Thread Number: 38925
A new machine for my Mom
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Post# 577377   2/21/2012 at 01:27 (4,420 days old) by qualin (Canada)        

Hello everyone.

I thought I'd get this out of the way now so I can save my pennies.

My mother has a mid 80's vintage Kenmore washer which is acting up on her. The machine really isn't worth repairing.

I'm going to give her my 2004-vintage GE TOL washer/dryer set as a holdover until I can get her something new.

My mother wants a front loading machine with a matching dryer, but I want to be a good son to her and not buy her junk which will fall apart. She can't use a top loader all that much more because a cycle with a high water level drains the cistern and they have to truck in a tank of water to fill it back up. (She lives in a Rural Area.) Otherwise, I'd just buy her a Huebsch Top loader.

So, obviously, the first thing that comes to the mind of everybody is "Buy her a Speed Queen front loader!!!" ... The problem is, the machines are on a second floor landing on a wooden floor, so they can't vibrate too much. A Speed Queen (Aka Huebsch) would destroy the spackled roof in the basement from all of the vibration.

Now, my parents are empty nesters, so it's just the two of them, they don't need a huge 5.0 cu.ft machine. Something either Euro-style or around 3-3.5 cu.ft would work fine for their needs.

So, I know that the machine either has to be of a smaller capacity to reduce vibration or it must contain vibration reduction technology.

So I was thinking either the Samsung WF210ANS or the LG WM2140CW would do the trick. An Asko would also do the trick as well, but they may be a bit too small.

Any other recommendations?





Post# 577388 , Reply# 1   2/21/2012 at 04:09 (4,420 days old) by ronhic (Canberra, Australia)        

ronhic's profile picture
Bosch?

Post# 577389 , Reply# 2   2/21/2012 at 04:27 (4,420 days old) by chestermikeuk (Rainhill *Home of the RailwayTrials* Merseyside,UK)        
Given

chestermikeuk's profile picture
All the info and wanting stability, it would have to be ASKO over LG or the Samsung, at least you would be assured of it being run full all the time over half empty, failed spin, uneven balancing and shaking the roof etc...

Post# 577400 , Reply# 3   2/21/2012 at 07:48 (4,419 days old) by bellaboy ()        
new washer

if u have the mony for a asko by a miele i have had asko and never ewer wont it in the hous again.and espesiality when it is no longer asko but gorenje maschinery.with a swedish look

Post# 577403 , Reply# 4   2/21/2012 at 08:17 (4,419 days old) by chestermikeuk (Rainhill *Home of the RailwayTrials* Merseyside,UK)        
New Washer

chestermikeuk's profile picture
Why Earling, what was your experience of an Asko?? yes they are now owned by Gorenje (a great step up from Ant Merloni- IMHO) but are still built to Asko specs - and besides given how many makes are out their you`d be far pressed to give Gorenje a bad review from what I`ve used & sold!!!

I see you have an english electric 405 1950`s washer in your profile, would love to see some pics etc..

Cheers, Mike


Post# 577412 , Reply# 5   2/21/2012 at 09:40 (4,419 days old) by dave886 (united kingdom)        

get her a LG, MIELE OR Speed queen front loader, they are expensive yes, but it will be worth the money in the long run

Post# 577571 , Reply# 6   2/22/2012 at 02:20 (4,419 days old) by bellaboy ()        
Mike :-)

Hi well i bought a washer and dryer stove. fridge and dishwasher from asko
and to day i have had 2 fridges replaced 3 stoves the 3 time i got the mony back because of an designer failing the electrical would start to burn if u used the oven for 60 min or more.wires was toooo smal .they have replaced everything in the washer and dryer(thanks for 10 years warranty) .the last thing was the thermostat in the washer it literary melted the soap dispenser and steamed the electronics.the dishwasher .have they replaced soap dispenser main board and on and on .so now i only have the dishwasher again.i also had an gorenje vent hood but its electronics broke 2 times .

so no more asko for me Loves the miele washer and my maytag dependebl care


Post# 577573 , Reply# 7   2/22/2012 at 03:00 (4,419 days old) by qualin (Canada)        

Hm... A Miele W3033 would do the trick, but $$$$$$$!!!!!!!

Will have to do a little bit of research on Asko here. They're also quite expensive.

Then again, I get the feeling that if I bought either one, I'd never have to buy another one again for her.


Post# 577575 , Reply# 8   2/22/2012 at 03:10 (4,419 days old) by chestermikeuk (Rainhill *Home of the RailwayTrials* Merseyside,UK)        
Wow

chestermikeuk's profile picture
Earling, you must be the most unlucky buyer of appliances in one go!!!, like you say at least the after service was GREAT!

