Big Bangs for Your Bucks!

Well, I've been eyeing a front loader for some time, and just never got myself into buying one.. We had an older Maytag washer that is about 20 years old, and it was starting to show it's age. I've brought up the ideal of getting a new washer to my partner. Came Christmas, he had ordered this washer for me as a Christmas Gift. :-)

I know he got the washer on sale for about $499, and got a $100 rebate from the local utility company, so overall, a pretty good deal.

I am on my 8 months of using it, and been very pleased with the washer so far!. Been very easy on my clothes, saving gas on water heater, less soap, and most of all, saving water!

The washer is pretty easy to use overall, the owners manual is not very clear what setting really suppose to do. I did e-mail GE asking for something more clear of what it's suppose to do, and didn't come back with an answer I wanted. I know this washer is made for GE by Frigidiare, and found the model that was very close to this.

I will tell you below what the setting is suppose to be fore.

Spin
The washer will go into a drain mode to drain any standing water, and then go into a spin.

-I maybe used this mode a couple of times say, you want to spin dry some bath towels that you used to clean up a water spill, and don't want to wash it just yet.

Rinse
It will fill the washer with cold water and rinse the clothes. It can be used if you forgot to add the fabric softner, or clothes didn't get rinse out well the first time around.

-I've used it a few times the first time around when I noticed I had a lot of suds left over the the load I first washed in this washer.

Soak
This cycle will only fill with cold water since some stain may set with warmer water temp. it will do about 6 min. of regular washing, then go into soak mode for about half hour, and will randomly tumble clothes to make sure it all get turned around for equal soaking. after the soak, the washer will slowly spin the clothes then it will go into a noramal wash cycle.

-I use this on our electric heating pads that calls for soak cycle to clean this
pad.

Heavy
It will wash the clothes for about 16 min, 3 rinse, extra rinse, and final spin

-Used this cycle on clothes are really dirty from working in the yard. Had good results with getting grass stain out. I use this mode for mostly our whites.

Normal
About 13 min of wash time, 3 rinse, and final spin.

-Use this for my bath towels, and jeans.

Perm Press
10 min. of wash, follow with a cool down cycle, 3 rinse, and final spin.

-Haven't used this yet..

Quick Wash
It's a quick 5 min wash, 3 rinse, and final spin. Not able to use the extra rinse, and extra rinse.

-Use this on my colored shirts/light load since I know my work shirts don't get that dirty.

Active Wear
Is used for most sportswear that needs to be soaked and wash. It will soak for 10 min, then 6 min of wash, 3 rinse, and final spin.

-I have not used this cycle since I don't work out.

Delicate
It gently tumbles the clothes for 10 min, 3 rinse, and final spin.

-Used this for sweaters.

Handwash
This mode give you 10 min of random tuble fot calls for "Hand Wash" only. then 3 rinse, and final spin.

-I use this for sweaters that calls for hand wash only, and I used this cycle to wash Eric's grandmother's blanket that she made awhile back. The blanket was kinda yellow, and old musty smell. I ran it in this cycle, and the blanket came out white, and like new!

You have your water temp control.

-Hot/Cold
-Warm/Warm
-Warm/Cold
-Cold/Cold

I use Hot for whites, Warm for towel/jeans/color, and cold for sweaters.

Final Spin Speed

-High
-Medium
-Low
-No Spin

The washer highest spin speed is about 950 RPM. It's a pretty good speed to spin dry your clothes out. The clothes has come pretty dry, they drying time in the dryer really been cut down.. On an avg load of towels/jeans, drying time went from about 50 to 55 min of dry time down to about 35 to 40 min of dry time.

Cycle options

-Heavy Soil, Adds 2 min to wash time.

-Extra Rinse, use to add another rinse cycle on very dirty clothes, or a family member who has senstive skin to remove any soap that may be left over.

-Extra spin, add a few more min to the final spin cycle.

-Cycle signal, let you know when the washer is done.. FYI, the sound isn't load, and can't be hear upstairs.

Delay Wash

This washer only had 8 hours delay. I use this when I can't wait to do wash on my day off, I set this up before I go to work in the morning, and when I get home from work the washer is just getting done, or got done not too long ago. Like this alot since you don't have clothes sitting in the washer all day and starting to smell musty.

Status Light

-Door Locked
-Wash
-Rinse
-Final Spin
-Control Lock.

Buttons

There are a few buttons to run this machine.

-Spin, used to pick your spin speed. (see above)

-Options, to pick your options from above.
-Select to go to the next options.

-Start delay

-Start washer

-Pause/Cancel, You can pause the washer and open the door if you need to add something when you've already started the washer, or take out something. It wil not allow you to open the door when the washer is almost done... don't need to add something when it's almost done anyway!


Dispensor Tray

This is where you add your detergent, fabric softner, and bleach. The washer will put the product into the washer at the right time. The tray isn't really set up for liquid type if you want to use the delay wash.. Otherwise, the soap will go onto the clothes ahead time.. I use powder anyway, so no need to worry about that.

The tray comes out pretty easy, and apart to clean up any build up. I remove the tray every time I am done washing for the day, and clean it up.

The washer is a pretty good size machine, I now do about 3 maybe 4 loads a week for the two of us from 5 to 6 loads a week. I can see the water savings already. I pulled my water bill from last year April, and this year, I saved about 800 gallons in a month! (I also replace the old tolet to a new one, that maybe a factor on savings as well) But I am going to wailt till Sept and compair to last year since summer is here, and use a bit more water here and there to water the plants outside.

In the wash mode, I don't even hear it running, just in the final spin speed when it is running in a higher speed. It has a nice large door opening and mkes it much easier to load and remove clothes unlike the older model that had this "Port Hole" opening.

I have no order issues at all as some owner states that owns the front load washer... When I am done washing for the day, I turn off the water, remove the soap tray wash it down and slide it back in leaving it open to dry, then take a paper towel to wipe the rubber seal around the door opening, and standing water if any.. There is a drain hole on the lower part that drains away the water that maybe standing there. All of this above takes me a couple extra min.

Soap useage, be sure you use the HE logo on any laundry soap. I don't care if you say "You can use regular stuff, just cut down on the amount" You could cut it down, but then you are cutting down on your cleaning power.

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Update,

I miss read the manual about the Soak mode. The washer will NOT go into a Normal cycle. After the soak cycle, it will only spin the clothes, then you have to then switch over to another wash cycle.. I switch it over to Quick cycle.


so, if you don't pick another wash cycle, your clothes are full of soap.
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Update, Jan. 11-08

I've had this washer a year now, and still work very well. I got one of my cousin to buy one when he moved back to MN from KS. He has been pleased with it as well so far. He got his sister to buy one too just last week.

I pulled my water bills up in the last year to see how much water I was saving. I've saved about 11,000 gallons of water in a year!] I also saw a drop in my gas usage as well, but didn't dig on it that much... But yeah the water saving is great!