Washing machine

[foulpole18]

Washing machine just broke down thank god (was a complete pile) and now am replacing it. Any experience with a top load basic, durable machine. Don't want anything to do with a front load, that's what we had and hated it.

Thanks

Brian

[Cicada]

Why did you hate the front load? What did you have? Top load, look for a Seed Queen. They are the closest thing you can find today that is built li the Maytags of 25 years ago. Still rate their life expectancy at about 25 years compared to 16 or so with all other major brands. Also, have a full three year parts and labor warranty and a 15 year transmission parts warranty. About the only thing you can say bad about the Speed Queen is that they are totally built in Wisconsin and you have to trust Green Bay Packer fans to assemble your machine. On the other hand, they have been much happier fans the last few years and they don't know which machines will be going to Minnesota.

Still would like to know what happened with the front load. Where did you get it?

[foulpole18]

It was a maytag Neptune and it was loud and always smelled. It came with the house we bought and we just didn't like it from day 1. Kept it around till it broke.

[SkunkedAgain]

I don't own a front load, but from what I've read they (but so can top loaders) will develop mold and smell if you don't let them air out. They sell soap cleaners for them too. We bought a new top load about two years ago. We just leave the top open after moving a load from washer to dryer, and follow the instructions about running the bleach clean cycle once every month or two.

The previous owner of your house/washer may have created a mold issue early on that you had to deal with afterward.

[Cicada]

Both noise level and rancid odors can be caused by too much soap. The right amount of soap can vary from area to area. Around here, we recommend about two tablespoons of regular strength HE detergent. If you are using other products like bleach or pre-treater, cut back on the soap some more. Make sure you always buy the same detergent. A 2x or 3x doesn't mean it cleans 2 or 3 times better. It means it is more concentrated and you should cut in half or a third of what is recommended for your area. You should never see bubbles in a high efficiency washer.

The reason the detergent will cause the rancid odor is detergents are animal fat based products. It would be like taking a chunk of meat and throwing it under the sink in a warm moist environment and wait a couple of weeks. You will get a bad smell and it will be food for bacteria or mold. Those Maytags might only be using 14-16 gallons of water in a normal cycle. That's less than half of what a traditional top load machine will use. They don't have enough water going through them to rinse out the excess soap residue. You should not have to let them "air out." The reason they put a tub clean cycle on those machine is because people buy them from big box store to save a few bucks and are never taught how to use them properly.

Too much soap can also cause more noise in the machine. If you have suds, this can be caused by the pump and agitation. Think of it this way, if you have a glass of milk and you are drinking from a straw, do you hear more noise while drinking the liquid or the bubbles at the bottom of the glass? Is your noise the kind caused by too much soap, or does it sound like a freight train? The latter may be caused by bad bearings. Bad bearings can be caused by this or overloading and underloading.

If you haven't guessed yet I work for a small appliance store. We feel that front load machines give you a superior wash system, are gentler on your clothes and will save you lots of money in the long run (providing you have enough clothes to keep the machine busy, like a family of four or more). Even though you are spending more for a machine that has a lower life expectancy (about 10 year average), Using only 13 to 15 gallons of water and only two tablespoons of detergent per load while doing larger loads, it will pay for the difference in price and then some.

Good luck.