Yes, go to the Laundry Forum. Although while you're here, I'll give you my $.02. I know you said you want a top loader, but believe me, a front loader is soooo great. Are you sure that with the pedestal you'll be bending? Why don't you go to Best Buy or Sears, and check it out just to make sure? I have a front loader, and then turned my sister on to one (she has 3 kids and tons of laundry), and now neither of us would EVER go back to a top loader. Since you say you do a ton of laundry, I would recommend a front loader, which has greater capacity than a top loader, especially since there is no agitator to take up room, and to twist around your clothes. It is also more energy efficient. I recommend the Whirlpool Duet or one of the Sears Kenmore front loaders. I wouldn't bother with the ones that have the extra "steam clean" feature. It's an expensive gimmick. So, there's my $.02. HTH.

HE vs non-HE. Top load vs Front Load. Topics that resonates at this forum. Really a lot of factors at play to consider before laying down your hard earned cash on a new washer. Utility costs: -wash hot water most of the time; FLW or HE TLW the way to go -water and sewer cost a fortune; FLW or HE TLW the way to go -wash warm most of the time; not much to be saved with HE TLW -water and sewer cheap; not much to be saved with HE TLW -BTW, 90%+ of a washer's energy use is to heat the water -modern detergents work great in warm water IMHO Your personal time: -many HE TLW washers have really long cycle times; with less mechanical action they must work the laundry longer to get it as clean; cycle 60 min+; some have nearly 90 minute cycles that get top or near top rated by Consumer's Reports -traditional TLW washers have more mechanical action; 30-35 min cycle -how will the top load cycle match up to the dryer? Traditional TLW will give 150G spin and generally wash faster than the dryer can dry; dry time 40-60 min; you get that 150G every time with a repeatable cycle length -HE TLW claim they give 300G spin, but that requires nearly a perfect balanced machine; many have time consuming algorithms that attempt to rebalance; if they can't rebalance you get 150G or potentially much lower spin speed; many horror stories posted here about HE TLW balancing issues; so do you really get that extra cup or two of H2O out of the laundry after spin that you paid dearly for? -do you mind doing the wash all weekend or do you want to get it done fast? Your personal tolerance for detergent residue: - only traditional TLW has a good deep soak -HE TLW have a spray or partial bath rinse; not as effective to get all the soap out Your personal tolerance for fabric wear: -traditional agitator is generally harsher on clothes than a little puck on the bottom of an HE wash basket Since you are ruling out front load washers, you leave some of their advantages off the table for a low energy, low water use machine. Saving the world one wash load at a time: -certain areas are very hard pressed for water; it is an undeniable fact -all areas some day will face energy shortages some day if not already -does saving one gallon of water in the Upper Midwest really help the drought stricken southwest or a farmer in Florida? How will that saved gallon get from say Chicago, a water rich location, get to Phoenix, a water short location? -is the same Eco minded person buying an HE washer driving around in a gas guzzling SUV or living in a 10,000 SQ ft mega mansion? -why do certain people guilt those who buy traditional TLW as energy/water gluttons, yet move or chose to live by choice in water starved area or in a desert running the AC non-stop that the local environment cannot sustain? I know I am being cynical here, but being ecologically sensitive is an all-inclusive way of life, a summation of all the choices that a person makes. But if buying an HE TLW or better yet a FLW is your first step to helping our planet, then great, but be aware of all your decisions that impact the environment.

Uh oh. I just bought the TL Fisher and Paykel echo smart washer and gas dryer (fl not top load for the dryer). I was ***REALLY*** tempted to just get the speed queen but figured we were going to end up with HE eventually so we just took the plunge but still didn't give up the agitator. I did wash all day yesterday, jeans, colors, whites, blankets....so far so good (day 1 I know). I was surprised how little water it used and I left it on the auto water fill for the first trial runs. Everything came out soft (no softener) and looks and smells clean. I did use the warm wash as that is the machines automatic choice for the cycle's I chose, water felt warm to me and I could see some steam. I haven't tried a HOT wash yet. Cycle times were great - if you want I can give them to you - they lay them out in the manual and what I think is really nice is if you have something that is not really dirty but needs a quick wash you can do a short wash cycle - I think it's like 15 minutes (don't quote me). That will be handy at times I'm sure. What is really ridiculous is that since the last set we bought in 1998 - choosing a washer and dryer really feels like it IS nearly rocket science. Give me something that will wash my clothes reliably and not have a gagillion rules or gadgets I don't need and I'm happy. $250 for a pedestal is absurd. My sil has had her F&P set for about 6 years now with no complaints so we used that as a first hand review even though of course by now the models are different. I haven't found anyone that I know in real life that *loves* their front load - not that they hate it but more of a well, when the time comes we may or may not buy another FL. This has turned out to be one of the most difficult decisions we've made in a while in the way of we bought a pair but we weren't really set on any one brand or type due to all of the differences (fl, tl, he, no he, agitator, no agitator, I give up) and reviews. In fact at the store when we finally made a decision it was quite lackluster. I figured it was as good as any, didn't feel great about it didn't feel bad about it. It's hard to get excited about a washer and dryer anyhow. It was $1,300 for the pair. jdenyer-very informative and I didn't feel it was one sided toward either. I am hoping the basic warm wash will be enough to keep mold away and we don't have an on board heater. I rarely use hot but will - machine recommends a perm press cycle every 5th load whether you put clothes in it or not, with detergent of course. Good luck irisjjs! I feel like it's a crap shoot myself and only time will tell how we did!

We have a top loader GE Profile. I think the loads take way too long. I also have to use extended spin to cut down dryer time or I have to turn the dryer on at least twice. Repair guy had to come out a year or so ago for something with motor and drum. I forget what all was involved but I do remember him saying he was surprised it didn't dump water all over the floor because that's the end result. When the time comes I like to replace with a SQ. I stayed away from front loaders since there isn't an agitator and potential mold issues.