Washer and Dryer for 2nd floor : help wanted - confused

13 years ago

We are looking for a front loading washer and dryer for our new house.

We wanted the Bosch but too many reports on vibration issues. Now we are thinking about the Samsung. The Meille is just too expensive.

Need folks input on what are the higher quality stable/quiter models.

And any input if we should go with a 4.0 versus 4.3 unit? (2nd floor is also of concern). We have 3 kids but today we have a 3.7cubic kenmore (its okay but not great)

Thanks for the help.

Bosch, Samsung, double the cost and go for Meille ?

Quite? Safe?

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Comments (11)

alwaysfixin
13 years ago
You should post on the Gardenweb's Laundry Forum which is dedicated specifically to questions like yours.

Here is a link that might be useful: Gardenweb's Laundry Forum
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Rudebekia
13 years ago
I'm happy to reply to your post here. I put Asko stacked front loading units on my second floor condo. I was very worried about vibration, but there is virtually none: they are very secure. The Asko was a great choice and I recommend them. The number on the washer was something like w6222 with the corresponding dryer.
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Well a Bosch will probably not do well on a second floor installation, Bosch has a pretty basic suspension system, at least the nexxt series did, I believe the vision series is just a prettied up nexxt. We got rid of our 500 nexxt series due to severe vibration and walking and this was in a concrete basement, we tried everything to fix this issue for 2 years, and finally just bought the LG Waveforce. No more vibration and walking issues. Since you want a water protection pan and stop leak system I believe the Bosch is the only one to have this. They do make catch pans that go under washing machines and since you already have a water and drain hookup there maybe a plumber can help you come up with a solution here. If you are installing on a 2nd floor I would get a machine that has an active anti vibration system like Samsungs VRT or LG's Anti Vibration Technology. Other brands may have there own methods as well. Hope this helps.
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macavity, you're welcome! It's easy to find a tac shop in your area, just Google. I found one within less than 7 miles of my house. Most will carry the stall mats for cridders. Save the leftovers, as you never know when you might need a piece of good rubber! If it is possible for you, you can also wedge a piece or two of rubber between your washer and whatever it's next to near the top of the washer for even more vibration protection of off balanced loads. I was able to do that on the right side of my washer as it is near a cabinet. There's too much space between my w/d to do it on the left side of the washer. Even on the one side it helps for less vibration if my load isn't perfectly balanced. I got that idea from seeing some guy use those swimming noodles wedged between his w/d and wall. Here's the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y91onCb7nSc&NR=1 Also, don't know if your w/d will go side by side but if so I would have the entire area reinforced and lay one big piece underneath both units. My house is 30+ years and there's a raised platform with a drain for just the washer, so I could not do that without ripping the tile platform out to make it level. As for finishing off the bare plywood reinforcement, we just left the plywood without tiling/etc, and cut the mat to completely cover the area, and had quarter-round placed to finish the edges. The mat was cut so that it comes right up to the quarter-round, completely covering the plywood. We can see the mat and although it's by no means a design statement, ... the look doesn't bother us. I guess you could say it has that "industrial" look. :) Keep in mind that if you cut the rubber so it doesn't show at all to be hidden underneath the units, it might be difficult to place the washer and dryer (especially the heavy washer) perfectly on the mat so that the feet are not falling off the edge of the rubber. Those washers are heavy! Our installers had a difficult enough time getting the washer placed,...I don't see how they could have placed it on a piece of rubber that was cut even to the exact size of the washer, let alone a slightly smaller piece that wouldn't show. I hope I'm making sense here....:) Good luck to you!
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I briefly owned a Bosch FLer that caused vibration problems. My laundry room is on the first floor, over a basement. The placement is such that the two rear legs are directly above the main support beam in the house. As it turns out, my floor is too flexible for a Fler. As I was unwilling to spend the kind of money that would be needed to fix this and still look good, I returned it and got the Whirlpool Cabrio HE. So far I love it, I have not had any problems with the laundry, and there are no vibrations even on high speed spin. I was afraid to get this at first because of stories I have read, but I am so glad I tried it. My salesman wanted me to try the Duet FLer to see what would happen, and said he would change it out again if that caused vibrations, but I was getting really tired of waiting for deliveries and pick-ups (my first front loader had a problem and had to be replaced). Good luck, let us know what you decide and how it works out for you. Just make sure that the store you purchase at is willing to exchange if there is a vibration problem, and that they will not charge you for restocking or delivery of another machine.
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I have the LG steam washer and dryer, and once properly levelled, they run very smoothly. Mine are on the first floor, but I'd have less concern about these machines on the second floor than the Kenmore/Whirlpool ones I did have on a second floor. I use the medium spin speed for most clothing because of wrinkling issues with somethings that get spun on high, but even on the highest spin, these things are pretty darned smooth and quiet. Can you find anyone you know who has the LGs or the Samsung? Once we got ours, I learned several people we know have them too. Most places will take a return for some period, so just ake sure of the length of time and the terms (i.e., does it have to be applied to another model or can you return NQA? If you have to exchange, does it have to be same price or higher priced model? Do they charge a restocking fee, another delivery fee, etc.) Good luck. I really like our LGs, but I can't help you as far as the beam goes.
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cjzimmer
13 years ago
I've had a Samsung front loader (and dryer) for 2-3 years now. I love them. I have split level house and they are installed in the bathroom in the upper level. Also the bathroom and 3 bedroom are all at the end of the hallway so there is no more than 10 feet from the washer to any of the bedroom doors.

