[PonchoV8]

I remember the LG of the old days (Goldstar) sold at Kmart. But we were advised that the LG front load machines are quite good products--advised by Home Depot and HH Gregg. So we bought the WM2016CW for $569 at HH Gregg today. It's a world of difference away from the used washer that I bought as a used unit for $40 at a rent to own store where I worked in 1991. The old washer has had one tub gasket replaced about 7-8 yrs ago and now it's leaking again.

We bought in a rush so I really didn't even do any research on this unit. Clothes were piling up. The direct drive motor with a 7 yr warranty sounded good--two years on the control panel and lifetime on the stainless tub.
Any opinions?

On a side note, the dryers they offer with these seem to be a rip off. They're just dryers and they want 7 and 8 hundred dollars for a freaken dryer. I'll stick with the old style front load dryer I bought for 269 at Circuit City in 99 for now. I don't see any need to change to a matching dryer ever, for that price.

[jeffgoss]

Doug,

I like the LG-so far. The motor set up is great-very quiet.

We had issues with getting the proper schematics and parts lists at first. That problem seems to have been rectified.

I agree about the dryer deal. If you dont care about them matching, the dryer is not a necessity.

Average cost of repairs is higher with the new stuff-at least though Sears. Local repair outfits may be a bit cheaper, but make sure they have a good reputation in your area. The longer warranty on the electronics is helpful.

Good luck! The front loaders are the way to go.

Jeff

[ponjohn]

Anybody have an feedback on the new steam washers?

[1967Clone]

Front loader washers are a gimmick to separate consumers from their money IMO

[PonchoV8]

How much more money is front load at 569 than a comparable top load? The top load uses about 30% more water per load. Our sewer bill is 1.5 times our water bill. The difference ought to pay for itself by the time the two yr warranty is up on the front panel. The top load has balance issues also--always been a problem with my girl loading it.
It's a super quiet machine for sure. I believe I spent under $200 for the last washer we had ($40 to buy, about $125 to repair once). And it lasted since 1991.

I couldn't repair the old one either.

[Primitive Artist]

What?!! Over here, the sewage gets charged less, because they assume you are drinking some of that fresh water and using some to cook and water your plants.
Those top-loaders are obsolete. There's nothing a side loader can't do that a top-loader can. You can get a side-loader to spin at least up to 1600 rpms, so that you wouldn't need a dryer (saving energy).
If you tried revving a top-loader to that speed, it'll roll on the floor as if to laugh at you

[md1twal3]

Originally Posted by 1967Clone

Front loader washers are a gimmick to separate consumers from their money IMO

...but for my money, we got in return: we can get 3 times as many loads done at once, use incredibly less soap and water, and the cloths come out as clean as could be. They are quiet, energy efficient and look great.

We have the matching dryer for ours and the same deal....lots of capacity, a great variety of settings, energy efficient and again looks nice.

I don't so much care about them being a front loader. There weren't a lot of top loaders that gave us what we got with the fronts so we went with them.

They are more modern, but honestly easy to work on. My wife repaired the dryer by replacing a thermister and also solved a poor spin issue by removing the access plug to the pump and removing a large sock.

Works nice for a family of 5, a home run daycare and 3 dogs that make their share of messes too.

In our case, no regrets....Momma's happy, we are all happy!

JMO...

[gregneun]

About a year and a half ago. It worked for a couple of weeks. Then we called the Sears guys in. It was so new that they didn't know how to repair it. Pretty soon we had Electrolux, electronic parts being drop shipped to our house. I was still going to the laundrymat.

Finally we returned the new "water and energy saving" front loader and brought home another top loader.

I still have the electronics shipped to use by Electrolux. When the Sears tech came back and found out we switched the thing, he said that water and electronics don't always work well together.

I hope they have the bugs figured out on these things.

A friend of mine has the Neptune stuff and they have not had problems. I was sick of hanging at the laundry mat and watching Spanish language TV shows here in SoCal.

I've repaired the old kind for a a long time, just ours and some advise for others. I've repaired the old belt drive, with the wigwag and the newer direct drive units.

When we bought the front loader, the plastic tub was leaking, on the top loader and the replacement part was $200, for a Kenmore. I should have just plugged it since I had recently replaced the drive motor.

The gas dryers are a lot easier to get running again.

[PonchoV8]

Impressions: I noticed that the towels are fluffier than with the top load we had. I asked my girl leading questions, like that the dryer took the same amount of time, and her reply was that it was not taking as long to dry by a good amount. We put up a clothesline to help with the electric bill anyway.