So, pics of that English Electric & other vintage stuff, looking forward to seeing those!!


Post# 577595 , Reply# 9   2/22/2012 at 07:57 (4,418 days old) by vacbear58 (Sutton In Ashfield, East Midlands, UK)        
Wooden floor

vacbear58's profile picture
Qualin

No matter which machine you go for yiu will find the stability will be much improved by standing the machine on a think piece of board screwed to the floor. Mine is in my first floor in the bathroom and sits on a 4cm worktop laminate cut off. As my machine is stacked with a drier the board is cut to just slightly wider than the (Miele) washer, if you have the room you can extend the board even wider as that would probably make it even more stable. The thicker the board the better as it spreads the load more evenly over the floor

Al


Post# 577712 , Reply# 10   2/22/2012 at 20:47 (4,418 days old) by westie2 ()        
Miele FL

Have purchased appliances here before scroll down to the washers.  This is a floor model  with a great price $$.



CLICK HERE TO GO TO westie2's LINK

Post# 577718 , Reply# 11   2/22/2012 at 21:25 (4,418 days old) by cfz2882 (Belle Fourche,SD)        
Asko

i've never tried an asko washer,but i have a 2009 asko t712c european condenser
dryer in DD use and i like it;it dries effectivly and holds an impressive load
for its small size-handles my usual filterflo and neptune loads with ease!
Mine is made for north american use with it's american style terminal board though
it does have a 230v outlet on the back for the matching washer.
Dryer is louder than some modern dryers as the motor(and twin blowers)run at 3300
rpm and the drum wheels flatspot and thump for the first 20 min.or so if dryer has
sat unused a few days.The condenser matrix is easy to remove and clean-i clean mine
every 25 loads or so.


Post# 577719 , Reply# 12   2/22/2012 at 21:31 (4,418 days old) by whirlykenmore78 (Prior Lake MN (GMT-0500 CDT.))        
Qualin

whirlykenmore78's profile picture
This is one you might want to consider from WP. It has decent capacity, internal heaters, 1,300 RPM spin ETC.

CLICK HERE TO GO TO whirlykenmore78's LINK


Post# 577720 , Reply# 13   2/22/2012 at 21:42 (4,418 days old) by mysteryclock (Franklin, TN)        

mysteryclock's profile picture
Is that particular Whirlpool a true horizontal axis machine or a tilted drum one?

If not, as an alternate question -- are there any true horizontal axis machines (other than the small euro ones from Asko and Miele) available...preferably ones with an internal heater? I know the Speed Queen ones are HA but none are offered with a heater any more.


Post# 577727 , Reply# 14   2/22/2012 at 21:59 (4,418 days old) by cfz2882 (Belle Fourche,SD)        
non-tilted HA front load

what about the old "frigilux"front load washers? or are those '90s origin machines
even still made...


Post# 577730 , Reply# 15   2/22/2012 at 22:11 (4,418 days old) by rp2813 (Sannazay)        

rp2813's profile picture

I strongly discourage Frigilux anything.  My Affinity is lousy at rinsing and will regularly waste 15 minutes trying to re-balance a balanced load before launching into final spin.


Post# 577753 , Reply# 16   2/23/2012 at 02:52 (4,418 days old) by qualin (Canada)        
To Whirly

I'm not sure if I would consider a Whirlpool. That model you pointed out was $1100.

I'd like this machine to last her more than five years. :)


Post# 577760 , Reply# 17   2/23/2012 at 04:46 (4,417 days old) by roscoe62 (Canada)        
@Qualin

I don't understand what your saying about the whirpool, five years ? Has something changed with the manufacturing I'm unaware of or does this mean that after five years you could be in the parts department?
Tks


Post# 577866 , Reply# 18   2/23/2012 at 17:19 (4,417 days old) by nmassman44 (Brooksville Florida)        

nmassman44's profile picture
If you are on Facebook check out the Whirlpool page...it's very interesting in how their appliances and all the issues/problems that is out there. I had to deal with them and they are not very helpful and once they get your money your on your own.

Post# 577872 , Reply# 19   2/23/2012 at 18:50 (4,417 days old) by gansky1 (Omaha, The Home of the TV Dinner!)        

gansky1's profile picture

My parents just bought a Whirlpool Duet Sport 3.5 cu ft washer & matching dryer.  Mom loves it but it was a bit low so we found pedestals on CL and added those last week.  Now it's much more comfortable to use and so far, she loves them.  It's just the two of them but the capacity is more than ample for average wash loads.  They bought this set (not TOL, one step down) at a local Menards home center - lumberyard, $900 for both.   We paid $160 for the pedestals - less than half the price of one new.




