Sharon, Just did the exact same thing myself! My new Maytag Bravos was just delivered today and the first load of wash is running now. Our Whirlpool Duet front loaders were 8 years old and we were looking at replacing the pump in the washer. They were actually on the pedestals as I had back surgery a few years ago and could not bend down that low to lift heavy wet clothes. The pedestals did help with that a lot. The problem is that when they are on the pedestals they shook the house. Our laundry room is on the second floor and I thought it was going to shake the floor boards loose. We adjusted it to a level position several times but couldn't control the shaking and moving inches across the floor. Anyway, I did a lot of research, read all the great advice on this forum and decided to go with the Bravos, after looking at the Cabrio, Oasis, GE Harmony, now known as the Profile and Fisher Paykel. I went He instead of a traditional top loader for several reasons. 1) the water and energy savings and 2)not having the agitator, which I had liked with the front loader. It was a tough decision. I went with the Bravos as Consumer Reports rated it #1 and I learned that Maytag, who was just bought by Whirlpool, still uses more stainless steel and less plastic in their machine for now. I do know the Oasis has a brand new model out that is supposed to try and correct all the trouble they were having, but I was afraid to try it. I preferred the control panel of the Bravos over the new control panel on the GE Profile/Harmony that just came out. And the FP did not have the same large capacity. Anyway, we'll see how it goes and I'll post later on and let you know how the laundry came out!

I made the mistake of washing sweatshirts with sheets and a very large drum... something I shall never do again! :) What happened? I had a GE FL with 3.8 cu ft capacity and washed small loads without issues, and I don't think it would have been thrown by the weight differential between sweatshirts and sheets (I washed sheets and towels together without issues). I have a set of small Miele's now (w1215 for the washer) and quite honestly, I don't think I do anything in particular, except layering in the laundry (which just means I load it one item at a time... something I did with my Kenmore TL ages ago anyway). I've read the manual for fun, but I don't think it needs to be studied!!! Finally, re: detergent, I used to use 1-2 tbsp but I've found that I really get better cleaning results by using slightly more. And I have soft water so if you have harder water (as 85% of the US does) you might try more detergent if the smaller amount is not removing stains etc.

I just thought I'd post an update for anyone also considering these machines... Due to my incessant comparisons and price shopping, I delayed enough that I was able to find the LG Waveforce (WT5101H & DLEX5101) washer and dryer set for less than the initial price that was luring me toward GE set. Since the main reason I was considering the GE Harmony over the LG Waveforce was price, I stopped comparing and got the LG washer and matching steam dryer. We decided on white. I would have chosen white anyway since it would look better in the space, but I have seen many people say the stainless color is a shrink wrapped covering that can bubble up and not actual paint, so that is something to consider for anyone else contemplating the purchase. They were delivered last week, and I LOVE them! After getting them perfectly level, we did every piece of laundry we could find and tested out several of the modes. It has worked wonderfully for towels, sheets, clothes, delicate undergarments (on the wool setting and in mesh wash bags) and even fit our california king comforter. I cannot believe how big the drum is! I think I could curl up and sit in this thing. I was concerned about things twisting up, especially our sheet set, but that wasn't a problem at all. The extra water and extra rinse options are really nice to have. I haven't had any issues with soap residue and the wash feels CLEAN! Not just 'clean' but CLEAN CLEAN! I am picky on clean; you can trust me on this! The washer does a great job moving the clothes around. It does really seem to move the water through the clothes rather than tugging the clothes through the water the way an agitator-style washer would. We applied some Rain-X Interior Glass Anti-Fog to the inside of the washer lid so we could get a good look at what was going on inside. I don't plan to make laundry viewing a regular pastime, but I wanted to be sure of my purchase before the return period was up, and the whole point of the glass lid is to be able to peek inside. The dryer steam feature I don't see using a lot, but it will be nice to have occasionally for de-wrinkling and anti-static. We of course have used it just to try it out! There is a drying rack you can set in the drum so you can dry bras, sweaters or shoes with no tumble rather than rack or hang drying them elsewhere. I have a few more modes to try out, and also plan on testing out what the temperatures of each setting are, but so far I am very pleased with the purchase. I expect the warm and hot temps won't "wow" me, but I want to at least be sure each mode is working as it should before the return window closes. To anyone contemplating getting this LG set, or the GE or Kenmore branded similar machines, I would advise you to shop for the best deal and availability between the brands, and get them! Especially if front loaders aren't a consideration for you, I really don't think you can do any better. I am not the type to go buy the first thing I see and I often agonize over deciding on larger purchases. Hopefully my review will help a someone currently in their own washer/dryer comparison shopping nightmare. ;)

Shawn1972ut: "Front loader complaints of smell, long cycle times, inefficient rinses, poor electronic components, and failure rates at less than 5 yrs concerns me. " It is necessary to separate issues of front loader vs. top loader from issues of generations -- both generations of people and generations of manufacturing. The numbers would be difficult to aggregate, but, with a fair degree of certainty, it can be said that a majority of the automatic washing machines ever made have been front loaders. Front loading automatics have been around since the 1930s, but top-loading machines did not lose their mangles (those wringer arms that you see atop older top-loading washing machines) -- that is, they did not become automatic, until after World War II. Like tail fins on automobiles, top loading automatic washing machines became all the fad in the United States in the 1950s, but never caught on elsewhere in the world. In the United States, though, some consumers mistakenly think of top-loaders as "traditional." There is a high correlation between those who refer to top loaders as "traditional" and those who simply do not know what they are talking about. A couple of generations of housewives (that is not sexist, just the way society was organized), brought up on the post-WWII top loading machines, were educated to think that you need at least 40 gallons of water to wash a load of laundry. And that much water required at least a cup of laundry detergent; and if one cup is good, aren't two cups even better? When those consumers encountered later generation water-conserving front-loading washers, they continued to use their two cups of detergent per load, and that detergent overload is the source of a lot of the negative comments you see about front loading machines. Now, getting to your question, there are two kinds of "features" in washing machines. One kind of feature is choice of materials and construction techniques. Speed Queen washing machines are rightly often praised for construction quality largely because of choice of metal bearings in place of nylon bearings, heavier gauge steel where it counts, etc. The other kind of features are multiple selectable cycles, programability, LED screens, etc. You pays your money and you takes your choice. Personal opinion: one of the better "features" is a dimpled stainless steel drum. When a washing machine's drum spins for water extraction, fibers of the laundry inside the drum are drawn through the water drainage holes in the drum, and that accelerates fabric wear. Miele pioneered the "honeycomb" drum, with the drainage holes positioned in small domes in the drum surface to minimize the fabric pull-through. Samsung rather blatantly copied that feature in its "diamond" drum. So far as I am aware, no other maker has followed Miele and Samsung down that road. Our family, starting with my mother, has owned only four washing machines in over 75 years; they all have been front-loading washing machines. The first three lasted, on average, over 20 years each in moderately hard use. We purchased the fourth machine a few years back, and the deciding factor in our purchase was the dimpled drum design; we selected a Samsung over a Miele for price considerations. HTH.