Community Discussions

Just the other day I found out that our 9 year old washing machine died.  Actually, it did not die, but it started blowing oil out from under the agitator during the spin cycle, thus ruining clothes.
I called three servicepeople, who told me that the seals and bearings in the transmission were blown, andf that it would be too costly a fix, even to do myself, in a 9 year old unit.

Well, with a houseful of kids, this is not something that can wait until i feel like getting around to it.  I started doing some research, went all around looking, etc, and ended up  buying something I would have not considered at first.

I almost bought a Kenmore, and I had a dozen salespeople try to talk me into a expensive front loader....they say the savings in water usage pays for itself, even after spending a grand on one........thankfully, my wife did not want a $1000 front loader.

We ended up buying a washer made in New Zealand.a brand named Fisher and Paykel......   I know, you never heard of it.   Me neither.

The washer is awesome.....it is a direct drive DC motor....it has no transmission, no clutch, no belts, no brakes...it is amazing.   It uses way less water then our old Amana, spins 1000 rpm, (fastest in the industry) so the clothes come out almost dry. It is quiet, does not get thrown around, does not walk all over the laundry room. Parts, if needed are inexpensive, and it comes with a full  two year parts AND labor warranty.  With no transmission, belts, etc, there is way less to go wrong and break down. 

Since we started using this washer, the dryer time has been cut in half, saving more money.

My wife loves it, and it cost me about $100 bucks more then the kenmore we were looking at, but it was still ONE HALF the cost of those front loaders.....cost me $549.00

They also make the coolest  TOP LOADING dryer, but we did not need one yet, so we just got the washer.  Anyway, it is neat when you find something that seems a bit better then 95% of what is out there, at a good price, and you make the wife happy.

I'm in the same boat as Frank, leaky tranny seals(fortunately mine are leaking onto the floor, not into the tub.....yet). I too have been looking for efficient washers and have been contemplating this one.

It is locally made and I can save $100 by picking it up locally. It still is a lot of $$ but by using so little H2O, detergent and energy the payback is pretty quick. I like the idea of the vertical tub within a tub etc. The only real wear item according to the guy I spoke to on the phone is the belt which is cheaply and readily available. The whole guts to this is front accessible and makes it a 5 minute job. The video is helpful seeing it in action.

I had never heard of the Fisher Paykel either Frank. Looks like a great unit at a much better price and now I will have to look that one up. I see we have a few dealers in my area. Thanks for the tip!

I bought the wife the $1000 Kenmore front loader over a year ago and have not looked back. It not only saves water it uses less soap and spins the cloths so fast that most of the water is gone before you put it in the dryer. Then you save on Electricity or Gas.

My wife did'nt want me to spend the money...but we just had a repair done to our 40yr old septic system and the thought of using half as much water washing the clothes for our young family was very apealing. 

Those "He" series of  Kenmores are great washers.

                                                            Dan

I've never before heard of one either Frank, but now I can that i have.  Dealers are not far away either.  The one we have now seems to have a rough agitator and puts piling on the clothes.  It's about a 2000 model and I'm anxious to see it off, and get one of these.  How it treating the clothes?

Seems to be treating the clothes good.  Some reviews say that with the hyper-speed spinning getting much of the water out could result in more wrinkles and perhaps more ironing, but we have not found that to be the case.
I really like the idea of no tranny, no belts, etc. 
I have heard some who say that on SOME of the newer front loaders there have been mold problems.
This washer sounds like a quiet jet engine when it spins.....cooler noises then the old one. Not loud at all, just different....like no clunking, etc.

Very happy with it so far.  seems to get done quicker, so that plus a WAY SHORTER dryer time, you can get much more laundry done in a shorter amount of time.

Also, I forgot to mention, it has a BIG capacity.....3.7 cubic feet, compared to 3.3 on the other "big" ones.

Frank D.

Frank,

The Maytag front loaders had a bad mold problem and I have noticed that they have changed models since the class action law suit . The Kenmore He series, Whirlpool Duet, Kitchenaid, LG and it appears maybe the new Maytag all use the same model of front loader that is made in Germany.

As long as you get the clothes in the dryer quick you should'nt have a problem with wrinkleing.

                                                                                                                       Dan

We've had the Whirpool Duet washer and dryer almost 3 years now. The dryer is stacked on top of the washer to save space. So far we had one service call for the washer. It turns out that one of the baby's socks clogged the drain. Of course wifey didn't believe me when I told her to use a mesh laundy bag for the baby's socks way back when or else... *sigh*.... why don't they listen?

At this point the washer isn't as quiet as it used to be in high spin mode. The drum seems to be unbalanced 6 out of 10 times resulting in having to stop the machine and rebalance the load. PIA! It shouldn't be like that. Thing is, being a front loader, you have no control over it. Top loader yes as you can spread the load evenly. For crying out loud!!!!!

Oh well.... we'll see....  It's starting to get on my nerves. May have to pull it and open it up and see what alll the racket is about.

I do not know much about the front loaders, although I understand they are quite nice.
The new Fisher and Paykel washer I bought has no springs attached to the drum around the sides........I was told that those loosen after awhile causing imbalances.
The only springs are four big ones only connected to the drum on the bottom, so they will not stretch out and wear. Nothing is attached to the drum anywhere but the bottom. Pretty cool.

Frank D.