Michelle, I just used the wrong terminology. When I stated washer/dryer combo, I just meant I wanted both appliances. I want them to match and debated between pedestals or just making a platform. Decided on the pedestals in case I really don't like the height. My laundry shute is in a cabinet over the washer and I am wondering if that is going to be an issue. So what loads do you use the steam cycle? Since I've got both a clothes steamer and a house clean steamer, I can't see how it actually will do anything unless the clothing is pointed directly at the steam port. Can it really do more than the sanitize wash cycle? The LG's are gorgeous machines and my neighbor has a set in her upstairs laundry room. She said they are quieter than the Whirlpools she has downstairs. (She has also went thru two Neptunes.) Her only issue is she has had them leak and doesn't know if it's from too much soap or too many clothes. Repair man found no problem with them. But she seems to be very happy with them.

O.K. I get your POV, rpsinfoman. I happened to be at Home Depot yesterday and saw the Maytag Epic washer and dryer in black. You were right, they are the exact same machines as the KA Ensembles. However, they were not priced lower than the KA Ensemble washer and dryer. They were priced the same as the original price of the white or black KAs (not the floor model price I got) at Western Appliance. Home Depot didn't have the Whirpool Duets, so I couldn't compare the pricing there, but the Duets were definitely cheaper than the KAs at Western Appliance. Maybe Maytag is trying to raise the profile of the Maytag name? I also understand the "prestige" factor in a label. I was all set to buy a Kenmore DW and FD refrigerator, but my sister-in-law said I couldn't have Kenmore in my kitchen because it wasn't appropriate to the value of my house (her family is in real estate). I went to Western Appliance, and found the same appliances but with a Kitchen Aid label - and negotiated a lower total price than I was going to get at Sears, and my sister-in-law was happier with that choice! Very funny!

I would advise anyone who just purchased or is contemplating the purchase of a front loader to google front load spider failure. For those who would like to watch a video from 2007 showing a disintegrated spider assembly and other quality issues on a GE/Kenmore machine. After seeing the horrifying GE build quality in this video, people should think carefully before buying a GE washer. One school of thought regarding spider corrosion has to do with alkaline residue. Aluminum corrodes much more quickly and easily in a highly alkaline environment. Guess what? That's exactly what detergent does - it creates an alkaline environment inside your machine to facilitate cleaning. When you have a sudsing issue, the suds can rise up and settle onto portions of the spider assembly that may not ever get rinsed off. If this happens, you will have highly concentrated spots of alkalinity on the spider which can cause a very localized corrosion that can spread throughout the aluminum structure. This is also why better detergents contain some sort of corrosion inhibitor, often in the form of silicates. Natural detergents often don't contain these corrosion inhibitors but still create an alkaline environment inside the machine. Draw your own conclusions. This is also why, if your washer has a clean machine cycle, the water level is so high and the water highly agitated. This mechanical action tries to get rinse water into all the places where suds can settle, evaporate, and cause localized corrosion. Once your spider suffers from corrosive pitting, it's only a matter of time before the whole thing falls apart. The best practice, in my opinion, is to avoid it from happening in the first place. That means you should dose detergent appropriately, ensure every load is properly rinsed, and run a clean machine cycle on a regular basis as a check. Another preventive measure is to acidify your rinse with vinegar or citric acid. A lot of people here in Gardenweb already add vinegar to their final rinse. At least in theory, this could help prolong the life of your machine by neutralizing any remaining alkalinity in the rinse. There is no proof that this is actually the case, since no studies have been performed on this sort of thing, but it can't hurt.

I think the word explosion is being being overused by the media. Maybe it's just me. Can washers come apart under stress from vibration or a part disengaging? Yes. Can this cause injuries to people nearby? Yes. But I really dislike the term explosion. I mean a blown head gasket or radiator on a vehicle could be called an explosion going by the washer talk guidelines. But we don't call it that to gain attention to failing parts. We reserve the term for exploding fuel tanks in an accidents. We don't call failed fuel tanks that come apart "explosions". Anything under pressure can "explode" but I think using the term so loosely is rather alarmist. Watch out for flying champagne corks. ;-)