Dh and I are going to use the bonus from selling our house to get a new washer and dryer. I have heard really good things about the Kenmore front loaders. I have a Kenmore washer and dryer now. I got them 10 yrs. ago and have never had a problem with them, so I am leaning towards the Kenmores. Does anyone else have a brand that they love? Dh is going on Monday to get them since he is moving in to the new house this week. Any suggestions would be great.

By Trina~moderator on Sunday, May 14, 2006 - 10:31 am:

As newlyweds we bought a Kenmore top loader set and had them for 15 yrs. with very little problems. Two or three? years ago the washer wasn't working properly. Instead of getting it repaired we decided it was time to upgrade to front loaders. We have the Kenmore Elite HE3 set and love them. Front loaders wash better, are more energy efficient and use much less water than traditional top loaders. I do recommend leaving the washer door ajar when not in use. This allows the washer bin to dry out and prevents mold and mildew build up.

There have been several discussions on this topic here before. Try doing a "Keyword Search".

By Debbie on Sunday, May 14, 2006 - 10:41 am:

Thanks, Trina. I will do a search. I didn't think I could get so excited about a washer and dryer.

By Ginny~moderator on Sunday, May 14, 2006 - 01:25 pm:

Remember that Kenmores can be built by GE one year, Westinghouse another, and Whirlpool yet another. There is so much money involved, I strongly suggest checking Consumer Reports. I know they have fairly recent reports on both top loaders and front loaders.

By Dawnk777 on Sunday, May 14, 2006 - 02:07 pm:

DH wants to get a front-loader, then next time we buy a washer.

By Cat on Sunday, May 14, 2006 - 07:34 pm:

We have the LG brand HE washer and dryer. They're great.

By Heaventree on Sunday, May 14, 2006 - 07:49 pm:

We have the Kenmore front loader stackables. We have the Elite as well. Trina is right about leaving the door open, I don't and my machine smells a bit stinky.

Here's are a few reasons I hope we sell them with the house:

Washer
1) You cannot wash a small load, it won't spin properly.
2) Once the wash system is engaged you cannot open the washing machine, I'm always afraid Matthew is going to through the cat in the machine and I won't be able to get her out.
3) You cannot just spin a load it has to go through the full wash cycle.

Dryer
1) The bin is really large so if you are doing a medium sized load the clothes get stuck between the dryer blades and don't tumble, they get all wrinkled and don't dry properly.
2) You cannot dry cloth diapers in my dryer. That is cloth diapers with a built in plastic pant.

I wanted to use cloth diapers with Matthew, I bought a package and prewashed them and threw them in the dryer, they took over 3 hours to dry as, I can't remember why exactly but I think it was because they didn't spin properly.

I like that they are stackable or not stackable we currently do not have them stacked, I also like that they are super engery efficient. Overall I in my opinion I think they are o.k. I would rate them about a 6 out of 10, but that's with nothing to compare them to. I don't think I would buy this system again, but I won't be devasted if we don't sell them with the house. There are just o.k. in my opinion.

Trina, do you have the tumble problem with your dryer?

By Trina~moderator on Sunday, May 14, 2006 - 08:18 pm:

Heaventree, on my washer there is a time frame when you can open the door once you've started a cycle. I've never done it but read about it in the manual. You can also do a "Rinse/Spin" or "Drain/Spin" without running an entire wash cycle. Sometimes smaller loads don't spin properly and are wetter than usual. That's when I'll do a "Drain/Spin". No matter what the size load I've found it's necessary to shake tangles out of clothes before putting them into the dryer or they won't dry properly. Makes sense since the washer spins around both ways the clothes get tangled. I've never had problems with my dryer. Other than the different look it's not much different from a traditional dryer. My set isn't stackable.

By Debbie on Sunday, May 14, 2006 - 11:37 pm:

Thanks everyone. I have done a lot of online research today and talked with my brother, who has been looking at them. I think we are going to get the LG brand. I am glad to hear that you love yours, Cat.