Washer/ Dryer..........

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WoodMann

Minister of Fire
Feb 9, 2008
670
New Mexico
Howdy folks,
doin' a whole rehab of the house so in the market for a wwasher and dryer, too. Front loaders are too long to fit the limited confines of the 29" by 54" space availabe. I've zeroed in on an LG 5101 washer and accompanying dryer; but I guess the real big question is- how good are the new top loaders compared to front loaders..............
 
Anyone........
 
All i've ever had were top load wahers and the cheapest dryer money can buy. Bought both about 13 yrs ago and have had minor issues with the washer only. kids little tiny sock washed over the top of the tub and rapped itself in the pump. took it out and it has been working fine ever since. But i aint payin twice as much for a fancy front loader anything as long as we do wah in an unfinished basement. Maybe if the set sat in the kitchen to be seen it would make a difference.
 
From your description it doesn't sound like you have a choice.

There's been a lot of discussion here about front loaders. There was a recent post about top versus front loading. Did you see it.

I think the consensus has been that if you can afford it, go with a front loader for water and power conservation, decreased drying times, and extending the life of your clothes.
 
My daughter just had a bearing go out of her front loader, 800 dollars just for the bearing, this was a Maytag, no thanks.
 
oldspark said:
My daughter just had a bearing go out of her front loader, 800 dollars just for the bearing, this was a Maytag, no thanks.

What, an $800 bearing. That sounds like a $16 muffin story. ;)
 
Just a suggestion, when we were shopping for our last set we found that some of the euro front loaders were also available as a stacking set. Dryer on top of washer. If we were tight on space pretty sure that's the way my wife would choose to go. FYI set is 10 years old & just had it's first service..a$25 load sensor in the washer, other than that nothing in 10 years & with all the kids we wash a lot of clothes, 10 loads/week easy. BTW service tech said to avoid the stuff we make & stick with Bosch/LG & other well known front loading brands rather than our copies of them. FWIW my wife says she will never go back to a top loader, she likes the quality of build, how much cleaner the clothes wash, how much longer the clothes last (no agitator), using less detergent, clothes come out dryer due to the 1500 rpm spin speed, etc. I know that it uses less electricity & far less water to do what she says is a better job.
 
Thanks- I was just think also, that we're pretty much set with what we can work with. Thanks, I'll keep ya'll posted.......
 
oldspark said:
My daughter just had a bearing go out of her front loader, 800 dollars just for the bearing, this was a Maytag, no thanks.

Never heard of Maytag selling any bearing seperate from the outer tub assy. Those of course are $450.00, repairman must be wanting the other $400 for labor.
 
I've come to the conclusion that I'd rather have a top loader than a front loader.

And am glad I have a top loader, from what I've seen with repairs on front load washer/dryers.
 
Hello,

the lg5101 has 2 varieties..Google and you will see reviews on garden web and eopinions..Some folks complained that they had to hit a fabric water softener button and hot water issues for certain cycles..One poster complained about the silver lid scratching.

I myself own an lg washer/dryer front loader and love it. Just can't overload, otherwise can burn out bearing. The top loader you are looking at(per on-line posters)has a pdf file for owners manuel..Maybe you can give a peek and read about your future purchase.

Consumers complain about their LG french door refrig..Big issue seem to be lack of customer support and long lead time for parts and repairs..Being without your washer is lousy especially if you have kids...Hope this helps. Don't know too much about the model your are looking at, but saw the reviews and thought you should know.
 
PS-Some people complain that their front load washer are odious..I leave my door open or the soap dispenser open. They also make a product called "refresh"..Think this happens because people may use incorrect or too much laundry liquid. It is imperative that you use HE products for HE machines. I clean my gasket often. Sounds like a pita but I love the way it cleans and uses less water...Good luck in your new purchase. Big investment.
 
my opinion is top load. i hear complaints often on the tub bearing and door gaskets. i don't know where this uses less electricity comes from. the top loaders use 10 amps. some Maytag's 7 amps. front loaders use 12 amps. got 15 trouble free years out of the last washer (whirlpool) bought a new one three years ago. whirlpool. when i took it out of the box to hook it up, it was the same washer that i pulled out. the last ten years of it's life was wife overloading it. took ten years to seize that transmission.

good luck
frank
 
I have one of the "odor-plagued" Maytag Neptune front loaders.
There's a little spot on mine that tends to stay wet. You either leave the door open until t dries out or wipe it out every now and then. If you ever had mold and mildew grow on the inside lid of a top loader it's basically the same thing. Mine "sticks out" two fingers further than the old harvest gold GE dryer that will probably last forever. Some of the bigger front loads stick out further, but so do the matching dryers if you buy a set. Why some people throw out a perfectly good dryer when they give up on the washer I don't know.

