I have 3 kids (and a large dog). I do a lot of laundry. We bought a high-efficiency front loader about 10 years ago (top rated Maytag). It ended up in a class action suit over mold. Even with the door open, the machine had/has issue. We opted for $50.
My machine really stinks. If I skip a day using it, I need to run a cycle to get the stink out of it. We have mold allergies ( 3 out of 5 of us). This defective machine must go.
Hubby says we buy more Maytags and use our pedestals (I love them!). Consumer report has give them high efficiency front loader top honors. I'm hesitant to buy Maytag again. They were $1200 on sale, and we've done a lot of repairs. Expensive junk. Thankfully the cost of front-loaders has come down.
I keep thinking we should go old school and buy high efficiency top loaders.
Any recommendations on machines that are really get things clean?
I don't use high efficiency detergent in my washer, I use normal powder. I also use bleach sometimes, vinegar sometimes, and warm or hot water.
I've never had any issues with my washer at all with smell. I always leave the door open. Anything moist and closed up will stink like mold.
I have Samsung.
After one front loader which was a huge problem, I have only bought top loaders. It’s easy to keep the lid open in between loads. Being very sensitive to mold myself, I do a load of white towels with bleach once a week to further assure no mold develops.
I've had my Samsung set 4 years with zero issues.
http://blog.mrsgs.com/index.php/2013/top-3-washers-that-f...
Additional:
We got a GE Deep Fill HE model a few years ago.
I must say we were very happy with it for about the first year.
After that - it seems to not fill right - in that not enough water goes in to get the clothes wet.
Doesn't matter what size load - doesn't matter how heavy or light the load is.
Sigh.
No doubt it has to do with the auto fill level sensor - and my husband has to call in a repair on it when he's home long enough to look into it.
He wants to watch the repair so he knows what to do if/when it happens again.
In the mean time - I have a laundry room sink and I literally use a hose to put enough water into the washer to cover the clothes I put into it.
The automatic fill level sensors are a problem pretty much across every washer brand.
So if I knew then what I know now - I'd buy a Speed Queen in a heartbeat.
I have a samsung but wish I had known I could get a commercial speed queen at a local dealer.
We had a Maytag Neptune front load from 2001 - 2012 - with up to 7 kids at one time living under my roof (it washed an easy 10,000+ loads in its lifetime). I LOVED that machine. The master board went out early on, but it was covered under warranty and then I never had another problem. In 2012 or 2013 the bearing went out and it was more to fix than replace. I decided against getting another Maytag because of all the issues that people were having with them at that time, plus I ended up in 2008 buying an oven and microwave from Maytag (based on the excellent experience with the washer/dryer) and both were lemons and it was holy hell to get them returned/branded lemons and get new ones. I swore off Maytag forever at that point.
I purchased a high end LG front loader - terrible! It died in less than a year and we had to fight to get our money back (no way I was going to let them give me another LG). I used the money to buy a front load Samsung. So far, it has been "ok" - random issues that seem to eventually resolve and then come back, but we can't afford to replace when it isn't really broken and no one at Samsung cares about these piddly issues. The one thing I do like is it is HUGE so I am down to very few loads of clothing and actually can wash fairly infrequently.
Once I am down to just hubby and I, I am ditching this thing and getting my Speed Queen top loader back :)
P.S. I have to say that the Maytag dryer that I purchased with the washer back in 2001 is STILL running :) I have to dry wash in 2 loads because the Samsung holds nearly twice as much as the Neptune, but as long as it is running, I'm going to keep using it!
You will need to look for local store that is an independent distributor vs a big box store, but Speed Queen machines are excellent. They are made in the USA and have years-long manufacturer's warranties. See SpeedQueen dot com for info.
I just got a samsung top loader high efficiency one - ours died and I had to go in and get one. It is a dark color - sorry, don't know model number off hand.
It has a lot of bells and whistles that I don't use at this point but nice to know they are there. I like that it does active wear. All I know is, I can barely reach to the bottom of it. It is just a big empty drum (no agitator). It has top reviews.
What I like is that it holds probably close to 3 loads that my old Maytag held. My old washer though was very old. This thing spins the clothes so much they come out almost dry. Very economical to run. That's why we bought it. We are very energy conscious. The dryer that went with it was rated the best for energy use.
I did not want the front loader kind because of the mold problem. Even though a lot of that has been resolved, if you speak to the people at the stores, the ones in the know (we know them quite well as been buying from same people over the years and my husband and I are on a budget and just want the facts and they are very frank with us) they advised us to still go with the top loader.
I can wash my duvets, pillows, hockey gear, you name it in my washer.
I was always a Maytag gal - had them at my old house too. This is my third Samsung appliance. My sister buys top of the line Samsung. I buy bottom of the line Samsung. I haven't had any issues. Knock on wood!
I have had front loaders. Never anything else.
One of the reasons of the bad smell is that people use too much of the detergent.
Usually by putting in a little more does not mean the clothes will smell better but this habit only results that the detergent gunks up.
The other reason is that the washer is used mostly on the energy efficiency program but that also leads into not be able to wash all the overdosed detergent out and gunk piles up in the hose which starts to smell.
Third reason is to use the cold or warm temperature only programs. I wash my sheets and towels as hot as possible once a week and this will too prevent the washer to smell as well.
I have tested my washer for mold and wash also accasional without any deterget some loads.
Never have any trouble with a front loader. I would never buy a top loader due to the stress to the garments. My clothes look washed out faster and wear out faster using a top loader.
Hope this info helps.
I have a Maytag high efficiency top loader and I love it. It cleans well and the lack of an agitator means that I can put big stuff it in like my bedding.
Myself and just about everyone I know has experienced "front-loader regret" and have ended up getting the good old school top loaders.My experience: you simply cannot do a good pre-soak to get stains out and invariably have to use either twice as much spray-on stain remover OR have to wash things twice when using front loaders (thus negating all that touted water and energy efficiency). I LOVE my no-frills Amana (top-loading) washer and dryer. Fraction of the price and a gazillion times more efficient.
We have a Maytag Centennial high efficiency top loader and I love it. Agitator helps to get clothes clean and it has worked well. Love the ability to add things to the load once it starts (always find that random sock sitting out somewhere). Have had it maybe seven years now. No mold issues, no issues at all, knock on wood. We looked at front loaders at the time we got this, but there were so many problems with them, we stuck with a top loader. So glad we did! I hear nothing but problems with the front loaders.
