Thread Number: 14344
Jungle Red! RIP Frigidaire, welcome Samsung VRT 		[Down to Last]

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Post# 244978   10/28/2007 at 14:06 (6,023 days old) by ironrite ()        

Ok, so Samsung calls it Tango Red. After several months of keeping my fingers crossed and hoping the tub wouldn't come flying out of the Frigidaire FL, we bit the bullet on the Samsung VRT washer/drier and pedestals. The Bosch 500s were a very close second, but the red and chrome caught the partner's eye everytime we went looking at machines.

Best Buy had a sale, and much to our surprise and delight, they do negotiate a bit on price when you buy the whole set. Service is by their techs and setup, delivery and takeway was free, no rebate nonsense to fill out. Did get an extended warranty, which they claim is renewable after the five years and full coverage too. The delivery guys were actually EARLY for a change, I barely had time to move out the old machines and clean the floor in the laundry area. It was interesting watching them flip the new machines over to attach the stands.

After a couple of washes, far so good. Did have to tweek the level just a bit on the washer. And it appears their VRT technology works, once this thing finds the balance of the clothes it gets up and moves and no real vibration or noise from the washer. Filling and draining are the two loudest sounds. Right now I'm looking at about a 3 hour wash on the dog bedding. It's getting the presoak, sanitize and silver care options. That will be the real test.

So, here's the pair together.




Post# 244979 , Reply# 1   10/28/2007 at 14:08 (6,023 days old) by ironrite ()        
And best of all...

 It's Boxer approved!

Buddy must have been some sort of domestic god/goddess in a prior life. No matter if I'm vacuuming, loading the dishwasher or general cleaning, he is right there! The only thing that spooked him was when the water started to spray in the washer. The Doberman tends to ignore anything domestic!

Post# 245000 , Reply# 2   10/28/2007 at 16:13 (6,023 days old) by frigilux (The Minnesota Prairie)        

frigilux's profile picture
Wow, that really is an eye-catching pair. They're gorgeous! Let us know more about them after you've broken them in. I'm especially interested in the sanitize/silver care options.

BTW, I get my hair cut at a place in downtown Minneapolis called Jungle Red.

Post# 245017 , Reply# 3   10/28/2007 at 18:36 (6,023 days old) by gansky1 (Omaha, The Home of the TV Dinner!)        

gansky1's profile picture
That is one color that gives a little "pop" to your laundry room!

Congrats on the new set, keep us posted on what you think...

Post# 245018 , Reply# 4   10/28/2007 at 18:38 (6,023 days old) by gansky1 (Omaha, The Home of the TV Dinner!)        

gansky1's profile picture
BTW, I thought of you on Friday while I was at an estate sale - there was a fairly nice Ironrite (mod. 95 I think) as well as the table and works of another, older Ironrite and in the stack of manuals in the pocket of the 95, there were three different OM's for all her Ironrites through the years. They were all well-loved machines and the house did seem to have an inordinately large amount of linens!

Post# 245021 , Reply# 5   10/28/2007 at 18:55 (6,023 days old) by funguy10 ()        

Could you post some more pics of the washer & dryer such as the control panels and interiors? How about some videos?

Post# 245024 , Reply# 6   10/28/2007 at 19:36 (6,023 days old) by ironrite ()        
Dryer Panel

 Ok, here's some more photos of them. Perhaps a video next weekend when I can find the video camera and get a few minutes to make one.

Hopefully Greg with the Wrinkle Prevent technology (whatever that is!) I won't need an Ironrite to finish those linens.

Currently the dog comforter is in the dryer. The cycle was almost finished, so it's in a cool down tumble to prevent wrinkles. The main knob just spins, with orange lights coming on to show you the cycle you've selected.

Post# 245027 , Reply# 7   10/28/2007 at 19:44 (6,023 days old) by ironrite ()        
Washer Panel

 When you turn the machine on, it recalls the last cycle you used. In this case, this was for the dog comforter. It got prewash, and extra rinse, the high temp wash and high speed spin. Plus tried that Silver Care thing to sanitize it. Though with the hot water and bleach, I think it's pretty well sanitized. 2:41 is two hours and 41 minutes.

Pulled from the washer, very little smell of bleach. No dog hair left in the wash tub. In the dryer I have had to turn it a couple of times. It is a thick queen size comforter so I expected it to take a bit to dry. Normally this made a mess of my previous dryer. That I had to vacuum to get the dog hair and left over dirt. I checked the lint screen and very little build up and no dog hair sticking to the drum or door.

Post# 245028 , Reply# 8   10/28/2007 at 19:46 (6,023 days old) by ironrite ()        
And the washer drum

 Odd shaped paddles in the drum and smaller holes than the Fridigaire had.

Post# 245041 , Reply# 9   10/28/2007 at 21:31 (6,023 days old) by dynaflow (rockingham nc)        
jungle red

 dynaflow's profile picture
reminds me of the movie The Woman joan crawford norma shearer 1939 wonderful movie

Post# 245051 , Reply# 10   10/28/2007 at 22:08 (6,023 days old) by appnut (TX)        

appnut's profile picture
Congratulations Mike!!!!!

