Same story here -- had a top loader for decades, it finally broke and we got a front loader. Clothes had to be washed multiple times and still not clean. Stinky musty smell; had to keep door open all the time to keep musty smell from developing and it still developed gunk all in the crevaces of the rubber seal, etc. Hated it!! So I got a Speed Queen thanks to the laundry forum :) Finally! My clothes are clean in 25 minutes flat. With the old one it was literally HOURS because of all the rewashing and still they weren't really clean; I would just give up and throw them in the dryer. Laundry would pile up because it was taking so long! Also sometimes I like to soak things and you just can't do that in a front loader. I love it 'almost' as much as my induction cooktop. Fresh clean clothes, fast, and no stinky smell! I'm a busy mom with 4 dirty kids and a sweaty stinky DH. No time to wash twice. Get a Speed Queen!

My own experience with a flat top for storage of detergent and other laundry items is that they will move around and fall off or fall over when the washer and dryer are running. I guess it depends on the washer and how much vibration you have, but I like things corralled in a basket. I have even taped the basket down in the past, but that is not necessary with my current washer. If the topper is suspended off the washer it should not be a problem. My friend has her large shelf hanging from the wall with cables so it can be lifted up for service.

My first post... although I was a frequent visitor while researching a replacement for our aging Whirlpool TL washer. We eventually narrowed our selection to the GE Profile WPGT9150HWW, or the (FL) Samsung WF328. (We didn't need to replace our reliable, 14 yr old Speed Queen gas dryer!) Fortunately, we were able to take advantage of extra savings over the Memorial Day weekend, during Texas' first sales tax holiday on Energy Star appliance purchases. Although I would have been happy with either machine, my wife gave the nod to the Harmony. The 9150 is the newer model, it does not have the heater or the LCD display found in the 9360. We recognized that the Harmony TL design would lose to the Samsung, in water-savings, but we are now empty-nesters with fewer washloads, so it was an acceptable trade-off for us. That said, we've noticed that the fabric/load-sensing at the start of each cycle consistently uses much less water than we would have chosen using our old machine. We have only been using the machine for about 6 weeks, so it's too early to report on reliability, but it has performed without incident, and cleans very well. The wash-plate design appears to provide plenty of action for the clothes, but I haven't noticed any tangling. It can handle larger loads and appears to be gentler on larger items like furniture slip covers, than our old machine. It also had no problems handling a small load that included a rubber-backed bathmat which would often get out-of-balance during spin in the old machine. The main thing we are still trying to get used to is guessing the correct amount of detergent for a particular load. There are two issues - it's not obvious how much water the machine will decide to use, and with HE-detergent you can't tell how much to use based on soap bubbles. Fortunately, the Harmony can be 'paused' during the wash cycle to add more detergent if needed, but I can see how easily a newer FL, with very low water fills, could be overdosed.

If you like your laundry machines, don't give them away, even to your beloved son, unless he's really into laundry. They don't make 'em like they used to. Whirlpool has gobbled up many of the makers including Maytag. Whirlpool used to be an excellent manufacturer. Now they make way to many that just aren't good enough. I got the analog Speed Queen top loader and dryer for my folks some months back. No complaints. Check out the Laundry Forum. They also recommend Speed Queen, but also have recent reviews of many others, including some positives for brands that get too many boos--some have to be pretty decent or they be out of business. :)