I don't think Miele is still selling machines in N. America that will reach the same temperatures as earlier models (195F), although the available Touchtronic machines are still capable of heating water to very high temperatures, I think in the vicinity of 165F-170F.

Asko, unless I'm mistaken, still offers machines that have a highest wash temperature of 205F.

The confusing thing is that Miele still lists the 220v W121x on their web site as current models, but I'll be darned if I can find anyone selling them. That's really too bad -- with their 220v splitter kit that will take a typical 30-amp dryer electrical outlet and split it into two 15A outlets the installation isn't as difficult as it might seem at first. Maybe they'll wise up and introduce a slightly larger sized horizontal axis 220v front loader and include the connection kit.

Nice thought at least....

My Bosch Nexxt 500 (circa 2005) has both a boosted hot that maintains a 150F temp and an "Xxtrasanitary" cycle that I think starts at 150F then bumps it up to about 170F for a few minutes to kill off any remaining bugs. I think the current models do something similar.

I'm not sure of the water temperature it achieves, but the GE Harmony has a built-in water heater (they call it the "hydroheater") to increase the water temperature for whites or loads you want to sanitize.

Samsung 448 can reach 150 F during sanitize cycle. I'm not sure about the other Samsung models.

Here are the 220V+ washers listed by AJ Madison. Don't know if they all have near-boiling wash.

Here is a link that might be useful: http://www.ajmadison.com/b.php/220-265+Volts%3BWashers/N~37+1149

The Miele 3033 instruction manual lists the following:
No Heat
Cold 30C (86F)
Warm 40C (104F)
Very Warm 50C (122F)
Hot 60C (140F)
Sanitize 70C (158F)

I'm pretty sure that the 40XX series Mieles have the same temp range.

Thank you very much! We have a Kenmore HE5T Steam washer, and I have been trying to find out how high it goes but have no luck. Anyone know?

As per Whirlpool's online documentation:
Implementation of Steam System:
On the Whitest Whites, Normal or Heavy Duty cycles, and when Sanitize is selected, the sump heater is first energized. The Steam Generator is activated for approximately 6 10 minutes to raise the temperature to the final 153°F or the final 36°F / 2°C.
The Steam Generator is also activated when the Deep Clean Option is selected with Sanitize. Steam is generated for 5 - 10 minutes.

Sanitize: 153°F
Hot: 140°F
Warm: 104°F

Steam is also generated in the Clean Washer cycle.

You may also want to read my post to the "So what's with this steam business?" thread.

HTH, Alex

Alex, that's super helpful, thank you very much!

http://www.edgestar.com/products/washerdryer/d-cw2200.htm

Copy and paste the above link.That washer goes to 206 but it is w/d combo. And it is fairly small too. I have one of these-different model and I don't dry clothes in it b/c it takes forever, however my whites come out spotless all the time. I'm lucky enough to be able to squeeze two washers in my laundry room so I use the little one mostly to boil out our whites. When my goes I know I will get another 220 one again.

There's even a 110v washer that can heat to 200°F:

Summit SPW1103

Another rare feature is a reversible door (common on dryers, but not washers).

AJM has its predecessor for $659. Not sure what the difference is, don't see anything that mentions a reversible door. It does heat the water to 200° though.

The Danby FL washer that Home Depot sold a few years back was similar - it was made by Gorenje and by the looks of it these are related. They had a 1300w heating element - not all that much smaller than the 1800w heaters found in most 220v machines (which are still limited by running on 15A).

I'd still get a 220v machine if your wiring allows, and modify your wiring to allow it if it doesn't if at all possible. Speed is good.

I guess the Summit can get to 200F on limited wattage because of its size...it doesn't have so much water to heat.

But it helps that the heater is 1300w (i think) rather than the usual 1000w.

The sad thing is that U.S. electrical code requires a dedicated 20A circuit for 120v washing machines (which allows for up to 2400w) so most American homes could handle a 2000w internal heater without mucking with their electrical wiring. And yet manufacturers persist on putting 110v/15A plugs on their washers just in case, limiting the heater to just over 1000w.

