Warm water opens up the fibers and detergent can be released more easily. With today's detergents, warm rinses aren't really necessary, unless you have really sensitive skin. In the past, warm or even hot rinses were needed to get soap (real soap) out of the laundry. Warm clothes will also release more water during the spin cycle (again, opened up fibers...) and save a little time and energy in the dryer - but wrinkles can really set in. Warm items are easier to handle than laundry rinsed in ice-cold water - remember Kathy Bates hanging up them sheets outside in the middle of the winter. Was that Misery? Wool benefits from a warm wash followed by a warm rinse, but no washer does that anymore.

Checking wash water Temp today, using Heavy Duty cycle, HOT Temp. About 15-18 mins into the cycle, I paused the machine, opened the door (hot and steamy, but touchable). I placed a candy thermometer into the middle of the wet, laundry....about 125/127F. Not scientific, but I was pleased that the Temp was at this degree, this far into the cycle. I believe Electrolux told me the Sanitize Cycle hits roughly 158/160F. Warm washing is around 85F.

Thank you so much!!!! A couple of questions now that I have run about 3 loads of laundry... 1. The dryer.... it didn't come with a rack! Did yours? I'm talking about the rack that you put inside the dryer and can put shoes on or a delicate sweater that you may not want tumbling about... The washer shakes at high spin speed levels. We have the pedestals.. Is this normal? Perhaps it needs to be leveled? It never shakes unless it is in the last super fast spin cycle, then it definitely rocks back and forth. My LG never did this..but we didn't have it on pedestals... 3. There is a gap between the rubber door gasket and the stainless tub... not a huge gap, but definitely something that may be an issue down the road if say maybe some coins or paperclips fell in? Is this just part of the way the washer is built? I ABSOLUTELY love the way it washes!!!! Uses way more water than my old washer and the towels smell divine!!!! THANKS so much for your help!!!!

I got a Kenmore Elite He3 in June 2003 (for almost the exact same price I paid for the Electrolux 70 today) . . I'm not sure you guys can handle this but for years I just used a smaller quantity of Tide powder. Then I switched to Tide HE liquid a few years ago, thinking that was a good thing but then I read that you guys don't like liquid either. I saw your post with Tips for the Electrolux 70 washer Thanks! BTW, that Kenmore washer ended my relationship with Sears. I bought the washer and less than a year later my dryer died so we went in and bought a dryer on a Sat that was supposed to be delivered the next Thu. The next (Sun) the washer threw an F9 code (blocked pump/ drain). My husband checked the drain line and it was clear. I called the repair dept Mon morning and told them the problem and they said they couldn't come out for 2 (maybe 3?) weeks! So I went to the Sears store to talk to the salesmen that I bought the dryer from and asked if he could do anything. He said he couldn't so I told him to cancel the dryer purchase. I sat there all day and at 4:30 the repairman called and said he was running late and couldn't make it that day and rescheduled not for the next day but something like a week later! Same thing happened that time! My husband took off work the third time. When I came home from work I asked if they fixed it. Nope! They called and tried the same thing! They wanted to reschedule in 2 weeks and he told them I would kill somebody if they didn't get someone over there the next day. He finally did show. I told him at the door that it was an F9 code. Before he even looked at the machine, he said "something is stuck in the drain." I said "No, my husband checked that and it's clear". He insisted that that it was. A few minutes later he presented me with a wet anklet and told me about the drain filter trap that you can access from the bottom. He said it happens all the time (although that was the only time it happened to us). The he said that little visit would have been over $100 if it hadn't been under warranty. We paid $1100 for a washer and went without it for something like 6 weeks because no one could tell us to check that trap when we called and told them the code that apparently always means there's something in that trap?!?!? OMG!!! And it was under warranty so it wasn't like they were trying to make money on the service call. I still can't believe the incompetence 12 years later! And I have refused to buy any appliances, and just about anything else, from Sears to this day.