It's not the machine breaking down they should be worried about - it's the maintenance & upkeep that's involved with owning these that's a real pain. Definitely not worth it in my opinion. I had one at my last place. See - the doors on these machines are air-tight - and since the drum is on it's side, not upright, it does not drain very well after the wash. This means that water is usually left behind. So you clean your laudnry - take it out & close the airtight door. Withing a few months (or weeks depending on where you live) you will notice a distinct musky odor...and that's called mildew - and it's growing inside your washing machine. You will need to clean the washing machine MUCH more often than you will a toploader to address the build up of water. You will also need to be more careful with the detergent - since overuse of this will build up faster than a toploader - again due to the draining issues.

And if you think 'Oh I'll just leave the door open between uses" - think again. The door is quite heavy since we're talking about some solid glass on it. After about 6mths of doing this you will notice the door will start to sag - and you'll need to lift it up a bit to get it to fully shut. This is what our problem was. Thankfully we were renting that place - we were the first tenants in there after a total remodel of the place (which is why we had such a nice washer & dryer). I was so excited when I saw that washer...and now I'm SO glad I was able to spend a year in a rental that had one - since I would be SO bummed if I had spent my own money on that!!

Does it clean better - supposedly in theory it should. But i've seen the same number of complaints on both of the HE top loaders & front loaders with regards to this.

Conf1818- I do not think you are being fair to front load machines. We sell literally hundreds of pairs every year and advise EVERY customer to leave the door open between washes. So far I can count on 1 hand the number of people who have had doors sag.

Front loaders are different. With proper upkeep (leave the door open, occasionally wipe out the bellows, run a cleaning cycle 4-6 times per year) you would be able to avoid issues and you will get superior cleaning results to a top load machine.

That being said I would recommend Electrolux over LG personally. Have those machines myself, and I sell them to as many customers as will listen. So far so good and they have been reliable enough (bearing in mind that none of these machines are built for more than a 10 year life, just a fact of the business unfortunately). Electrolux also covers parts for 3 full years if you register the unit. Not a knock on LG, just an Electrolux preference.

If buying today I would get the Maytag MHW5100DW frontloader. It can be found for ~$900. Add a $100 five year warranty. That's $1000 for a 4.5 cu ft consumer reports check rated washer that has water heating.

Since we really don't know reliability between brands, my thinking is that buying an american made washer at a good price is a good choice. If the Korean's want my money again they need to do better. My first LG repair was at one month. It took eight days to get a replacement pump for a frequently sold model.

The LG 4270 or the Electrolux are both good choices. I am not personally a fan of TL HE machines. The FL,s will clean and rinse better than any brand of HE TL. Enough said.

Frontloaders are not airtight, that's a misconception. They all have a vent hose connected at the back of the outer tub running to a vent opening on back of the machine.

Example of a Whirlpool Duet.

Vent opening on rear of outer tub.

Recently did the research after 9 yr old FL Bosch started acting up. Love my Bosch, but it's not worth the $ to repair. Joe is right, the average washer life span is 8.2 years.

FL wash better than TL, use less water, and are gentler on clothes. I focused on

• LG WM4270HVA/DLEX4270V (front-load)
• LG WM3570HVA/DLEX3570V (front-load)

Both models are highly energy efficient and receive good marks from Consumer Reports. Slight differences. The 3570 is the more efficient based on PG&E ratings, and Consumer Reports rates it slightly better than the 4270. The 4270 has a slightly larger capacity tub, an inside light, and a hand wash/wool cycle. The reviews for both models are excellent from a variety of different sites and LG was rated as the most reliable brand. Can't speak to Electrolux washers other than I read about the ability to change the door (cool) and that it tends to drip when opened after a wash (not so cool).

Bought the 4270, which will be delivered next week. The hand wash/wool cycle won me over as I use it all the time on the Bosch. Good luck!

LG adds all kinds of redundant and often useless buttons to create the impression of extra functionality with potential buyers. All machines have a delicate cycle. It's likely that LG's two separate delicate cycles are meaningless in actual use.

I had a top loader Speed Queen for 20 years before it died. I was reluctant to get a front loader, so I went with a HE top loader.

It was not the same as the old top loaders. There is no agitator in most of these machines, and instructions say to keep the center thing clear. It made loading clothes a pain. I had to touch nearly every piece of dirty clothes, sometimes more than once to keep it clear of the center thing.

We moved and didn't take the washer and dryer. We bought a pair of LG FL. We were told LG is the leader in this technology, so I figured they'd have more of the bugs worked out by now. I love the machines. Wash cycles don't seem shorter, but dry cycles have been shortened by a LOT since switching from a TL. I hear this is because the FL spin the clothes faster.

Oh, and on the mildew smell. We were told to leave the door ajar. The LG has a magnet to keep the door in place, slightly ajar.

We recently bought maytag HE top loaders and love them. I dont know why anyone would by machines that require daily upkeep.