The machines is quiet. I have no hesitations about running it when someone is sleeping. It's actually quieter than my old top loader (which isn't really saying much because that was so loud you could hear it through the whole house). If I'm at the other end of the house someone has to walk to the bathroom to tell if a load is done (because I don't usually have the signal on).

I also love the vibration reduction part. My MIL and sister both talk about not placing stuff on their front loaders because it will get bounced off as well as the frequent walks the machine takes.

I put things on mine all the time and nothing gets bounced off. Also the machine doesn't walk at all. I recently had to move the washer to get something that get pushed off the back by the kids. The machine had sat in one place so long it was "stuck" to the floor.

I love the Samsung, I would replace it in a heartbeat with another Samsung if this one broke.
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stooxie
13 years ago
Another vote for Samsung. We just bought the WF448AAP and the steel ball bearing balancing system works like a charm. Excellent washer with very little vibration. We have it on a second floor, although the floor under it is quite sturdy.

-Stooxie
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lucypwd
13 years ago
I do have bosch front loaders on the second floor. We can hear the spin cycle both downstairs and upstairs when it is spinning over 800. I have not been particularly thrilled with the Bosch units, now about 4 years old. Based on my experience with Miele, I might look at them when I buy new,( hopefully not for awhile).
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lascatx
13 years ago
I have LG units and I don't seem them mentioned with 2nd floor installations. Mine is on the ground floor, but we had our previous machines on a wood subfloor second story (new construction). I didn't have any problems with them -- I'm sure I heard them, but they didn't rattle walls or anything. The LG front loaders are quieter and spin smoother than the old top loaders, so it seems that they would work very well too. It is important to get them set up properly. Check the installation yourself -- take a level front to back, side to side, corner to corner and get the machine truly level. I suspect that is at least as important as which brand to buy.
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artemis78
13 years ago
We have the bigger Bosch units (not the stackable kind) and while I like them a lot, I do remember the sales guy heavily cautioning about vibrations when we got them. (We have them on concrete in a detached garage so it's a non-issue for us, but when the washer spins, it does make quite a lot of noise!)
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chesters_house_gw
13 years ago
I have an Axxis set, stacked, on the second floor without a problem. Properly leveled and bolted machines seem to be the key, no matter the brand.
One GW hint I picked up: placing a stall mat under the machines. The mats are tough and deaden any vibration.
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User
13 years ago
I also have the unstackable bosch set and the vibration is pretty bad.
I have a crawl space house and if you're sitting in the upstairs game room which is right over the laundry room, you can feel the vibration. I don't feel the vibration in the family room which is next to the laundry on the same floor.
I've had no problems with them walking or stuff bouncing off of them when they are running.
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joba4257
13 years ago
Electrolux goes as far as to having a second floor guarantee. It is on their website.
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kashmi
13 years ago
In case you are still deciding, here's another vote for the Samsung. We have them on the second floor - stacked. I was really convinced that the "vibration reduction technology" was just something that the Samsung marketers made up. But no! The washer in spin cycle mode is amazingly quiet and steady. Unless I'm washing rugs, we almost don't even know when the spin cycle is running.

I do miss the ability to control the water temp as in the Asko set that we replaced, however. (They finally died after many, many years of good service.)
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Washer and Dryer for 2nd floor : help wanted - confused

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alwaysfixin

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