Only thing I miss with the old top loader was when it went to high speed spin with a tangled up unbalanced load and sounded like it was going to launch itself to the ISS or at least out the window. The Maytag doesn't do that.

My washer is in a tight space and in the corner ( a left hand opening door would be a PITA) but you do what you gotta do.


I've only read that they've improved some top-loader efficiencies.
 
blujacket said:
oldspark said:
My daughter just had a bearing go out of her front loader, 800 dollars just for the bearing, this was a Maytag, no thanks.

Never heard of Maytag selling any bearing seperate from the outer tub assy. Those of course are $450.00, repairman must be wanting the other $400 for labor.
Nope labor was a couple of hundred I think, said they have a couple of people ask every month and they have been in business in this area for a long long time and can be trusted.
 
I did a google search for Maytag Neptune and that is a POS and several peole have spent big money for repairs or junked them.
 
I replaced just the bearings on our 12yo Maytag Neptune. I got the parts on line from neptunehelp.com for . It took an hour or two but saved $400 for the tub assembly and $400 labor. Its been three years now and I would do it again in a minute.
 
RED FRONTIER said:
I replaced just the bearings on our 12yo Maytag Neptune. I got the parts on line from neptunehelp.com for . It took an hour or two but saved $400 for the tub assembly and $400 labor. Its been three years now and I would do it again in a minute.
have you seen all the negative reports on the Neptune?
 
When the first came out they were all the rage. Time can exposes alot of problems. I threw a $100 bucks at it. Its been 3 years now. They don't owe me anything. I actually enjoyed replacing the bearings. I learned alot about how the machine works. I never thought about putting the bearings in the freezer over night to shrink them to fit in the housing. After 13 years of service we must have gotten a good pair.
My mom on the other had just replaced her top loading Whirlpool after 25 years. She replaced hers with a Kenmore front loader.
 
Well since the OP was specifically looking for a new top loader I didn't have anything to say . . . but since the thread has since evolved . . . I have had very few issues with my front loader Whirlpool Duet . . . originally some of the paddles (not sure of the technical name for them) in the drum broke off -- the company has since redesigned the paddles. I also had a plastic shroud grenade . . . but for the life of me I'm not sure what it did since the washing machine is still working perfectly fine with no leaks, unusual sounds, etc.
 
I've got a Samsung front loader/washer. No problems. Our house does about 10 loads per week and in 4 years there have been zero problems. Yes, if you use regular soap it will suds up and your clothes won't get clean/rinse. If you leave the door shut it will get musty (top loaders are not sealed). But I love being able to adjust the loads, add detergent/softner/bleach and forget it. I'm sure there are newer fancy top loaders that have these features but for less than $1000 for the set I'm very happy.

At 10 loads a week it saves on average a couple hundred gallons of water. Its got a local heater for high temp loads. The front rim is counter balanced with bearings that will offset an unballanced load. It cleans well, better if you don't stuff your socks/undies in with sheets and large items. The high-speed spin will practially dry the clothes which is the real savings if you use a dryer.
 
That's a good question.
We got a brandy new LG front loader back in '07 and issues w/it from day one. The guys that brought it out leveled the thing pretty well, but it felt like the house was coming apart when it went to spin cycle. I've reinforced the floor joists underneath, and re-leveled about 3 times w/o completely fixing the issue.
Takes 1.5 hours to do a full load, but only uses (supposedly) about 8 gallons to do it.
Next one will be a top loader.
 
Our Maytag Neptune lasted about 10 years before it started having problems. We replaced it with a Bosch front loader, one of the few machines we could find that was built in the USA.

With 2 sons, me working as a mechanic, 4 dogs, and a compulsively cleaning wife we never got anywhere near 10 years out of the 3 top loaders we owned previously. Couple that experience with the energy and water efficiency, better cleaning, and longer lasting clothes offered by front loaders makes it a no-brainer for us.
 
I have a Staber, it is an horizontal axis top loader. So it works like a front loader but has no door gaskets to worry about. Stainless steel drum and no transmission, just a drive belt and a variable speed drive. It uses a very low amount of water and spins out really well. Most synthetics are bascially dry when they come out. It also has a mechanical timer and mechancial switches. Not a lot of bells and whistles. They are made in the US and last for a long time. They send a repair manual with the washer and all the reapirs can be doen by a reasonably competent homeowner. They are built by a firm that manufactures and rebuild commerical units so they are heavy duty. Kind of pricey but will run forever.
 
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