Letters to the Editor
-
AHA!! 35 YEARS IN THIS BUSINESS
So, what could I possibly know about it?
Well, clearly not as much as those who will sit there and type: "They say".
In one of the "favored" letters, a poster talked about the high amount of detergent left in the wash.
This is TRUE.
And, it does NOT mayyer whivch brand you have.
In fact, many of them are the same under the name.
I just went on a call on a BSH front loaded in which the softener dispenser didn't function.
There was nothing wrong with the machine.
The owner was using the wrong detergent and too mch of it.
I had her run it over & over in "small" load and use VINEGAR as the detergent.
After approx 6 times through, the softener funtion functioned.
I also told her to read the manual.
How dare I suggest someone actually READ the owner's manual??!!
Well, there it was in black & white, "USE HE DETE3RGENT" and to use only a tblsp of it.
She called me the other day to thank me as it was working perfectly.
I jhave been on calls for my most hated of all of them, the maytag neptune.
Did you know that we highly suspect that there is a program in the boar which is timed to fail one day after the warranty expires;)
Well, the door latch/lock would fail on these and it would take out the BOARD, THE MOTOR AND ONE OTHER COMPONENT.
The latch switch was less than $40.
The board & motor were OVER $350!!
The brands which are euphimistically called "kenmore" have a HIGH propensity for the 3 armed basket support to break.
I won't use up the bandwidth it would take to list all the necessary repair parts or the $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$.
Too many people blame their good old solid top laders for all sort of things.
There's an old saying about cars~~"It's the nut holding the wheel".
People abuse their washers & dryers and whine about howe terrible the unit is.
Well, it's the nut holding the wheel.
NEVER EVER wash rugs, especially with rubber backing in your washer.
This is also true of front loaders.
ALWAYS~~ALWQAYS empty all pockets of all things with pockets.
Then you won't have to buy a pump for your washer and may not have the heating element short out in your dryer.
ALWAY!!ALWAYS CLEAN THE DRYER EXHAUST FROM THE BACK OF THE DRYER TO WHERE IT EXITS THE HOUSE.
This will allow the dryer to dry your clothes much quicker and slow the spin of your electric meter.
I am going to go out on a few calls now and, I KNOW at least 1 out of 3 will be because reading the owner's manual is a waste of time. Yeah, suuuuuuuure.
OK, it is now the turn of those of you who know all those "They sayers".
I apologize for speaking from only a lousy 30+ years of owning an appliance repair business and will expect incoming.
-
Rereading my prior post.
I see that I made quite a few typos.
I'm rready and willing to accept those of you who will point to those and ONLY those to denigrate my intelligence/experience as so often is done by those who need to build themselves up in that manner.
I will also apologize for attempting to help anyone, and especially wasting the time of those of you who know EVERYTHING!!
-
Front Loading Heaven
I have a set of the Whirlpool Duet front loading W & D. They were very expensive, even on sale and we wouldn't have them without the generosity of my S.O.'s parents.
That being said, I absolutely love these machines for every reason mentioned.
Very Energy efficient.
Quiet
Programmable so that any conceivable size or type of fabric/load is easily washable.
Uses a minute amount of detergent
My model allows me to stop at any point during the wash cycle to add that forgotten object.
They are rated by Consumer Reports in all areas, and are noted for needing way fewer repair calls than other brands.
I was house-sitting recently and used someone else's much more fancy and expensive front loader and it was noisy and awkward to use and I was very under-whelmed.
I would imagine like any other product it depends upon a person's needs and preferences.
But I love mine and have had no problems with them at all.
I do wipe the window in the washer after the last load on wash day to keep our hard water from spotting the glass. I also wipe off the rubber seal and leave the door cracked open for air to circulate.
It's an expensive and high functioning tool and it's the least I can do to keep it smelling fresh and running smoothly.
I wipe off my garden tools and put them away too, what's the big deal about caring for an appliance?
My old top loaders always smelled mildewy and if I'd forget a load in one for a few hours I'd have to re-wash them or they would smell strange even after going through the dryer.
It's never happened in the front loaders.
Ps. If you are getting detergent residue on your cloths, you are using WAY too much. That has nothing to do with the intrinsic construction/functionality of a front loader.
We use a natural HE liquid soap without fragrances and occasionally use some vinegar or oxy-clean on whites or the really dirty stuff from my dog walking business. We don't even own any bleach. It's against my religion ;0)
-
Mr. Repair Guy (XJS AND ME)
I was wondering, what do you mean by someone using the "wrong detergent?" And what problems are caused by putting a rubber backed rug in the washer? Is that because standard size washers can't handle them? My condo's laundry room has a large washer for things like this.
-
XJS
Many thanks for backing me up on my "more soap left in the clothes" message. I appreciate it. As I mentioned, I already had confirmation from Consumer Reports that we were not imagining the problem, but apparently some people still think we're making it up.
BTW, for all those who say, "use less soap," or "use less soap, moron" or "use biodegradable soap," or "use HE soap," we do all of these. We have certainly reduced, but not eliminated, the problem by using much less soap than recommended...but the problem is proportional: you'll STILL have more soap in your clothes after the wash than if you used a comparative amount of soap in a top-loader.
While this doesn't seem to be a problem with most loads, we find that using a lot less soap results in some odors not being adequately eliminated.
One other caveat -- and this applies to laundry in general, not specifically to laundry washed in high-efficiency machines. We've now read in several sources that damp "clean" laundry is one of the greatest sources of bacteria in the home, including e-Coli...as is the inside of a washing machine. Supposedly, the water in washing machines is not hot enough to kill germs, the soaps are not antibacterial (which is probably a very good thing), and the end result is that you just end up spreading the bacteria around onto everything -- including that fecal bacteria from your underwear. Blech.
Maybe steam washers are the answer to this problem...if it IS a problem.