Thread Number: 4990
Reliability of US FL? |
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Post# 109618 , Reply# 1   2/13/2006 at 21:23 (6,617 days old) by launderess (Quiet Please, There´s a Lady on Stage)   |   | |
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CR rated the old GE front loader (built by Electrolux) as good in terms of reliablity. What was different between that brand and others made by the same company (Kenmore and Frigidaire) is anyone's guess. Some report good sucess with early Frigidaire models, others had machines that barely made it past five years before the rear bearings gave out. Personally, I suggest looking into a Miele front loader. They are built like tanks and you will probably grow bored with the unit long before anything major happens. If short cycle times do not bother you,look at the Speed Queen "Homestyle" front loaders. These basically are commercial laundromat washers in a cabinet designed for home use. Rugged, no frills washers that will get your laundry clean with little fuss. Front loading washing machines have always been expensive to desgin and produce due to the nature of their construction. Supporting eleven or more pounds of wet laundry/water and then spinning it at high spin speeds safely day in and day out is no easy design feat. What seems to be happening is in the rush to market, many appliance makers are cutting corners to keep prices down. L. |
Post# 109626 , Reply# 2   2/13/2006 at 21:35 (6,617 days old) by mayken4now (Panama City, Florida)   |   | |
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Post# 109654 , Reply# 5   2/13/2006 at 22:51 (6,617 days old) by frigilux (The Minnesota Prairie)   |   | |
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I have a Frigidaire and like it a lot. No problems after 3 years at about 7 or 8 loads per week. While I'm glad to see Speed Queen back in the domestic washer market, be forewarned that Consumer Report"s latest tests showed the SQ's cycle was so short (35 minutes, with a maximum 9-minute wash, about half that of most FL'ers) it didn't clean a heavily-soiled load well. It has been reported that SQ is releasing a redesigned machine in 2007 with reconfigured cycles. Having said that, someone around here owns one of these SQ's and he's happy with it, although he stated he rarely washes heavily-soiled loads. My recommendations for front-loaders: Kenmore, Whirlpool, Frigidaire. These machines clean well and have good reliability track records. Good luck with your new purchase and please let us know which machine you decide to purchase. |
Post# 109889 , Reply# 11   2/15/2006 at 05:12 (6,616 days old) by chestermikeuk (Rainhill *Home of the RailwayTrials* Merseyside,UK)   |   | |
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Of all the new front loader machines on the market do they all have 2 or 4 shock absorbers?? I wonder if in our European 24 inch wide cabinets with an average of 5kg washload, that the drum ratio of weighted wet clothes , spin speed and solid floors is a perfect washing/spinning action. Anything bigger, i.e. larger drum, more inertia on spin, 2 shocks, possible wooden floors, sensitive speed controllers is just gonna cause problems etc.. All our front loaders up until the 80`s never had spin balancing, after the wash rinse the drum started revolving at distribution speed pinning the clothes against the sides of the drum, the pump was on to pump water out and then it went straight into its optimum spin, and up to its top speed without stopping. My new MaytAso FL does this now, no wishy washy distribution spin, just straight up to 800, them 1200, 1400 & finally 1600 without stopping inbetween all over 9 minutes. Just done a 60d quick wash, 4 rinses, high water level, 1600 spin in 48 mins. Cheers, Mike |
Post# 109898 , Reply# 12   2/15/2006 at 06:33 (6,616 days old) by appnut (TX)   |   | |
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the7, you were a bit misleading about the HE3T's normal cycle being 45 minutes. That cycle is confusingly labeled as normal/casual. That cycle is actually the permanent press/wrinkle free cycle. Whitest Whites with wash temp set to warm or hot has a 60 minute cycle time. And BTW Leslie, I was very pleased to see the Oasis' cycles have one specifically for casual/wrinkle free and one designated as Normal. Far more accurate in helping the uninformed owner who doesn't erally read their manuals lol.
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Post# 109907 , Reply# 13   2/15/2006 at 07:12 (6,615 days old) by frigilux (The Minnesota Prairie)   |   | |
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Ooooh, those Maytags are sharp-looking! Very nice; thanks for the picture. Two things stop me from replacing my current Frigidaire: 1) I like having a mechanical cycle dial to easily add more wash time, skip an unneeded rinse, etc. 2) I don't want a machine that takes forever to distribute a load before the spin. Adding 10 or 15 minutes to a cycle for that would drive me crazy. |
Post# 109965 , Reply# 14   2/15/2006 at 11:59 (6,615 days old) by hoovermatic (UK)   |   | |
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A quick wash in 48 mins!!!! I want one of those then 'cos my 'quick' wash takes longer in my new machine (90 mins) than a full boil wash in my old one!!! |
Post# 109967 , Reply# 15   2/15/2006 at 12:21 (6,615 days old) by frigilux (The Minnesota Prairie)   |   | |
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Post# 110090 , Reply# 25   2/16/2006 at 09:39 (6,614 days old) by chestermikeuk (Rainhill *Home of the RailwayTrials* Merseyside,UK)   |   | |
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Hello Peter The Maytags are made by Asko and I have had them nearly 4 yrs now, how time flys. I love them and wouldnt be without them, I have always admired the ASko (ASEA) machines having sold them over 20 yrs ago, along with Miele, AEG, Kuppersbuch and De Detrich, names that where relatively unknown in UK and very expensive then. The Maytag UK Website is very sparse but does have a pdf at the bottom of the page giving all the specifications etc. I mainly use the 4 memory buttons which I have programmed to do: 1 = 95d Whites Extra Long wash 2 = 60d Towel medium wash 3 = 40d Short Wash 4 = Rinse & Spin I mostly use the Memory 3 programme, which gives me a 40d short wash, 4 rinses, high water level and a 9min spin at 1600rpm all in 48 mins. I use this wash with higher temps as well 60/70d. CLICK HERE TO GO TO chestermikeuk's LINK |
Post# 110380 , Reply# 26   2/18/2006 at 03:41 (6,613 days old) by sudsmaster (SF Bay Area, California)   |   | |
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Very good point, Diomede! I guess some Americans can't "multi-task". Of course, many here have stuck their washer/dryers in the basement or in the garage, so they may object to spending any more time in those places than absolutely necessary. Unlike many Euro washer installations which are under counter in the kitchen or bath, easier to access when one is tending to other chores. And we may have gotten into the habit of expecting the wash to be done in 30 minutes or less, and even though a longer wash is really not an issue, a schedule may have been devised, for example, "do all the week's wash on Saturday morning, then go shopping" or some such thing. I understand Europeans tend to run their washers every day, instead of once a week, so this makes the longer cycles less of an issue. My Neptune pair is centrally located in my home, in an open area of kitchen/family room, so it's really no problem (other than noise) to run washes while working on the computer or cooking. The only hitch for me is that I like to line dry whenever it's not raining, so I tend to time the washing for early mornings so that there is time to dry the clothes outdoors. If I use the dryer then I can wash/dry pretty much any time of day (although with the old plumbing here, I prefer not to have the washer running when I'm taking a shower). |