Built to last
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Candy
Buy European and not cheap
Our super cheap Candy (Washer and a drier) has been going for 5 years now without issue
Though i'd buy a different brand if i had to again and wasn't pressed for money, I am definitely surprised how well it's doing. -
As well as the hatch where the detergent goes in. Otherwise it will get swampy in there. That part of the post kinda makes me wonder if maybe her mother just takes better care of hers.
I take the detergent tray out after every wash so it dries properly. Occasionally wipe the tray slot down if it needs it, and wash the tray. Seen a few horrible swamps in shared housing over college years.
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Efficiency does little for your wallet and the environment if you need to buy/produce a new machine every few years.
(Not to say that we shouldn't strive for efficiency.)
That's the same way i look at it. How much energy is involved in building a new washing machine? How much energy is spent scrapping it? So much waste. I recently had a run of energy-efficient washing machines that all had the same problem with the main CPU board. In 2 weeks i had 4 instances all come out of the woodwork. Only 1 opted for the repair but it cost them almost as much as a new washer. The rest got scrapped. These washers were all about 2 years old when i witnessed this phenomenon (and I ran into yet another one just a couple weeks ago)... Other techs online are sharing similar reports.
Not only are they over-engineering the fuck out of these things for "energy efficiency" which i swear is just an umbrella they use to cover their real goals--to make appliances less user and tech friendly. They want their guys selling their overpriced junk and bespoke computers/sensors/gizmos so they can extract every last cent of value out of the product, then try to sell you another one every 3-5 years almost like leasing a car.
Still, that doesn't mean the tech used to extract greater efficiency is a bad idea -- it's all the approach they take to get there. They're making the cheapest tech possible while trying to sell it for the most $. These digital electronics they design to handle the various functions that give them such energy efficiency are often made with design flaws that aren't worked out before release and/or they're made with the absolute bottom-of-the-barrel components and/or manufacturing standards. If they wanted to make nearly-indestructible computers and sensors and transmissions and motors they absolutely could. They could even make them extremely energy efficient as well, but it's simply not gonna happen.
Energy efficiency is a valid goal, but if that's really what they're going for they need to make some major changes to the way they're approaching it. The engineers in these companies are too smart for this to be the best they can do.
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Front loaders suck for moisture retention. They need more care between cycles to prevent build up.
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This is like that fridge post from yesterday..
The difference is that...cheap washing machines didn't exist. Good modern washing machines last a long time while not wasting money and electricity.
You can't compare the only available appliances of the 70s to the bottom-of-the-barrel now
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Survivorship bias is a heck of a drug.
There's no comparison between an old Maytag washer and dryer and a new/current Maytag washer and dryer. This is a case where survivorship bias does not apply, imo. Appliances were built more durable back in the day. There are plenty of older appliances working just fine today while some stuff under 5 years is already getting scrapped because it's too expensive to fix and/or parts aren't even available. It's total nonsense
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More water and energy efficient to run, yes. If you have to replace them every couple of years the resources used to make new ones need to be included too though, and that will have a big impact on the comparison. That said, I have had a modern front load pair for at least 5 years now, no issues.
wrote on last edited by [email protected]The resources used to make anything should always be included; called embodied energy.
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Buy European: Miele, Rex Electrolux, Beko (Turkish, don't get into that), Smeg, Candy, AEG, etc...
Don't want to jinx it, but my Electrolux washer-dryier is 7 years old and still like new, despite being relatively cheap and despite combined machines being more problematic.
My Euromaid is a decade old. Had to replace a $30 part after 5 years, but no other issues.
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The resources used to make anything should always be included; called embodied energy.
Of course. Those resources are just a much larger impact percentage wise on an appliance replaced every two years vs 25.
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Buy European: Miele, Rex Electrolux, Beko (Turkish, don't get into that), Smeg, Candy, AEG, etc...
Don't want to jinx it, but my Electrolux washer-dryier is 7 years old and still like new, despite being relatively cheap and despite combined machines being more problematic.
