Sorry -- I just realized I put this in the gallery instead of the discussion forum -- I will move it to the discussion forum so please don't post here.

When I shopped for a washer last summer I did a lot of research and checked epinions and a lot of other hearsay sights. (This included). From what I read it seemed that the owners of the Frigidaire front loaders were all very happy. Occasionally, as with any brand, there were a few complaints but the overall trend was very positive. I have never been one that believed a word printed in Consumer Reports. I know a lot of people treat it like a bible but that's not me. I've always found their reliability reports on autos (for example) to be all lies. Given all that I personally like the 2940 or the version sold at Lowe's with the blue door. We went with Bosch mostly because my wife wanted a really big opening ot stuff the clothes into. But for reliability I think owners will report good things about the Frigidaires. For sure I'd buy Frigidaire long before LG (Lucky Goldstar) or the GE washers made in China.

If you are not replacing the dryer then you will be limited on the size of the washer. Clothes hanging outside is not allowed in my neighborhood so a dryer is my only option. And unless you want to divide the load when you dry, you will have a wrinkle issue. The clothes won't have enough room to fluff. My Neptune FL lasted a little over nine years. At the end the bearings were going and it was getting very loud. I replaced it with a Samsung 218. Unfortunately, they are no longer making this model. The price of the washer and dryer was less than I had originally paid for just the Neptune washer. I was just noticing today that the new Samsung cleans the whites so much better than the old machine. The current model is a 4.0 size and I can wash one of my king comforters. I have a couple other king comforters that won't fit, but even the cleaners comments on their size. Queen comforters are no problem. I've not had any issues with it's ability to clean with what appears to be so little water. I guess I am just saying I paid the big bucks for a FL washer, that was from the "dependability people" and it didn't last any longer than any of my previous washers. So this time around I also used price in the equation. I decided what size and then looked at the various models and brands. My deciding factor was quietness and price. I also had written off Maytag because of poor customer service with a Maytag refrigerator. Since they had been purchased by Whirlpool, they were the actual company that was doing the lousy customer service. So Whirlpool and Maytag were not on my list. With the kids gone I just wanted a basic washer/dryer. However, it seems to wash better than the old unit. With Memorial Day coming, you should see some good sales. See if they have a thirty day price guarantee so you can buy now and then go back and get your refund.

Wow! And I thought the granite vs solid surface discussions on the Kitchen Forum were lively...I think this discussion is at least as lively!! I just spent probably an hour or so reading every post...one thing I noticed is that no one mentions that many of the TL machines have temperature controlled water fill...mine has a "warm" and "cold" that mixes hot & cold water to meet what's considered "optimal" for cleaning purposes. The amount of each temp water used varies depending on the temp of the water coming in. My manual even states that detergents do not dissolve very well in cold water and that clothes do not wash as well either. What does work better in true cold water is rinse...items rinse more thoroughly in cold water than hot or warm. My washer does have the traditional "hot" and "cold" settings, but I never use "cold" and I only use "hot" for certain linens...I stick to the controlled warm & cold for the vast majority of my laundry. My experience w/washing in hot water is that colors fade quickly--especially darks (navy, black, etc.) so I don't like using hot water. BTW...those of us on a well worry more about water usage b/c we do not want our wells going dry! Which, right now in this moderate-to-severe drought is a very real concern (mid-Atlantic states). My concern, however, is FL options....do I have options for longer/shorter wash cycles, "type" of clothing cycles, "agitation" speed, rinse speed, additional rinse cycles, soak, and, very importantly, can I wash a KS comforter in it? I cannot do so in any (residential) TLer I've owned or seen to-date. For me, it looks like a FL is my primary option. Both my DS and I have allergies and I need to be able to wash our linens in HOT water (to kill dust mites)--that includes towels, sheets, blankets, comforters, curtains, rugs, etc. [My DS is very allergic to dust (i.e., dust mites)] I've been hearing that many of the European makers (Miele, for example) are stripping down their functionality for the US market--not an advantage in my case! I'm currently researching to find out which FL that is sold in the US is best--so if you live outside the US your washers probably don't compare to US washers...sorry, but your experiences w/specific manufacturers/machines, while interesting, may not be relevant to those of us in the US. Any thoughts or comments?