IBWino
Recycles dryer sheets
- Joined
- May 12, 2006
- Messages
- 465
Just a quick update to report our impressions on our new front loading washer and dryer set. We went with a Samsung WF419AAU washer and matching dryer with the optional pedestals. For what it's worth, they both scored well in Consumer Reports, and Samsung was the top rated washer/dryer manufacturer in J.D. Powers 2009 customer satisfaction survey.
We've had them for just over a week and my wife has done about a dozen loads of various sizes, including bulky bedding. So far, we are very impressed. Both are extremely quiet, especially the washer. During the washer's spin cycle, there can be a very brief period of moderate vibration as the speed is ramped up, but the washer makes some adjustments and all vibrations seem to be eliminated by the time it reaches max speed. Items come out of the washer much dryer than with our old top-load washer, and therefore require much less time and heat in the dryer. My wife also reports that my 100% cotton dress shirts come out with significantly fewer wrinkles and are therefore much easier to iron.
We could tell immediately that the new washer uses much less water. We were expecting the water level to be clearly visible through the front viewing port, but it wasn't. During the first load, we couldn't believe that there was adequate water in the machine to do a good job cleaning, but we were proved wrong. One minor drawback is that wash times are now longer (by about 10-15 minutes for a typical load according to my wife).
Both machines have a steam feature that we have yet to test. We might try the washer's steam setting on some heavily soiled rags/towels later this week to see if it cleans any better than a normal wash cycle. The washer also includes a feature called "Active Fresh" that supposedly injects silver ions into the wash and rinse water to sanitize laundry without having to use extremely hot water or bleach. I'm not sure how to tell if it really works, but it could be useful for sanitizing colored items.
Although the controls/settings initially looked a bit intimidating, they are actually quite easy to understand and set. This is good, because the operating manuals are short on details and do not offer much guidance. Oh yeah... I almost forgot to mention that we decided to purchase a 3-year extended warranty through Sears. This is something that we almost never do, but my research indicated that out-of-warranty repair costs are fairly high for these newer front loading appliances. In any case, nearly 80% of the cost of the warranties will be offset by the various local/state/utility rebates for which we qualify, and it was worth it for the peace-of-mind.
Regards,
Wino
We've had them for just over a week and my wife has done about a dozen loads of various sizes, including bulky bedding. So far, we are very impressed. Both are extremely quiet, especially the washer. During the washer's spin cycle, there can be a very brief period of moderate vibration as the speed is ramped up, but the washer makes some adjustments and all vibrations seem to be eliminated by the time it reaches max speed. Items come out of the washer much dryer than with our old top-load washer, and therefore require much less time and heat in the dryer. My wife also reports that my 100% cotton dress shirts come out with significantly fewer wrinkles and are therefore much easier to iron.
We could tell immediately that the new washer uses much less water. We were expecting the water level to be clearly visible through the front viewing port, but it wasn't. During the first load, we couldn't believe that there was adequate water in the machine to do a good job cleaning, but we were proved wrong. One minor drawback is that wash times are now longer (by about 10-15 minutes for a typical load according to my wife).
Both machines have a steam feature that we have yet to test. We might try the washer's steam setting on some heavily soiled rags/towels later this week to see if it cleans any better than a normal wash cycle. The washer also includes a feature called "Active Fresh" that supposedly injects silver ions into the wash and rinse water to sanitize laundry without having to use extremely hot water or bleach. I'm not sure how to tell if it really works, but it could be useful for sanitizing colored items.
Although the controls/settings initially looked a bit intimidating, they are actually quite easy to understand and set. This is good, because the operating manuals are short on details and do not offer much guidance. Oh yeah... I almost forgot to mention that we decided to purchase a 3-year extended warranty through Sears. This is something that we almost never do, but my research indicated that out-of-warranty repair costs are fairly high for these newer front loading appliances. In any case, nearly 80% of the cost of the warranties will be offset by the various local/state/utility rebates for which we qualify, and it was worth it for the peace-of-mind.
Regards,
Wino
![:-\](https://www.early-retirement.org/sk/forums/images/smilies/undecided.gif "Undecided :-\")
