When should I buy a new washer and dryer?

8 years ago

Hi there! TIA for your help. I relied on GardenWeb when we built our house 7 years ago and really can't imagine how lonely it would have been without the advice!

I was overwhelmed by decisions then, so I kept our old washer and dryer and never "finished" the laundry room. Now, 7 years and two more kids later, I am doing more laundry than I can comfortably admit to (about 10-15 loads a week, depending on the bedding that needs washing, whether the kids played a lot of muddy sports, etc.) and I wonder if it's time to replace them. I also, admittedly, would love the room to be completed, with cabinetry, etc., since I spend a lot of time in there. :)

Our current models are a set of 11 year old "Whirlpool Ultimate Care II" that my husband's decorator (!) chose when he was a bachelor. I have had minor repairs in the past, and when I ask the repairman when to replace, he says "don't." His reasons are that the new models are made of plastic and therefore not durable, require repairs often, develop problems more frequently, etc. He also says the new features are not necessary. Given this sample size of 1, I'd love more opinions!

They work fine, mostly, except that the dryer seems to always need a second run to fully dry towels, and I wish I could fit more in the washer.

So, when should I replace our old models? Or, should I keep them until they truly fall apart and just build a new laundry room around them?

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Comments (4)

weedmeister
8 years ago
The repair guy is right. Dont replace unless broken. But with all the loads you are doing, consider a second washer. Nothing fancy.

Ask again on the Laundry forum.
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Deck The Halls
8 years ago
I'm not sure how many children you have, but I have four and I feel like have a lot of laundry. The machines I bought 3 years ago hold twice as much as the ones we replaced. The newer machines are also much more energy efficient and they take less time to complete a load. I have the largest, top load, LG units available and I've had no issues with them in the 3 years we've owned them. I can fit my king sized sheets and comforter in one load, I could barely fit my comforter in my old machine. As a result, I'm spending a lot less time doing laundry these days!

I didn't go with front loaders as my experience with them hasn't been good. We temporarily left our permeant home for a work assignment and we bought front loaders to use. No matter what I did, the seal in the washer always smelled of mildew which I felt made the laundry smell as well. And I was diligent about wiping it out each time, sticking paper towels in the recessed seal between loads to absorb the access water and bleaching the area frequently, nothing helped. I have several friends who have front loaders now, who complain about the same issue.
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hvtech42
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
Sounds like you have a Whirlpool direct drive. If you were going to replace with another top loader, the repairman was right. Most top loaders built today are cheesy designs in my opinion. Speed Queen is one of the few quality ones but you are in for some fun (not) if it happens to break outside of warranty. Far worse in terms of repairability than Whirlpool direct drive or Maytag Dependable Care.

If you want to switch to a front loader for water conservation reasons, however, you should do so.

Many issues with high efficiency washers come down to improper use and care. It's just a totally different way of doing laundry that some people don't want to take the time to adjust to. It's all about how what cycles you select, how much detergent you use and what type, how long you leave the door open after the cycle, what water temperatures you wash with, whether or not you use fabric softener, etc. Some of the blame also rests on the manufacturers in my opinion, I think they do a poor job explaining how these washers are different from older ones people are used to.
practigal
8 years ago
Lucky you I kept one of those "don't get rid of it" machines for over 20 years (it was over 30 years old) there will never be a time to get rid of it guilt free....lucky?

When should I buy a new washer and dryer?

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weedmeister

Deck The Halls

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