Great Machine!

Late one night at work I received “the call” from my wife. Our Whirlpool commercial quality, top load, plain jane washing machine that had given us 10 years of faithful service had quit. We quickly determined the plastic gears that drive the agitator were stripped (probably from 10 years of overloading the washer). With a house full of dirty laundry waiting there was no time to special order a new machine. The next day I was on a mission: a new washing machine by the time the Mrs.’s got home. I did some on-line research on front loaders since they seem to be the new thing. I was impressed with what I learned, but the price seemed way to much. I left the house intending to spend no more than $400. So much for good intentions.

I found the Frigidaire at a local discount appliance store for $650. After the salesman pointed out the differences between a front loader vs. a top loader & that this washer was a Consumer Reports Best Buy, I was sold. For $250 more this unit seemed to be a good buy, and I’m satisfied with my purchase. Front loaders operate very differently from top loaders. This unit has SEVERAL settings: heavy, normal, perm press, quick, delicate, handwash, silk, wool, sport, bulky, soak, touch up, rinse spin, & drain spin. Each setting automatically chooses it’s own temp, speed, soil, rinse & spin level although they can also be chosen manually. If you change any level they will stay that way for the setting until you choose to change it again. So if you like extra spin on normal for example you can keep it that way every time. The Frigidaire also allows you to choose a delayed start (30,60,90m 2 or 12 hrs), has a countdown timer, and the controls can be locked to prevent children from pushing buttons.

Like I said a front loader takes some getting used to when switching from a top load unit. Here are my likes and dislikes about this unit.

LIKES:
Foremost I like the energy star rating. This unit uses much less water (MUCH LESS) and electricity than a traditional unit. The Frigidaire automatically determines how much water to use so you don’t have to select small, medium, or full. It doesn’t slosh the clothes around lots of water, but rather tosses them around in just enough. It also eases the load on your dryer since it spins the clothes so fast. They come out almost dry. The wife and I couldn’t believe how fast the dryer was finished with them.

I really like all the different settings you can choose. At first they seemed pointless since my old unit really only had 3. After reading the manual I realized that some can be very useful like the bulky setting for comforters or the sport setting which is meant for light weight clothes only soiled with perspiration.

You use much much less detergent. It can use powder or liquid. It along with fabric softener and bleach are added to a dispensing drawer. The manufacturer recommends that you use special high efficiency/ low sudsing detergent. I’ve read that some users have had a problem with too much suds from using too much or the wrong detergent. I’ve always used the cheapest stuff I can find at the dollar store and still do with the new machine. I haven’t had any problems. My clothes come out clean and fully rinsed. I think the key is learning to use less.
This thing is super duper quiet!

The door automatically locks when it’s working.

We did not replace our dryer that was paired with our old washer. This unit is the same height so you DO NOT need the pedestal with a mis-matched dryer.

DISLIKES
These aren’t really so much dislikes, they’re just things I have to get used to. This unit takes longer to wash a load on the normal cycle (44 minutes). I assume that’s because it uses so little water.

Since it’s a front loader gravity can be a problem when loading clothes and they will tumble out. However I’ve noticed I can put just as much in this machine as I could my old one. Since it’s difficult to put a full load it in it’s almost impossible to over load it. If you do you won’t be able to close the door.

I’ve noticed other users complained about buildup in the rubber door seal. I notice that a little water collects here. This can be easily wiped up (I do with a piece of dirty laundry going in next). Any thing you might accidentally put in the wash like coins, safety pins, etc. will end up here.

I’ve also noticed that other users have complained of mold & odor. I notice that the manufacturer recommends you leave the door open to air it out occasionally. Since we do laundry one or two days a week this isn’t a problem. I left it open for about 45 min today and it was dry inside. However if you can’t secure your wash room from curious toddlers this could pose a serious problem.

The detergent dispensing drawer will retain some water in it due to it’s siphoning design. You can easily remove the drawer and dump the water out though.


Overall I am very satisfied with my purchase and would definitely recommend this washer. It cleans my clothes better than any traditional top loading unit I’ve used, but with much less water, electricity and detergent.