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Recently we painted our laundry room. When we moved our washer away from the wall to paint behind it we found oil on the floor. It must have been there for quite a while because it had sort of congealed and was a challenge to clean up. (Straight ammonia on paper towelling to the rescue.) Then later in the month the plumber came to replace the faucet handles that had been leaking. He found fresh oil when he got back in there. Husband called our local, trusted appliance store in Hurst. The guy said he would come out if we insisted, but that the house call plus repair costs would amount to about half the cost of a new machine. This one is a 13 year old Kenmore. We are starting to research washers because it looks like this old reliable is in its last days.

Washers have changed a lot since 2002. I have been reading discussions online. Most people are saying that the new machines just don't clean their clothes as well, the cycles take way longer, front loaders have to be babied so they won't smell musty....some folks have found that the old brand Speed Queen works beautifully.

Any recommendations of good ones or ones to avoid?

I really like our front loading Samsung. Have had it 3+ years, since we built the new house. Yes, we towel off the inside of the door and the well in the front of the tub as water does pool there. We were told about the water smell issue by a worker who had a similar machine. And we leave the door open till we're sure it's dry in there. So no smell issues. To my thinking it's no big deal to do that.

The machine has been trouble free. I like all the features including load balancing, many washing selections, quietness, delicate cycle that really is, etc. I think it cleans clothes as well as any washer I've had.

We were advised not to get the stand thingy the washer sits on as it's noisy and can crawl. We had our contractor build a simple shelf on which the washer and dryer, also a Samsung, sit. Laundry basket and the wooden collapsible drying rack fit nicely under the shelf. Added plus - when done the washer and dryer play a portion of The Trout (for we classical music enthusiasts)

Don't have any knowledge to add except the new ones without an agitator do clean well. We bought one for son and family.
I like the feature that the machine analyzes the weight of the dry clothes and knows how much water to use.

Here are the top two rated by Consumer Reports

Top Load
Whirlpool WTW4850BW
GE GTWN5650FWS

Front Load
LG WM8500HVA
Kenmore Elite 41073

I've got a front loading Kenmore and I'm not overly wild about it. Mine does weigh the clothes and it does take a lot longer to cycle through compared to the top loading machines I've had. I also leave the door open when I'm not using it but I have noticed the musty smell occasionally. I found out there's some sort of a clean out at the bottom that has to be cleaned frequently because it smells if I don't. I hate doing it because it's messy and water drains onto the floor if you're not real careful.

"I found out there's some sort of a clean out at the bottom that has to be cleaned frequently because it smells if I don't. I hate doing it because it's messy and water drains onto the floor if you're not real careful."

Hmmmmmm. Guess I need to check the owner's manual again to see if ours has such a thing.

The main thing to remember with the high efficiency machines is to use high efficiency detergent. We learned this lesson after ruining the tub seals in two top loading high efficiency Whirlpool machines in three years. We now have a month-old top loading high efficiency LG machine.

Conventional detergent creates too many suds in a high efficiency machine. There isn't enough water to rinse all the suds away. This is what causes the tub seals to fail, and it is also what creates the mildew and smell associated with the front loaders.

We have Kenmore front loads nothing fancy. They clean and dry better than the top loads we've owned. Washer is left open and I wiped between the seal and hub every couple months, should do it more often. Our washer and dryer face each other and there is a space issue so the top of the line models were too wide or deep from what I remember.
I learned they are easy to repair, step by step instructions video and 1 source parts make it easy . The dryer hub bearing has been replaced twice in 8 years and I'm sure it'll start humming again in another 12 or so months. The washer has also needed repairs, shocks were replaced last year after I discovered a broken one while repairing a drain hose that was leaking due to a hole caused by the underwire of a bra.

When these need to be replaced I'll be asking about the bearing hub material ( one side is plastic with a couple bearings held by grease and the side is solid steel )

Here are the Consumer Reports ratings for HE washers.

Top Two:

LG WT5680HVA
Samsung WA56H9000AP

Best Buy (best combination of quality and price)
LG WT1001CW

We nave the Kenmore Elite washer and dryer set. About 3 days past the first year buy date the start button wouldn't work. I called Sears. They said they'd send me the parts and schedule a service visit for 9 days later. The parts arrived and the box was the size of the washer top. I told my wife I bet they had screwed that up. The guy came looked at the part and said it wasn't what he needed. He called Sears and gave them the part number he needed and came back in a week to install the major control board for the washer. They sent the right part that time. In a month or so I was doing another load and went in to check the progress. The washer had stopped with a error message number that when I looked it up said there was a motor problem. I was able to get it to restart and finish that load. This time Sears sent the correct part but it was still down for a bit over a week. The dryer has not had any problems, yet.

Whatever brand you buy get an extended warranty. I always buy it and not lost money on them yet.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Righ ... 5167661355

this guy Mike is a wealth of knowledge. kenmore is made by one of the main mfrs.... dont remember which. this guy will steer you to the mfr with the least repair issues. and he has used/refurb in stock in his store.
i cannot recommend him more highly

do your research, but run the machine until it dies..... it may last a while

Just thank the next democrat you meet for the sorry state of washing machines.

I had a Kenmore that ran for years dripping grease. I assume it was coming from the transmission seal. Eventually sold it and the dryer - still running.

The good-old Kenmore top loaders were made by Whirlpool. LG is now making many of the Kenmore products. Not sure if they have the washers, but the fridges I've seen lately are theirs.

We're running a Kenmore 500 (Whirlpool) now that we bought about 5 years ago. No trouble. I think it was one of the last of those. When it dies, I'll be inclined to look at the Speed Queens.

I didn't know Speed Queens still existed. I have always associated them with the washateria.

We purchased the washing machine we have now from a used appliance store. Cheaper and the appliance repair guy told us the ones that they make now don't last as long. We are looking to buy a used dishwasher now....a two drawer Fisher Paykel.

millergrovesue wrote:I didn't know Speed Queens still existed. I have always associated them with the washateria.

Me too, Sue. I stumbled onto them as I was looking around the web. I think I am impressed. Check out their brochure here:

http://www.specsserver.com/CACHE/FRWSIAUQULUW.PDF

crocmommy wrote:We purchased the washing machine we have now from a used appliance store. Cheaper and the appliance repair guy told us the ones that they make now don't last as long. We are looking to buy a used dishwasher now....a two drawer Fisher Paykel.

Be careful on that two drawer FP. The online reviews make me nervous.
i was going to suggest this to my SIL who has a tiny kitchen, but the reviews made me hesitate.

Hmmmmm okay

crocmommy wrote:Hmmmmm okay

. We have a two month guarantee and will not hesitate to return it.