I can!