Post# 577895 , Reply# 20   2/24/2012 at 02:08 (4,417 days old) by qualin (Canada)        

Well, here's what I was thinking...

My mother lives in a Rural area, so if she has issues with the machine, it's not like she can just pop by a hardware store or appliance center and complain. She's about an hour and a half drive from anywhere which sells appliances.

Heh, anything goes wrong with that machine and she has to make an investment. A phone call is long distance. A trip out uses gasoline and time. There can't be many. Especially those dreaded, "The service guy has been out four times now to replace x, y and z."

In theory, a lot of appliance places will gladly sell me an extended warranty which covers everything, but it comes down to the time and money spent to continue investing in a machine which could potentially be a lemon.

The problem with Whirlpool, WCI, GE, etc is this...

If a company builds 10 million machines a year and 0.01 percent of them are defective or will go defective very quickly, that's 100 machines which will bite the dust just after their warranty. It's a calculated business risk.

All anyone would ever see on youtube, forums, etc are the unhappy owners, even though they probably make lots of great machines which could potentially last 10-15 years under light usage in an ideal scenario.

In the case of one video I saw on youtube, some engineers apparently seem to design their machines to fail. (Screws sticking out from the inner basket, which could lead to scraping the plastic outer tub for example.)

The other issue is the infamous broken/corroded spider issue which is fairly common with domestic North American front loaders. Reading on this forum, I understand it's also a common problem with cheap Indesit, Ariston and Hotpoint machines in Europe. (Sorry guys, but I've only seen Ariston sold here in Canada.)

So, if I want to consider something, either it would be cheap and expected to fail within a few years, or it would be something considerably more expensive, but designed to last.

More to the point, it seems to me like it's also getting the best value for my money. The best warranty, the best construction at the best price.

So, I kind of figure this brings it down a few different options. (In no order of preference)

1. LG WM2140CW (4.0 cu.ft) or the WM1355HW (2.7 cu.ft)
2. Samsung WF210ANW
3. Miele Novotronic W1612
4. Asko W6222

I figure a larger capacity machine would vibrate more and cause issues, so smaller capacity machines are certainly an option if they don't have vibration reduction technology.

Thanks for all the input so far!


Post# 577896 , Reply# 21   2/24/2012 at 02:11 (4,417 days old) by qualin (Canada)        

Any opinions on the AEG LAVAMAT L64850L or the AEG LAVAMAT L74950A?

Post# 577902 , Reply# 22   2/24/2012 at 06:25 (4,416 days old) by coldspot ()        

Now this is my take so being this is how I fell and might not be how others fell.

Samsung hell no junk total junk and more junk. Yes I hate them there junk is junk. I got a GE washer it is 100% built by Samsung. Fixed once under warranty. This washer is used by me no one else 1 person about once a week some times twice a week.

First repair took forever. GE or Samsung had no parts for it here at the time. They had to order them took forever.

Problem tub bearings shot. This took a new real outer tub. Also motor board thing shot.

Got that took care of. Worked good for about 4 months. Then went to land filed. I said screw it. Ge at this point it was 2 weeks after the warranty ran out would not help. Samsung said they could not help but could give me a break on service fee.

Well this time they came out and found out the unit needed be ready. Shocks, springs,rear tub for bearings,and new drum spider. Total cost to fix it cam to $2004.88. I looked at the service man and said f this f them it is going to the land filed.

Funny thing I posted a video on youtube the first time it broke. I got about 6 emails from others saying there was doing the same thing.


I am replacing it with a twin tub danby. I know it is cheap but after this no way would I spend a large amount on something that might only last 1 years and 2 weeks aging.

By the way this was my third front loader first was the 1999 Frigidaire, No problem with it at all. next was the newer Frigidaire it lasted about 2 years had problems with plastic parts breaking.


If I was and had the money I would go SQ or Miele. Or a washer soft mount from a Laundromat.

Here is one tip after this last washer I had, Before you buy pull up parts list look at the prices. This can give a ideal if you had to buy a major part what it will cost to replace it.



Post# 577948 , Reply# 23   2/24/2012 at 14:23 (4,416 days old) by ronhic (Canberra, Australia)        

ronhic's profile picture

Options 3 or 4.....

 

Both Miele and ASKO have good suspension systems, but I would still suggest (as Miele do in their manuals if I remember correctly) of screwing a solid board over any floorboards/joists to ensure a stable platform.

