Has anyone recently researched front load washer & dryer's ?

We purchased a set of Maytag Neptune's about ten years ago and the washer is giving up the ghost. We have had some problems with the washer but the dryer has been pretty good. I won't buy another Maytag set because their quality and reliability have gone south.

My wife still would like a front loading set. Any one here have any insight. Friends of ours bought LG's about a year ago and like them, but doing a search yeilded quite a bit of negitave regarding repairs and availability of parts. Any repair guys on here with insight ?

Thanks,

-Garry

We just had our Whirlpool serviced... bearings rusted out. It is 4 years old - no warranty and $400 later, it has a new knock.
The service guy said that they are all (regardless of the manufacturer) a piece of junk. For $100, Whirlpool could have had the bearings encased in stainless steel instead of plastic. It doesn't matter who the builder is, American or Korean (LG).. they are junk. We came serioulsy close to getting rid of it and buying a top loader.

Mike

What about Miele? extremely pricey but have heard great things

I haven't heard too much bad about the front loaders except for the POS neptunes, those are garbage.

Jeff

1+ year old Bosch front loader has been flawless. Certainly a little more expensive than the usual brands, and not as many "features" (still has more than we need), but you get what you pay for.

Dan

Miele and Bosch are both highly rated. Miele doesn't quite have the parts network that Bosch has, and Bosch has less than the mainstream brands, but they make up for it with a quality product.

Miele and Bosch have been making front loaders for the European market for decades. It's not a new game for them.

My Whirlpool Duet is still going strong after 4 years. No Issues to report.
Having 4 Children makes doing laundry a lot easier. The large capacity and doing at least a load of laundry per day makes this the perfect washing machine.

6 months on our GE front load, very pleased so far, drying time is cut in half too!!!

My "research" consisted of one thing: price. No way can I justify the extra expense of those things. I suspect most people just buy them because they're trendy.

While I like the ecological aspect of using less water per washload, how much do you want to pay to do that? I have no doubt that there are some people with numerous kids who wind up doing a lot of laundry, and for them, I guess they could be a time-saver, and may even be cost effective over many years. But for anyone who has one or two kids (or less), that's a dubious prospect.

My Whirlpool Duet is still going strong after 4 years. No Issues to report.

x2

My "research" consisted of one thing: price. No way can I justify the extra expense of those things. I suspect most people just buy them because they're trendy.

While I like the ecological aspect of using less water per washload, how much do you want to pay to do that? I have no doubt that there are some people with numerous kids who wind up doing a lot of laundry, and for them, I guess they could be a time-saver, and may even be cost effective over many years. But for anyone who has one or two kids (or less), that's a dubious prospect.

I got mine when I had 2 kids, now it's 3 and let me tell you, they are great. I don't even care how much water they use. The capacity is awesome. They are bigger than even the "large capacity" ones at the laundromat. It's great to only do three loads a week, and they dry in the same amount of time as it takes to wash.

whirlpool duet washer and dryer here..just over a year old now..no issues. our last whirlpool set top load style lasted 10 years with 1 minor issue on the washer that i fixed myself.

the wife loves the new ones though..faster loads, clothes seem cleaner, and less dry time.

we bought a frontload frigidaire washer about 6 months ago. I was told at the time that '09 was going to be the last year of top loads from all manufactures due to government regulations?? the salesman may have been blowing smoke, I dont know, but I paid less than some of the top load brands on the floor so he wasn't just trying to upsale. no problems yet. It does seem to use less water.

The bearings went bad on my Kenmore front load washer after 5 years, just when the warranty was up. I took it apart, wasn't able to get at it. The repair guy came out from Sears, wanted over $400 to repair it because the way the front loader is designed the whole drum has to be replaced as a unit. The guy admitted the front loaders aren't yet as reliable as the top loaders and are more expensive to repair.

I ended up buying a new top load agitator washer for less money than what it would've cost to repair the front loader, and it honestly does a better job washing clothes as my wife says.

The thing about the front loader being HE and using less water results in little real dollar savings IMHO when you consider the higher price to buy the washer and the repair costs.

We have a matched set of Whirlpool Duet's washer & dryer. 1st front loader system we've had.

With 3 sons growing up over the last 17 years and all in sports, we've been through 4 pairs of top loading washers & dryers because we beat the cr*p out of them.