Do you know when 20A circuit for washing machines was added to the code? I've never lived in a place new enough to have one.

I think it's been part of the code since the 1960s (see article 210 in your old NEC guides), although I think earlier versions didn't yet require a dedicated outlet. In those days, the spin cycle was usually the highest wattage-drawing part of the cycle, with 1100rpm+ speeds spinning heavy porcelain tubs using high-torque motors in some machines. Water heaters were rare at the time. Note that whilst 20A circuits were required, the outlet itself could be a 15A outlet (without one of the slots being T-shaped to accept 20A plugs), but look at the circuit breaker that controls it and it's probably rated at 20A.

Really interesting discussion. I was aware of small capacity washers being able to heat to high temps, but not the larger ones.

Maybe higher-wattage machines would be available if the code required a 20A outlet. Changing out an outlet isn't a DIY job for many if not most people. And in a market where a $100 price difference can be the deciding factor, a machine that requires an electrician visit would lose a lot of sales.

I am not an electrician, but I don't *think* even today's code requires 20A outlets unless there's only one outlet on the circuit. This is usually circumvented simply by using the far more common duplex outlet, with one outlet used by the 110V washer and the other left empty (it must be GFCI-protected). Again, the thinking behind this is obsolete - the extra outlet allowed an additional electrical device to be plugged in sharing the washer's circuit, and since the washer was probably a top-loader that depended on an external water heater tank for hot water (or occasionally an unheated front-loader that did likewise). Thus the shared circuit wasn't a problem since the washer used only a fraction of the allotted 15 amps, so the 20A circuit could handle an additional load of at least the remaining 5 amps (600 watts), plus whatever the washer didn't use for itself. But a rude surprise awaits anyone who buys one of the increasingly-common 110v front-load washers with a 1000w internal heater if s/he uses the other outlet to plug in a clothes iron.

I think more homeowners would consider installing a 220v line for the washer if they understood the advantages. An analogous situation exists for buyers of the GE Advantium over-the-range ovens. For those not familiar with these, they look like commonplace over-the-range microwave ovens that double as a range hood/fan, and can function as a microwave oven but also includes halogen cooking lights and other thermal heating elements to allow for near-microwave speeds without soggy microwave taste. But accomplishing this requires a 240V/30A circuit, and nearly all of these are replacing either a 110V/15A over-the-range microwave or just a plain range hood - requiring a new circuit, a double-pole 240V/30A circuit breaker, new 10/3-plus-ground wiring from the electrical panel to the oven location, and a new outlet. No wonder GE soon added a 120V/15A version of the Advantium to allow installation without any electrical upgrades. But the 120V Advantium cooks much slower, and relies more on microwaves to speed up the cooking, so not only is it slower but it also sacrifices some of the crispiness that makes buyers want these in the first place in lieu of a plain microwave oven. Not surprisingly then, a substantial percentage of Advantium buyers pony up for the 240V version, despite the additional costs involved both with the installation and the appliance itself (which costs more than the 110V version). No other manufacturer has attempted to sell 220V over-the-range ovens though.

220V in the laundry room may be a harder sell, but I think the best opportunity is being overlooked by manufacturers - a 220V/30A combination washer/dryer that plugs into the 220V/30A outlet already in two-thirds of American homes (normally powering just the electric dryer). The only manufacturer currently selling full-size combo washer/dryers in the U.S. is LG - and they are 110V/15A units that are dog-slow. They first take a long time to heat the wash water, then take a long time to dry the clothes. An entire cycle can take up to 4 hours. But LG is pitching these as a washer replacement, perhaps to be used in conjunction with a separate dryer. But what if LG (or anyone else) marketed these machines as a replacement for both your washer and dryer? I think alot of people would like the idea of a single machine that they could throw their clothes into and have them completely clean and dry in less than 2 hours. Such a machine could do its work even faster than European-market 220v washers and/or dryers, because they run only on 15A circuits rather than 30A commonly used for American dryers. Of course, some buyers of these would-be 220V combo W/Ds would choose to hire an electrician to install a new washer outlet and keep a separate dryer around as an option. Another possibility for a commercially-viable 220V washer, combo or otherwise, would be to make a dual-voltage machine that could sense 240V power and kick in an extra heating element when plugged into 240V. I used to have a dual-voltage Westinghouse dryer that worked along the same principle, so it must be possible.