 

As this machine may look a little small compared to what she is used to, you will need to show her how to load it - right up to the top, as she will most likely be reluctant....you've only got to read the comments on here to understand that sooooo many Nth Americans don't 'get' the concept of how to use European machines properly.

 

She may have to alter her current laundry habits if she's used to doing 6 loads in a row and getting them all dry outside etc but both of these machines should have a 'short' warm cycle that takes around 45 minutes for smaller loads....Thankfully, if she adapts quickly to the 'load her full' way of doing things and it's only your folks rather than a house hold full, she'll probably be doing 5 or 6 loads a week if she follows the 'load her full' rule.

 

Oh, and detergent choice and dosing are VERY important.....

 

 


Post# 577977 , Reply# 24   2/24/2012 at 16:17 (4,416 days old) by jlbrazil (brazil)        
LG..

Not saying to buy it over a Miele , but its just my opinion having one for almost 3 years.
I live in Brazil and I have an LG WD-1403FD ( Identical to the WM1355HW ).
Here its rated an 8 Kg machine , have lots of options ( Some are different to the American one since mine is the European version )and spins at 1400 RPM.
I don't have nothing to complain about it. Cleaning power is awesome , rinse is acceptable ( If you think its not enough you can add up to 5 rinses ) and the spin is amazing ( full 5 minutes at 1400 RPM ).
In case you're curious about how the machine works , you can watch some of my videos :)

Joao.


CLICK HERE TO GO TO jlbrazil's LINK


Post# 578096 , Reply# 25   2/25/2012 at 08:42 (4,415 days old) by glenfieldmathk1 (Glenfield-Leicester-UK)        

The Bosch Axxis+ has anti vibration design, large capacity, but not over sized and fits in a small imprint.
Bosch Is a very reliable brand, and machine probably has the Magnetic motor, which comes with 10 Year guarantee in some areas (which strikes me the machine will probably last at least 5-10 years.
Otherwise, go for the Miele, then the Asko, then the LG, then the Samsung.


Post# 578249 , Reply# 26   2/25/2012 at 20:42 (4,415 days old) by combo52 (50 Year Repair Tech Beltsville,Md)        
BEST FL WASHERS

combo52's profile picture

Best buy is the mid-sized WPs with the horizontal, non tilted tubs. Best machine for long term durability and affordable repairs Speed Queen. Mieles are very good machines, but all washers and cars will break and you will pay for a Miele more than once.

 

Broken spiders are almost always the fault of the user, almost all automatic washers built for the last 50-60 have major aluminum parts in them, and they can and will fail more quickly if too little or cheap detergent is used in slightly or very hard water. There are several other factors that have been discussed at length on several threads that contribute to the corroded and broken spiders and ruined water seals and bad main bearings.


Post# 578287 , Reply# 27   2/26/2012 at 02:36 (4,415 days old) by qualin (Canada)        

OK, Bosch may be worth considering as well.. Looks like they come in a variety of capacities. Shame they don't come in 220 volt like the Asko. Would the reliability of the Bosch be about the same as an Asko?

Post# 578332 , Reply# 28   2/26/2012 at 08:19 (4,414 days old) by bosch2460 (Harrisonburg, VA)        

bosch2460's profile picture
I have had a Bosch Axxis+ in use for 10 year now. I have replaced the motor bushes once, about the 6 year mark. That is it. That washer does anywhere from 15-25 loads a week. My sister is using it now for her family of four. I was just there yesterday, checking it out. I also have a Miele 1966 that is my daily driver. It is about 5 years old. It is flawless. Both of those machines are 220V. In my opinion, you cannot go wrong with Bosch or Miele. I do not care what anyone else claims about expensive parts, etc. With proper care and use, you will not need repairs at all. Miele is my first choice, followed by the Bosch, and finally Speed Queen. I am not expert, but I have 2 Euro washers who's quality speaks for themselves.

--Joel


Post# 584942 , Reply# 29   3/25/2012 at 11:02 (4,386 days old) by sandy16 ()        

I have 2 Asko sets, an 11 year old 660 andyear old 6222. Both have performed flawlessly though the 1600 rpm spin will make some noise.

They hold a lot more than you would think and are meant to be fully loaded. If the smaller capacity in the Miele or Asko units is causing concern try weighing the wash loads to better understand what their capacity truly is.

Good luck!


Post# 584980 , Reply# 30   3/25/2012 at 13:09 (4,386 days old) by qualin (Canada)        

Thanks for the advice everyone..

Miele, Asko or Bosch! Got it.



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