Post# 245072 , Reply# 11   10/29/2007 at 00:22 (6,023 days old) by sudsmaster (SF Bay Area, California)        
Candy apple red

 sudsmaster's profile picture
Reminds me of the best hot rod paint jobs of the 50's.

Very nice.

Post# 245096 , Reply# 12   10/29/2007 at 07:35 (6,022 days old) by mayken4now (Panama City, Florida)        

mayken4now's profile picture
I love it. "No dog hair left in the wash tub". I know I am of the odd. No dog to put hair in the wash tub here, aint gonna have that mess and nasty.

S.

Post# 245157 , Reply# 13   10/29/2007 at 14:30 (6,022 days old) by newwave1 (Lincoln, United Kingdom)        

newwave1's profile picture
Ironrite,
Congrats on the new purchases!:D They look really nice! How does it balance on spin? I had a samsung overhear in the uk, i got rid of it because it was taking 20minutes to balance for an interm spin!

I would love to see some more pics of the washer in action!

That red is awesome!

Darren

Post# 245203 , Reply# 14   10/29/2007 at 19:57 (6,022 days old) by ironrite ()        

Yup, Jungle Red from The Women...or The Opposite Sex, depending on which one you prefer. I may have to now do something dramatic with the washroom.

And yes, the dog stuff is rather dirty. For short hair dogs, they both make a mess.

Bob, there was a small pang when I unplugged the Frigidaire for the last time, remembering the excitement when I first got those machines.

Darren, the spin did take a bit to get used to while the machine figures out what it will do. It does operate a lot differently than my old Frigidaire FL. The installers did a fair job of leveling it, I did have to adjust it a bit. If the load is well balanced, no problems, it ramps right up. When I did a load of white towels on the extra high speed, they came out very dry. I think they took about 20 minutes or less in the dryer. For a smaller load of dishtowels, to test the machine, it did take 2-3 tries to balance before the spin took off. That's when I rechecked the level.

Post# 245205 , Reply# 15   10/29/2007 at 20:17 (6,022 days old) by funguy10 ()        

What does the machine sound like when it spins? What happened to the Frigidaires?

Post# 245226 , Reply# 16   10/29/2007 at 22:48 (6,022 days old) by ironrite ()        

The tub bearing and the shocks were going in the old washer. Even with a small load of say shirts, the tub would knock around the inside and the washer would take a walk. I had the shocks replaced last February.

When the Samsung goes into it's spin, up to 1300 rpm, you do get the slight sound, but not the jet engine roar. It also sounds like the motor cuts in and out and is not running full time during the spin. Overall the machine is pretty quiet. The dryer sounds robust compared to the former one. More like a commercial dryer when it turns on. And the dryer is electric.

Post# 245271 , Reply# 17   10/30/2007 at 09:02 (6,021 days old) by tomturbomatic (Beltsville, MD)        

Mike, Congratulations of your ruby pair. They are so much more exciting than Judy's. Will the dogs' pad take that much treatment each time? Does the silver treatment add time to the cycle, and if so, would you explain that feature, please? Did Consumer Reports say something about the silver possibly needing replacing after some years? On the cotton cycle, like you use for the towels and such, does the machine give good fast spins after the wash and between the rinses? Does it have trouble handling sudsy water during spinning? With large, heavy loads, when the machine starts to spin, does the initial flood of water spun from the fabrics trigger a return to tumble while the water is pumped out? My Duet had a nasty habit of doing that and then usually had trouble balancing again before spinning. I solved that by getting rid of unnecessary parts and giving it an Electrolux pump that is serious about moving water. Can you see any water action at all during the rinses? Which HE detergent are you using in it and does it need about the same amount as your Frigimore? Does the bleach get added near the end of the wash or does it go into the first rinse? I hope that these beauties give you years of joy and trouble free performance.

I saw that the former Maytag compact FL and dryer are also now being marketed under the Samsung name.
Tom

Post# 245289 , Reply# 18   10/30/2007 at 11:48 (6,021 days old) by washboy2005 (UK)        

Awesome machines! I love them.... The back of your drum looks somewhat similar to my Hotpoint I think.... Do you agree Darren??

Thanks for taking the time to post pics!

Post# 245293 , Reply# 19   10/30/2007 at 12:24 (6,021 days old) by newwave1 (Lincoln, United Kingdom)        

newwave1's profile picture
Dan,
i did think that the drum on that samsung looks like our hotpoint drums!

I'd love to see some pics of this in action, particularly the rinse!

Darren

Post# 245299 , Reply# 20   10/30/2007 at 13:52 (6,021 days old) by tlee618 ()        

Mike what a beautiful set! Congratulations and be sure and keep us posted on what you like and dislike if anything.

Post# 245363 , Reply# 21   10/30/2007 at 23:38 (6,021 days old) by ironrite ()        

I'll try to set up the movie camera this weekend and get some video of it in action. Then figure out how to post them.

