My heading should have read TL not FL...sorry
suzieca

Have you looked for the reviews on Lowe's, Home Depot or Best Buys sites. I would start there.

There's also the Speed Qeueen, but may be hard to find ...

Speed Queen Top Load Washers

Speed Queen Dealer Locator

I'm also looking at SQ machines, but my only concern is that they are not Energy Star machines and seem to cost a little bit more to run each year (based on the Energy rating).

Is the excellent warranty, reliability, etc. of SQ machines worth paying extra in electricity? We have all electric appliances/AC/heat in our condo, so we need to save everywhere we can. However, what's the real savings if you buy an Energy Star machine but have expensive repairs in a couple of years? This is the dilemma my husband & I are facing right now.

We had a FP GWL10 and had to replace the board ($300) after just 4 yrs. We would have to invest another $400+ to fix it this time (4 yrs. later). The repairman suggested getting a basic, reliable dial-type machine and not to bother with the ones that have computer boards. He said he replaces about twice as many boards than dials. Plus dials are much cheaper to replace. So I am definitely apprehensive about going that route again.

So, I guess we've narrowed it down to these more basic machines:

1. Speed Queen AWN542
2. Maytag MVWC70VW (the major thing that worries me about this is the glass top  just wondering if it will it get chipped, cracked or broken? I keep my laundry basket on top of the washer due to space issues, so I don't know if it would hold up.)
3. Whirlpool WTW5200VQ
4. Whirlpool WTW5100VQ

But of course, I'm open to other suggestions as well!

my electric usage:

Top Load Washing Machine $ .02 per load (not including hot water cost)

High Efficiency front load $ .10 per load (because of the built-in electric water booster heater if enabled)

some of the "non Energy Star" washers use alot of water ...

suzieca, I don't know if you've seen my posts about my Maytag Bravos washer, or not. If not, let me know and I'll link them for you.

I've owned my washer for more than a year and am very grateful to have it. It is by far the very best washer I've ever owned.

It uses far less water than traditional TL's, yet washes huge loads of laundry (including a king-size comforter), and gets them very clean.

Thanks all...
mara 2008 what kind of laundry detergent do you use?

With my old washer I always use liquid ALL and am very happy with it. But now I'll have to switch to a HE detergent of some kind and don't know which to choose.

auzieca, I use different detergents for different types of laundry, but they're all HE detergents:

White clothes & white towels -- Tide HE w/bleach

Fine washables/knits/delicates -- Tide Total Care HE (used to use Cheer ColorGuard HE, which was very good, can't find it anymore, really like the Tide TC)

For all other laundry, I use Sears Ultra Care (Stain Fighting formula, powder) -- has the HE symbol on it. I bought it at half-price in huge buckets which will probably last at least another year. I think it's only available now in boxes, so I'll save a bucket to refill.

I haven't used All in recent years, but I know it is available in HE formula(s).

You do realize that the Bravos have electronic boards in them too don't you? I'm curious about your board problems before. I don't suppose you have a good surge protector on there? I'm wondering if you are having some surge issues.

In fairness, yes, the lid and such is plastic on the F&P. But what's wrong with that? It won't rust! F&P is known for high quality construction where it counts. The early Cabrio/Oasis/Bravos had big issues with rusting on the metal components. I'm thinking it might be resolved since I don't hear much on it anymore but a plastic lid can't rust. F&P have very few moving parts and I'm told they're pretty good units for a DIYer to repair.

There's not a lot of units that don't use electronic components. Just be sure you know what you're getting.

Also be aware that a C/O/B claim of 4.7 cf capacity is misleading. They don't wash 4.7 cf worth of laundry. That's an (upward) adjusted figure to "compensate" for the lack of an agitator to "compare" washers. I believe the capacity of a C/O/B is about 3.8 cf IIRC. Someone else could probably give more detail on it.

That does sound like a heckuva good price on that washer though.