Smeg
They make acceptable and pretty toasters and similar appliances, but avoid this brand like a plague for fridges
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For front loaders you should leave the door cracked at least. Also clean under that rubber seal once in a while...
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If you ever need a new one, front loaders tend to fit more and I believe they're more efficient too. Plus if a top loader grenades itself, it might be a pain to get your laundry out if the drum doesn't move anymore. Front loaders are more expensive though.
Front loaders also wash better.
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Don't buy American washers, I think only speed queen still bothers with quality.
Also don't get a Samsung one from what I hear. Apparently LG is okay.
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Our super cheap Candy (Washer and a drier) has been going for 5 years now without issue
Though i'd buy a different brand if i had to again and wasn't pressed for money, I am definitely surprised how well it's doing.I had a very different experience with the brand (washing machine actively trying to kill me, for exemple)
Maybe there's a difference between the different factories making them ?
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More water and energy efficient to run, yes. If you have to replace them every couple of years the resources used to make new ones need to be included too though, and that will have a big impact on the comparison. That said, I have had a modern front load pair for at least 5 years now, no issues.
In the 2008 economic slump, the U.K. had something called a ācar scrappage schemeā. Shit was the most wasteful thing ever. Also saw really cool classics cubed.
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I picked this up from my parents.
When I moved out, I lived with a flatmate for a few years and I left the washing machine door open after using it and my flatmate closed it.
I explained to her why I left it open and she just stared back at me. Not once had she ever thought of this and said it made so much sense. She is about 20 years my senior.
Certain habits seem to be so obvious, but unless handed down, someone may never even think of it.
Reminds me of that guy that never thought to let the shower water get warm before stepping in.
Totally fair about habits being passed down. However, I lived with someone who I had to explain the whole leave the washer open 2 or 3 times over the course of a couple years. She'd even complain about the smell. She was one dense mother fucker tho.
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In the 2008 economic slump, the U.K. had something called a ācar scrappage schemeā. Shit was the most wasteful thing ever. Also saw really cool classics cubed.
USA had the same thing, "Cash for Clunkers". Some of the cars we were better off getting rid of. Some of them not, whether because they were rare or classic, or old but still more fuel efficient than a truck or SUV. Sure increased the average price of a used car though.
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Front loaders suck for moisture retention. They need more care between cycles to prevent build up.
They can. The newer ones have mandatory 'drum clean' cycle every 20 washes or so that runs hot with no detergent and helps to kill and blast out any potential accumulating grime/mould.
So far so good with ours (midrange Samsung front loader). Not expecting it to match the record of of last one, which was an LG and ran for 20 years, but so far it's been great.
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Plus these fancy new machines canāt even wash a fucking blanket (unbalanced every time, no matter what I do).
I haven't had an issue with an unbalanced load since I started using a front loader. Mine washes all our blankets without issue other than the >15# weighted blankets, and that's just me not wanting to risk my washer to not go to the Laundromat.
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- It can tell you it's done, so you notice the notification after a couple hours instead of finding musky clothes a day or two later
- It can tell you it's time to do the self-cleaning cycle
- If you're doing something unusual, like washing reusable diapers which need extra rinse cycles, you can upload a custom program for that to the washer
- Even more unusual, someone had stacked units and was too short to reach the buttons on the washer, so they liked to start it via the app instead of getting a stool
Most of this can be achieved in other ways (like a smart plug measuring the current draw and a simple monthly reminder), but non-techies want turnkey solutions.
I can't see any reason to have WiFi on your dryer, though.
Most of this can be achieved in other ways (like a smart plug measuring the current draw
Idk about other people, but this is actually harder than you'd think. I've got zigbee and zwave hubs in my house for my home automation system, but there's really not anything that uses those technologies and has the screwy power plug my washer has. I grabbed some inducement sensors (I think that's what they're called), but I can't use them near my washer since they have to be hooked to the line to have a reference and my washer is too far away from my fuse box.
