I've had a Kenmore front loader for 15 years that has been a great washing machine. It originally cost about $600 in 2001, and has just kept on chugging. Right at the moment, it is dripping a bit from the bottom from a leaking outer tank, but not enough leakage that it doesn't dry out between uses. Since it's on a slab, not a big issue, but I expect to be replacing it within a year or so, Can't really complain about that length of service for what we originally put into it. I'll be looking for another front loader, this one has gotten our clothes clean without damaging them with minimal water use. No smell, but we leave the door and the soap drawer ajar between uses so that they dry out inside. Yes, it does vibrate, but it doesn't rip out pipes and walls or walk around, just makes some noise on fast spin. I haven't got enough money to buy a washing machine that doesn't make any noise. And yes, there's a certain amount of luck involved with any major appliance purchase, and I'm well aware that we've been lucky with this one. Lemons do happen. But you can take a lot of the doubt out (except the probability of getting a lemon *smile*) by doing your research up front. Good luck!

nsb23: "I've read to stay away from samsung and LG.' Consider the source. It happens that the worst appliance repair service that we have experienced in more than half a century was with Whirlpool service, but I do not tell everybody to stay away from all Whirlpool appliances because of our poor service experience with one appliance; be aware that anecdotes of bad service by one brand or another are just that: anecdotes. I suggest that one take others' blanket statements about two major world brands to be puffs of hot air. Both LG and Samsung make excellent washing machines. The two Korean companies are making a huge push to become the biggest brands of large appliances worldwide, and they are well on their way to that goal. The perfect appliance has yet to be built, and every individual machine may have features or missing features or manufacturing defects that you may find an annoyance. Looking for a stainless steel drum is not a bad idea. Looking for a dimpled stainless steel drum is a better one, but it will limit you to two brands, Miele ("Honeycomb" drum) and Samsung ("Diamond" drum). When local areas of your laundry's fabric get pushed into the drainage holes through which water is extracted in the spin part of the washing cycle, wear of the fabric is accelerated. The drainage holes in the Miele Honeycomb and the Samsung Diamond drums are positioned around the dimples in such a manner as to reduce the pushing of tufts of fabrics through the drainage holes, and, fortuitously, the design also allows the diameter of the drainage holes to be reduced, further limiting push-through. Dimpled drums are a very worthwhile feature. Here is a link that might be useful: YouTube video that explains the Samsung version This post was edited by herring_maven on Tue, May 20, 14 at 17:22

Meines, I completly understand. I had a LG combo for over 3 years and nothing but a service nightmare. I had about the longest postings on this forum. I will also never buy another LG product again. Six months ago I unloaded the machine. I still don't know what I am going to do. I have no washer and it is easier going to public laundry in my complex. It was such a stressful situation.It was really a Nightmare. Peter

Things to think about before selecting a machine... how 'available' is service locally??? If you're talking with a 'big box' store... ask what town the service will come out of for the BRAND you are buying... you may have to calll the customer service number for the manufacturer to figure out where the closest wuthorized service is... do you want a 'heater' which will insure you 'hot' wash is really hot, or to enable a "profile' wash... starts out cold and then heats up tto the desired temp... supposedly the 'best' way to get your clothes really clean... do you want the sanitizing function (towels, underwear, diapers, socks, gym clothes... that type of thing... but alll must be able to handle HOT water... hotter than typical hot wash Steam... supposedly this helps with wrinkles... (personally I haven't figured out if those with this option here realy use it or like it yet)... all will use less wter, spin faster, and leave your clothes drier when they come out of the wash... all will require you to use HE detergent, preferably powder... and preferably to leave the door ajar when not in use to help with mold/smell issues... then... the flooring question, which your answer solves many problems people have... concrete seems to be the 'perfect' answer for the 'vibration' caused by the high spinning... again this is a very construction dependent problem... I personally have no problems with my fl on the second floor of my house... others here have had major problems with vibration... then... go look at them... looks are very different... are ou swayed by the colors... since they are in your basement, maybe not??? each machine out there looks a little different from the other... open the doors, spin the drums around, open and close the soap compartment a few times... what do you like the 'feel' of??? persoanlly I think the dryers are a non issue... and you may or may not even want to get a matching dryer... the more 'normal' looking dryers are MUCH cheaper and just as functional.... decide what you want for features... then go touch and feel models that fit those features... remember whirlpool makes a lot of the 'typical' brands (sears, maytag, kitchen aid... and I believe others)... so there you're buying by different features on different machines... whatever you decide, go online before they install and get a copy of the instructions and print them and make sure they follow them... get your shipping bolts from the installers and any other 'tools' that you should receive from them... and make sure they level the thing properly... and tighten the legs... good luck