In the Market for a New Washing Machine

[Cypress]

The Whirlpool washing machine that came with my house purchase four years ago needs to be replaced. The spin cycle quit and the cost to repair will be about $400. Following the Consumer Reports formula on replace or repair, it's definitely in the replace category. About 10 years old and cost of repair is more than half the cost of a new model.

What do you have and what's the best consumer strategy for buying? My brother said wait until the day after Thanksgiving. There are certain times of year for sales on washers.

I can wait and use the laundromat for a little while. I am single, do about 2 loads per week and let the sun dry most everything. I only need durable, and not fancy electronics. I am used to top loaders. Budget price is preferred under $500.

[CathyA]

Maybe check Sears out? Kenmore is supposed to be reputable. Just do alot of internet searching.
Another thing you can do is call a reputable washer serviceman and ask him what the best top loading machine is.
I'm still using my Maytag I bought in l979!

[pinkytoe]

We recently bought one of the least expensive top-loading Whirlpool models at a Sears sale for right around $500. It has three knobs and unfortunately some electronics required by law that don't allow one to open the lid without pushing another button once the wash starts. Later saw the same model at Lowe's for the same price we paid. Lowe's in our area have a row of marked down appliances - dented, etc...that often have like good prices.

[lmerullo]

At Christmas time we replaced our washer with a new Maytag commercial grade front loader. I think it would be overkill for you. It has a HUGE capacity, which is actually counter productive for a single person. We paid $800 - and it listed at about $1300, iirc. If I were single, I would stick with a top loader.

What pinkytoe said: check Lowes, Home Depot, etc for floor models, discontinued, scratch and dent, etc. Our refrigerator came from the local appliance store at 50% off as a last year model which was a floor sample. There was a dent, but it is not seen (inside the door frame).

[SteveinMN]

I'll third scratch-and-dent. I think every appliance in this house was s&d except for the dishwasher, which was a floor demo at the appliance store. Years ago I bought a washer on sale because the color ("Toast", fortunately not predictive) had been discontinued. Whatever it takes....

Cypress, I know you said you're used to a top-loader, but it really would not be difficult for you to adjust to a front-loader. Front-loaders are more gentle on clothes, use far less water (about 2/3 less) and detergent than top-loaders per load, and spin clothes drier, so it doesn't take as long to finish drying. As a class, front-loaders are more expensive than top-loaders. A good washing machine is going to cost $$$. They deal with water under some pressure and lots of moving parts.

It's not unheard of for the best-engineered washers to cost $1500-2000. For that money, though, you will get a machine which will last the 20+ years, like the old Maytags did. A $1000 Maytag nowadays will give you about 10 years of service. If you don't need more life than that, save the money. But if you want something which will go the distance at less than twice the price of two new Maytags, you'll want to check out Speed Queen, ASKO, Miele, or Bosch.

There are appliance sales all the time. Of course, at stores which sell s&d, what they stock varies constantly. And what's at one store may not be at another one in town. You may have to do some legwork. My experience is that the big sellers -- Sears, Home Depot, hhgregg, PC Richards, depending on where you live -- don't always have the best prices. Here in the Twin Cities, the best prices are from independend dealers, not the big boxes. Costco sells a pretty good consumer-grade machine with their Kirkland brand. LG has gotten past some initial service-infrastructure issues to become a good choice.

Another choice might be an independent appliance dealer that sells reconditioned appliances. We've gone that route in my mom's place. The place we've bought from has their own techs work on the machines. Since there's a 3-month warranty, there's no incentive for them to take a marginal machine and prettify it for sale -- one warranty visit will kill their margin. The ones they can't fix for a reasonable price get scrapped. My mom's current machine (top-load Whirlpool) cost less than $250; was delivered, wrestled down the stairs and connected by the store people; and the old washer removed. I hold no illusions that this one will last forever; it's also in an unfinished basement, so if it does the big firework some day, it won't take out a finished basement. For as long as I'm likely to have that property, it'll do fine. Longer term (say, for our own house), I'd choose differently.

Hope that helps....

[CathyA]

Steve........I've heard that there's a problem with a musty smell from front loaders. Ever heard that?

[SteveinMN]

Steve........I've heard that there's a problem with a musty smell from front loaders. Ever heard that?
I have. It's less prevalent now than when they were first introduced. A very typical source of the smell is the rubber gasket around the door, which has compression channels which will trap water. We've had our front-loader for 10+ years now and have not had that problem. We do, however, leave the detergent dispenser and the door open so any moisture that's collected can evaporate. An alternative would be to take a cloth/rag and wipe off the gasket so the moisture cannot stand and get funky.

[EDIT]I should add that my ex-wife and I bought one of the very first water-saving top-loaders when they were introduced maybe 15 years ago. That thing stunk to high heaven after a while -- it didn't flow enough water through itself to flush the graywater. So it isn't necessarily just a front-loader issue. It might be worth a quick Web search to see if that's an issue for a particular model in which you're interested.

[lmerullo]

RE: front loader smell - My friend had the same problem... smelled like an old locker room in her laundry area. She called out the repair guy (single gal, not handy) - since she thought a sock or something was stuck and rotting away inside the machine. She was told to keep the doors open, which is so hard for someone who wants to have the room look neat. And use either the washing machine cleaner stuff or just two cups of bleach in a hot cycle every month or two. The funk is pooled water, mildew, and product build-up (either detergent or softener, etc). One time when I was "treating" my machine, hubby asked what I was washing - told him I was washing a load of bleach - we are going to have the cleanest bleach in town.... boy, did he give me a look!

[sweetana3]

We have never had this issue in our front loaders. Our new machine even has a partial close that allows the door to stay close to the machine while allowing air to circulate.

[razz]

A friend who bought a new washer and did extensive research told me that the latest version of top loader is equal to the front loader in efficiency and ease/cost of use.