I assume the note about the electronic board was directed to me ~ and I am aware that Bravos machines have them. I guess was still curious, even though I'm leary of the potentially expensive repairs. I think that we're 99.9% sure that we'll electronic boards this time around.

A question about capacity: Our F&P was a 3.7 and the machines I'm looking at are 3.3 or 3.5. How much difference will that really make in the # of loads of wash I have to do each week? Will I notice a substantial difference?

Here are my 3 choices (DISCLAIMER: choices are subject to change at any moment based on further research!!)

Speed Queen AWN432 (3.3) - Probably 1st choice, just have to double-check to make sure it'll fit. It's 28" deep.

Whirlpool WTW5200VQ (3.5) - Like this one too - just checking w/WP to see if it's a 1 or 2 speed machine. I'm getting differing info. online.

Maytag MVWC700VW (3.5) - Again, the only potential drawback is the glass-top lid. Otherwise it looks like a good machine.

looks like it's a 1 speed

Whirlpool WTW5200VQ Wiring Diagram

Yeah, I had a feeling. 2 speeds is a good feature to look for right? With 3 girls in the house - more likely to do more "delicates" I suppose!

Good news! Your F&P, which was rated at 3.7, is really a 3.2 washer. The reason for the discrepency is because Fisher & Paykel chooses to stretch the definition of an HE agitator-less washer to also include their HE washers that have agitators, which in my view is a little disengenuous, because front loaders are rated with European IEC capacity in an attempt to account for their abilty to tumble a larger wash load than top loaders with agitators can, which makes the IEC rating innapropriate for any kind of top loader that still has an agitator.

Of course, this is not true for HE top loaders that use impellers, like the GE harmony, and the Oasis, Cabrio, & Bravos washers. It still is appropriate to use IEC ratings for these washers because their washing action is completely different.

Thanks - that's good to know about the F&P. I'm not so concerned about that now.

Let me throw another brand into the mix: Amana. How do they compare with Maytag, Whirlpool or Speed Queen. In particular I was interested in the NTW4600VQ or the NTW4800VQ.

Here is a link that might be useful: Amana Washers

I just purchased a F&P topload HE washer, not by choice, but because it was the only thing that would fit because of the depth I needed. I used it for the first time yesterday and I have to say I really like it. Yes, the lid is plastic, but so what? It won't chip or rust and you can remove it to clean it needed. I could put a lot more clothes in the washer compared to my all Maytag. The clothes were almost dry so very little time was needed in the dryer. It is top loading too! Which worked out well since the garage door opens into the laundry room. I am short, so it is hard to get some things out of the bottom of the dryer.

The plastic lid never bothered me - actually I probably never thought about it! I keep a laundry basket on the top, so it was probably better for me since it didn't scratch. Glad you like the F&P so far. The spin feature is pretty awesome. I don't know about yours, but our old one always sounded like a plane taking off - not loud, just the speed of it. Kind of cool, we thought!

Amana, Estate, Maytag, Roper, Inglis and many other names are all part of the Whirlpool family and share a lot of design details. Whirlpool builds a good product and has made the Maytag name respectable again. Speed Queen has the reputation for being built like a tank and has a good warranty to back it up. Don't often hear of people buying service contracts under the guise of an "extended warranty" to insure it. They have a slightly higher spin speed than the Whirlpools too. F&P are basically good machines but some people have trouble getting used to them. However they have conventional agitator machines and HE machines and generally have a pretty good price. The GE Harmony is made by LG and is a good unit. The Harmony, Oasis and Bravos machines all have models with a heater available too if that's of interest to you.

I don't believe the Maytag Bravos capacity is less than 4 cu ft, as someone here said. I can fit a king-size comforter in it with ease, and it holds huge loads of laundry. When I was researching washers and shopping around, the drum looked at least as big (actually, bigger) than front-loaders which were labeled 4 cu ft capacity.