Well, we're beating the cr*p out of these too, but they wash and dry better than top loaders we've had in the past, their quieter, and not that much difference in price that the top loaders. No complaints almost 4 years into ownership.

Only thing I would say, is stay away from GE. I've had more problems with GE appliances than any other brand.

The new top loaders are a lot more energy efficient than they used to be. Not as efficient as a front loader, but pretty close, and cheaper.

Anyone checked out the combination washer/dryer? I've seen a couple of them in stores. They look pretty cool. Put dry clothes in, take dry clothes out. :D

we bought a frontload frigidaire washer about 6 months ago. I was told at the time that '09 was going to be the last year of top loads from all manufactures due to government regulations?? the salesman may have been blowing smoke, I dont know, but I paid less than some of the top load brands on the floor so he wasn't just trying to upsale. no problems yet. It does seem to use less water.

Frigidaire here also, I went for both washer and dryer. It's been a year so far, and I have no complaints whatsoever. Washes very nicely, used less water for sure, and it spins so hard that the clothes are on their way to dry when you take them out, so the dryer works less. I would buy them again, or recommend them. I went for the 3 year warranty on each of them, because of what Im hearing on here about repairs. The dealer I went to (family business) gave me a 3 year 100% warranty on each for 97 bucks. Thats well worth it to me, I usually dont go for the extended warranties. I also went for the bases that provide storage and lift the unit up a bit. It makes it much nicer to load and unload the units, and it was buy one base, and he threw the other one in for free. No chain store was going to give me a deal like this, he beat the Lowe's price to start with, then threw in the perks on top of that, plus delivered and set up for free.

My wife keeps wanting to buy a new set of those fancy schmancy colorful plastic doohickeys they sell for $2000/set. We have a 10 year old Maytag set that I bought at an estate auction for $180 8 years ago, works perfectly, no way in hell I'm throwing $2K out the window for some new piece of junk.

We got a Frigidaire 5 cycle Heavy Duty just before my daughter was born (about 14 months ago). It has been used a fair bit as we are doing cloth diapers.

Re: water usage vs. cost
The thing around here is not the cost of water, but the associated costs. We pay sewer use surcharges based on the amount of water we use. It really adds up here.

Re: Electricity
Around here, the formerly gov't run now privatized hydro provider not only charges for the electricity and the delivery, but also charges a debt reduction surcharge as the hydro company was in debt when ownership changed (how that is legal is beyond me). The reduced dry time therefore saves extra money that way.

Now all I need to do is get rid of my ancient freezer!

will never own another front load again.been through 3 washers in 5 years.luckily have had an extended warranty.mine are frigidare.brother bought lg front loaders and also nothing but problems.I used to think mine were overworked with 2 kids but my brother has no kids and same problems.bought used top loaders when I first was married and the worked perfect for 5 years then sold them with the house.should have kept them!!!
eric:beers:

I can't complain about our 2 year old LG front loaders. With a 20 month toddler she really generates some laundry. Wash and dry times are almost cut in half. It uses less electricity, water and detergent.

Thanks All for the replies. I think we will take a look at different models next Saturday.

-Garry

Sounds like almost everyone has had no problems. I would suggest an extended warranty and if you hear anything that doesn't sound 'normal;', make the service dept. fix it.

... good luck...

Have had my LG Tromm front loading w/d for over a year now and I love them! Did not get the steam option, nor the color option, but did get the stands. Only way I could of done my own laundry and not had to fall into the dryer!
The one thing I don't like about it is that you can't wash a rug in there, won't tumble right. But then again that's why they make laundry mats.:yes:
has a 10 yr warranty and even got an extended. So have 14 yrs of service left on it, all paid for.
Will I be here in 14 yrs? I doubt it!!!:noway:
So when Im gone who wants my w/d? :D
rachael anne :waving:

Thanks All for the replies. I think we will take a look at different models next Saturday.

-Garry

Do your research...

Maytag and Whirlpool are now the same company...


I have a "near new" Kenmore front load dryer (gas) just sitting in my garage (and the matching washer is at my mother's)... She didn't like her's, so she bought a different brand (another front-loader). She was going to give them away, so I said I'd take them... Of course, my washer is about 5+ year old and works fine. My Dryer is probably 15+ years old (electric) and still works great... So I am in no hurry to change them out...

Of course, I am now regretting the extra space used up by storing the dryer...

We've had our Kenmore front loaders for almost 3 years now, they are still working great.