Your Washing machine...do You Love It? Do You Hate It?

I have a GE front loader and the matching dryer and I LOVE IT! I can get 2x the laundry done in one load. My clothes are cleaner, I use less soap, less water and less time. My 9 year old can even use it is so user friendly.

Check the user reviews on HomeDepot, Lowes and Sears' websites. That's how I decided to buy a Maytag Centennial when our Kenmore died. It's energy efficient, but a top loader. I really wanted a top loader because our kids are still young and the death risk is just too much now with a front loader (not to mention, I hear issues with odor and mold problems with those). It's not very expensive, either. We've had it about six months now and it works great. Very happy with the purchase.

I have a top loading machine and really dislike it. I end up going to the laundry mat at least 4 times a year just to wash a comforter or all the Winter bedding, etc....

I prefer a front loading washer. They have higher spins, usually have more options for wash cycles and rinse cycles.

My favorite front loader I had was an Asko. The issue with it was that it is pretty small. It uses less than 15 gallons of water for 3 washes and 5 rinses. I used about 2 tablespoons of laundry soap and IF I felt I needed to add bleach then it was only about 1 Tablespoon. I used about 1/4 cup of fabric softener. It had it's own water heater and plugged into a 220 outlet instead of regular 110. Not sure if the ampage is correct but you understand what I mean. The water heater degrees were in Celsius and it had from plain cold temp all the way up to 90 degrees, which 100 degrees in Celsius is boiling. That is SOME hot water.

The dryer plugged into the washer, it had an outlet especially for the dryer. So both washer and dryer used only 1 220 plug that the dryer, if electric, would normally go. Both the washer and dryer were a bit smaller and could even stack if needed. We had them side by side. But anyway, they were a bit smaller than a normal washer and dryer, they were perfect for us until we got my grandkids. Then we needed full size ones.

I wish with all my heart I had insisted on the large front loaders. My Asko had a 1200 RPM spin at the end that got out nearly every bit of water and the drying time was so minimal. The washer I have now just doesn't get the clothes as white and pristine as my Asko but it does okay, the clothes don't smell dirty. With the front loaders at the laundry mat I notice my clothes look whiter and have crisper colors even with just one wash.

I LOVE my LG front loader washing machine and dryer. I actually like to do laundry now where it used to be a major chore. I just put the clothes in and turn the dial to the type of load and it adjusts all the settings accordingly. My favorite setting is the "quick wash" which takes 20 minutes to wash and usually 20 to dry. I got the steam washer thinking that i would use it for sanitation purposes with kids but I don't use that setting very often so I woudln't get that again. The only drawback to any front loader is that you have to leave the door open after you use it or it will get a bad smell in there becaus they're so air-tight. There are also washer cleaners that I use once in a while if it gets stinky. The advantages of the front loaders is that they use less water and are gentler on clothes. Good luck!

We just bought a new Maytag Bravos washer and matching dryer - there were so many styles and models to choose from, it was overwhelming, so I know what you mean. We've never had to buy a new set before. The best thing about the one I bought is the glass top on the washer and dryer front - I love the look of it :) (yes, it's the little things that make me happy!). The washer automatically calculates the size of the load and then adds the appropriate amount of water, which I find amazing, but I guess all the new ones do this. It does use specific soap, labeled HE, and you have to buy that particular soap or else you will ruin the washer. I think most of the new washers use that kind of soap - I'd just never noticed it before at the supermarket. We bought our set at Sears - it was definitely not the fanciest one out there - I really couldn't believe how expensive some of them were - but it is big, clean, and new, has many more features than our old one, and is more than adequate for what we need. Happy Shopping!

well we had a front loading HE Whirlpool and it got moldy on the seal and leaked so we returned and got the top loading Whirlpool cabrio super capacity (largest one) and absolutely love it. It cleans the clothes really well and very fast. I can also fit a whole cal king comforter or sleeping bag in both washer and dryer no problem. I would totally reccomend. My neighbors have the same washer and dryer just the smaller size and they love theres as well. We found them at Spencers and they had the best price.

I have a Miele (German) front loader. I'm not sure I'd get another Miele because they are expensive and it's difficult to find repair people, but I love having a front loader. Fortunately, it's been very reliable (knock on wood) and I've only needed a repair (on the door gasket) once in the approximately 7 years I've had it. It's supposed to have a lifespan of 25 years. It washes really well, doesn't use much detergent and water and it's very gentle on the clothes. I've noticed a huge difference with stain removal and the brightness of our clothes compared to the clothes belonging to my sons' friends. On the downside, it's a little on the small side and I have to order special HE detergent on line. It uses so little detergent though that if I order a large box I only need to order about 2x/year. I have not had any problems with odor and mold. I do keep the door open between loads. I have two boys who play sports and a husband who is picky about clean shirts so I was A LOT of loads.

My sister was ready for a new washer and after talking to people who have a front-loader, decided on a standard. Some things she found out are that you can't add clothes to front loaders once they start, you have to leave the door open when not in use or it gets moldy and stinks, it takes a long time to save money on water - enough to pay for the higher cost. Having said that, I have heard many people say they love their front loaders!

Let us know how your research goes. :)

We have the Whirlpool Duet front loader. Pile of junk. It was 2 years old the first time it broke. Cost $450 to fix and took 3 weeks - for a family of 5 it was tough to lug everything to the laundromat. At the time, I researched front loading washers through Consumer Reports. Ours was supposedly the best. Maybe we just got a lemon? I know when we researched it, top loaders were supposed to be more reliable but that may have changed. We needed a front loader for the size of our laundry room. Good luck!

I have a Kenmore HE front loader and I love it!
Yes, you can get mold around the seal and it will stink unless you wipe it regularly and I leave the door open for a bit after I wash a load and let it dry so it doesn't stink.

I have the Whirlpool Calypso set that we bought somewhere between 5-10 years ago. I think the Whirlpool Cambria that another post mentions might be its newer replacement model. It is a top-loader but does not have a center agitator post so it works a lot like a front load and can do very large loads and all my large comforters, etc. Some of the settings/features I like are just picking the cycle and not having to set a water level. I use all the cycles from bulky, jeans, whitest whites, to handwash cycles. Since I have daughters with lots of delicates, I like handwash, quickwash, and the delicate/casual. I like the "touch up" feature on the dryer. I have noticed that my kids clothes often look/wear better than their friends' clothes. When friends give them something they have outgrown, it will look brighter and more re-stored after I wash it. I chose top-load over front load mainly because I am a slob at pretreating stains and like to spray/pretreat stains over the washer with the lid open so any residues go into the washer. I have always wondered how people with front loaders pretreat any bad stains without having a mess on the top of their washer? I had never thought about the fact that you can't add anything to a front loader once its washing! I do that often so I am even happier that I bought a top load!