Thanks Terry! You get out Vegas way again, give me a hollar and you can see these things in person.

Ok Tom, let's see now if I can answer these!

The dog's pad is actually a Ralph Lauren queen comforter and it was pretty messed up. It would barely fit in the old machine and never really did get clean. Plus the filling in it hasn't really packed down over the years. The full treatment did get out the dirt and stains.

Yes, the silver treatment adds more time. However the added time varies, depending on the cycle, about 15-20 minutes extra. The silver bars will need to be replaced after 3000 cycles of use and the machine will let you know.

Yes, the spins are fast between rinse cycles.

I have very hard water here. Using Tide HE powder, I get very little suds, so when it does go into a spin, suds aren't a problem for it. I do have some left over Wisk 3X liquid and I'll give that a try in the future.

When finished with a cycle, it will drain, then it will slowly start the spin. The first load I did was just a few small towels. As it ramped up, it did shudder and then slow down and redistribute the load. It seems to do this rather quickly, as it tried about 2-3 times, then balanced and goes into a high spin.

I'm using the same amount of detergent, about to the first line from the bottom on the green Tide cup. For the prewash or soak the manual suggests about 1/3 of the full amount of detergent in the prewash chamber.

From the smell, I'm thinking the bleach is going in during the first rinse, as I smelled it after the wash, but not during. But no bleach smell when I took the comforter out of the machine. I've developed an allergy to chlorine bleach. I'm going to try to wash my t-shirts and such with bleach and see if I still get a slight break out from it. That will be the true test for me of how well this machine does with its rinses and spin speed.

There are folding doors on the laundry area and I had them closed while the machine was running. From that hot wash, then bleach, it actually smelled like a laundry area when I opened the doors. Reminded me of when my Mom used to do laundry with her Maytag wringer.

Post# 246328 , Reply# 22   11/4/2007 at 18:33 (6,016 days old) by funguy10 ()        

The weekend is almost gone. No videos yet...

Post# 246428 , Reply# 23   11/4/2007 at 23:20 (6,016 days old) by ironrite ()        

Was a major cleaning day here, so no videos. However, I will try and shoot for next weekend. I have November 12 off, so that may be a good day to try to film the high speed spin. Hope you won't be disappointed, the machine doesn't make a whole lot of noises.

Post# 246570 , Reply# 24   11/5/2007 at 11:18 (6,015 days old) by tomturbomatic (Beltsville, MD)        

Mike, thank you for taking the time to answer my questions. I appreciate it very much. Tom

Post# 247795 , Reply# 25   11/11/2007 at 18:51 (6,009 days old) by funguy10 ()        

Anither weekend gone. Still no promised videoes... Why?

Post# 247827 , Reply# 26   11/11/2007 at 20:44 (6,009 days old) by ironrite ()        

Is it November 12th already? Patience my friend!

Post# 248064 , Reply# 27   11/12/2007 at 21:57 (6,008 days old) by ironrite ()        
On Youtube

 What a pain in the neck that is to add a video. After confirming my email 10 times. I THINK the video is out there. It's short, about 3 minutes, but shows a fill, wash and the spin ramping up. Though concerned if the camera's mic would pick up the sounds, it did. The washer sounds like a truck!

For Tom, this is the spin right after the wash, so yes, it does go into a high speed spin. And this is pretty much the same as the final spin, though the final spin is a bit longer.

CLICK HERE TO GO TO ironrite's LINK
Post# 248098 , Reply# 28   11/12/2007 at 23:27 (6,008 days old) by rocky2 (Northwest Indiana)        

Congratulations on the new set Mike. That red makes it such a striking pair. Thanks for the video...

Post# 248104 , Reply# 29   11/12/2007 at 23:51 (6,007 days old) by appnut (TX)        

appnut's profile picture
Very nice Mike!! That VRT seems to work quite weel. Quite a far cry from the Frigidaire isn't it!!

Post# 248105 , Reply# 30   11/13/2007 at 00:04 (6,007 days old) by ironrite ()        

Yes Bob, very much so. What you are seeing washing was 2 king size sheets, pillow cases and a king cotton blanket. That would have been two loads in the Frigidaire. I should have taken a shot of the sheet. Buddy the boxer sleeps on one end of the bed and after a couple of days, his area is pretty grimey with dog hair, oil and dirt from his paws. The machine gets it all back to bright white.

Post# 248184 , Reply# 31   11/13/2007 at 15:13 (6,007 days old) by funguy10 ()        

That's all the noise it makes during spin and that's at high speed? Impressive!

Post# 248192 , Reply# 32   11/13/2007 at 16:12 (6,007 days old) by toggleswitch (New York City, NY)        

toggleswitch's profile picture
~Buddy must have been some sort of domestic god/goddess in a prior life. No matter if I'm vacuuming, loading the dishwasher or general cleaning, he is right there!

oh Gawd the dog is a friend of Dorothy's too!


CONGRATS! HOW NIFTY!


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