[Primitive Artist]

Originally Posted by gregneun

...When we bought the front loader, the plastic tub was leaking, on the top loader and the replacement part was $200, for a Kenmore...

Plastic?! I've never seen one of those yet. Even the slip-shoddiest machines, so far, were equipped with stainless steel

[Primitive Artist]

In general, the newer the washer, the less likely you could repair it yourself. Once the electronics crap out, you'll have to decide if the replacement unit is worth the value of the machine. New electronic components are bath soldered with a new type of solder which contains much less lead. These new electronic components are practically in a development stage and are prone to early failure. What you really need is a 7 year guarantee on the electronics. That heavily wounded motor, in that Korean-built LG, is less prone to failure. You don't really need a guarantee for that. This is just some deceptive hype used to coax potentia buyers into purchase.
Here, some expensive machines with an impeccable reputation and friendly customer relations. They referr to these as the Mercedes-Benz of washmachines:

http://www.miele.co.uk/Products/Prod...ing%20Machines

[Slick 50]

Originally Posted by ponjohn

Anybody have an feedback on the new steam washers?

We bought the LG steam 4.0 cubic foot washer and matching dryer about two years ago. They clean and dry clothes better than any washer/dryer I have ever had. So far no problems.
Yes, we did turn loose of some money!! Bought them off the net and delivered to the door, saved about $400 dollars from the local discount place. I can see either one of them being a real pain to work on.

[JoeF]

We've had our Kenmore front loader for about a year. The only beef is that they can develop a musty smell due to mold around the door seal. The way to prevent it is to run dishwasher detergent thru it once a month on HOT cycle with max bleach, wipe the door seal with a paper towel after each load and leave the door open a bit when not in use, so it dries.

Apparently, this problem happens with almost all front load models.

[1967Clone]

Originally Posted by JoeF

We've had our Kenmore front loader for about a year. The only beef is that they can develop a musty smell due to mold around the door seal. The way to prevent it is to run dishwasher detergent thru it once a month on HOT cycle with max bleach, wipe the door seal with a paper towel after each load and leave the door open a bit when not in use, so it dries.

Apparently, this problem happens with almost all front load models.

A friend of mine had the mold issue, now he leaves the door cracked open, problem solved.

[GT182]

My stepdaughter has a front load Kenmore... the tall one.. and hates it. Same for the matching dryer. The washer ties sheets, pant legs and shirt sleeves in a knot everytime. The dryer takes twice as long to dry as a normal dryer does. To wash and dry one load takes her 2 hours to do. LOL

When she bitches about it I just laugh. She had to have the best there was and it works like crap.

[Goathead]

LG is the old bankrupt Goldstar brand from wallmart /k mart just re named, I would have nothing to do with them, personally, but who knows....

[PonchoV8]

We'll see in a month how it is working out. The cycles are a little long IMO. But there's a lot of time that it's sitting waiting to start turning the opposite direction during a wash cycle. This one spins out at about 1050 rpms. A ton faster than the old washer. Drying took about 45 minutes for darks with some jeans. That's a marked decrease too.
I have been told by family that have front loaders to always leave the door open after washing to prevent mold or mildew. They have this issue because they seal so tightly--as not to leak. The LG comes with a built in cleaning deal where you real a tube out to hose down the seal and tub for washing. I instructed my girl that if the cat wants to get in the washer when the door is open, let her have at it.

[Redfed]

Originally Posted by PonchoV8

I have been told by family that have front loaders to always leave the door open after washing to prevent mold or mildew. They have this issue because they seal so tightly--as not to leak. The LG comes with a built in cleaning deal where you real a tube out to hose down the seal and tub for washing.

My Kenmore front loader leaves water in the seal. Looks like there's a drain hole, but it's too high to let the water out. When it gets a little funky on the inside, I usually put in a load of whites and add bleach. That kills it for a while. I hate the washer because of the mildew/drainage issue.

[David Holmberg]

I went thru 3 LG over the range microwaves in 6 months. They (LG) were terrible to deal with, and Home Depot (where I bought it) hated them for the same reasons.

Hopefully the washer is better Doug, but I'll never buy another LG product.

[Stuart]

Front loading washers are nothing new - my folks had a Westinghouse front loading washer w/matching dryer that they bought in 1956. They were still working when we cleared out their estate and sold the house in 1995.

The front door on the washer did have to be left ajar so the water sitting in the seal would evaporate. Also, if the load got imbalanced that thing would just about jump off the floor during the spin cycle.