I agree with you. But consumers aren't going to recognize the value of a water heater if they don't see the value of heated water. With all the propaganda about cold-water washing being just as good, I think that's the situation.

Consider the contrast with cooking. Imagine for the moment that oven controls were marked with "very slow", "slow", "moderate" and "hot", instead of numerical temperatures. That would work fine, as long as the terms were used consistently. But would anyone be able to sell an oven with "dumbed-down" temperatures, where the "hot" setting really gave you "moderate" temperature, and so on? Obviously not, because everyone would see that the food wasn't getting cooked as fast. But consumers do accept dumbed-down wash temperatures. Maybe that's because the difference in performance is somewhat masked by fragrances and fabric softeners. Also, the drop in performance is incorrectly seen as being due to "government energy regulations" and therefore inevitable.

Oh please. It's because clothes washing doesn't require precise temperatures like cooking. Modern detergents clean well without scalding hot water and modern clothes can't take those temps anyway.

If you need a reason to justify spending $2000 on a washer/dryer keep looking!

It's because clothes washing doesn't require precise temperatures like cooking.

Yep, and that's why the effect of dumbed-down laundry temperatures isn't as obvious, which is not the same as saying they have no effect.

Modern detergents clean well without scalding hot water and modern clothes can't take those temps anyway.

I posted this link on another thread a couple of days ago, but I'll repost it here in case you didn't see it. It's from the Soap and Detergent Association, the trade association for the companies that make those modern detergents and their ingredients:

Energy Management In Home Laundering

It's mainly about how wash temperature affects cleaning performance. Hot is defined as 130degF or higher, which is scalding hot water based on standard warnings. Also note that TL Speed Queen installation instructions recommend hot water supply at 140-150degF, scalding by any definition.

In my own experience, towels washed at 140degF aren't cleaned and deodorized quite as well as when washed at 158degF. I have no experience with near-boiling washing, but common sense, and respect for others who've described their experience with it, tell me that it would be extremely effective (and could be extremely damaging if misused).

If you need a reason to justify spending $2000 on a washer/dryer keep looking!

It seems that washers with high-wattage heaters (which speed up all hot washes, not just boil washes) are available at all price points in Europe. Here in the US, their limited availability, and sale by luxury brands, explains their high price. In this thread we've been discussing why they aren't more common here. If they were offered by more companies, including the high-volume brands, they'd be less expensive.

I think you have a solution in search of a problem.

Of all the things I hear people complain about, the cleanliness of their laundry isn't one of them.

If people do have problems, it's usually due to using a cheap detergent or green detergent instead of a mainstream P&G product like Tide or Cheer.

I used to have a mid 1990's Miele washer and dryer. The washer was 220 volts that used a splitter that split a standard US dryer connection to 15 Amp for each machine. Anyway, the washer was capable of heating the wash water to 195° and sustaining it for about 50 minutes. I've never had such amazingly clean clothes. My skivvies were always SMASHING WHITE! Kitchen towels were always sanitary! I rarely needed to pretreat stains. The new Miele's simply don't get that hot. I'm looking for a washer/dryer now and the only machine that gets the water hotter than 175° is the Asko, which does get great marks on reliable. They are the only manufacturer of compact equipment that makes a vented dryer.

The Miele little giants are 240V and have boil wash as an option. Miele says 195F is the highest temp on the Little Giant. The W1, on sanitize will get to 170F. It technically has a ”clean machine“ cycle that gets to 185F. It is designed for de-scaling and only has a gallon or two of water in the machine.

sanitize on the w1 with a full load of towels gets to 170F, but it takes a couple hours. The little giants shave about 40 min off that time.

Unless your running an on prem laundry (bed and breakfast, vet, etc) the extra time for the w1 probably doesn’t matter.

Miele in the USA is still your best bet if you want the hottest wash temps with a built-in heater.