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Washer / Dryer - Would you?

24 replies

Todaywewilldobetter · 28/10/2020 10:20

Washing machine has failed this morning. Even we can see it's irreparable!

I seem to recall there wasnt much love for a washer dryer combo in years gone by. Is that still true?

Would you buy a combo?

OP posts:
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wannabebump · 28/10/2020 10:36

I wouldn't. If anything, seperate tumble drier and washing machine.

Not as reliable, lower spec machines for the money (ie spin speed) etc

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sunlight81 · 28/10/2020 11:04

I have one and love it!! Clothes go in dirty and come out clean and dry!!

A full cycle with dry can take 5h so I tend to do one over night.

We are a fam of 7 and i ensures I got one with a 1800 spin

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arewethere · 28/10/2020 11:10

I only have room for one machine so I have a washer dryer. It's not as good as separate ones, my mum can wash abs dryer 6 loads in a day where I struggle to do 2/3 but it's better than no dryer

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Todaywewilldobetter · 28/10/2020 11:20

Yeah, I can't fit in separately due to a spectacularly strange kitchen cupboard design! Or else I would.

I use a pod dryer now but obviously it's no use for towels & bedding.

Hmmm...

OP posts:
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user1465146157 · 21/11/2020 08:21

@sunlight81 - what make and model do you have? I need one but no idea where to start x

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SkepticalCat · 21/11/2020 08:36

I've never had a separate washing machine and tumble dryer due to lack of space (well, my current house does have space, but I prioritised a dishwasher).

My current Blomberg washer-dryer works well. I dont use it to dry everything, but its invaluable for towels/bedding. Admittedly, they do need a bit of an 'airing' after drying as they don't come out completely dry, but it's better than not having been tumble dried at all.

I also have a dehumidifier which gets an airer's worth of washing dry in about 5-6 hours.

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nosswith · 21/11/2020 08:37

Yes, live in a flat, have had one for years.

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MassDebate · 21/11/2020 08:41

I have a Miele and it’s the worst piece of crap I’ve ever had the misfortune to spend over £1k on. It breaks down at least once per year, and their dreadful repair service usually leaves me with no functioning washing machine for up to 12 weeks (yes really). Don’t bother OP.

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Clutterbugsmum · 21/11/2020 08:41

I had one (only got it because it was on sale and cheaper then an washing machine) and when it broke I replaced with a washing machine and tumber dryer.

I found it was just wasn't able to keep up with the washing for our family.

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clary · 21/11/2020 08:44

We inherited one when we moved to this house and I hated it. To be fair I never used the dryer element really, it was a crap washing machine tho, took ages to do any programme. Spin speed was rubbish, just generally didn;t like it. Relieved when it broke and we could reinstate the Bosch we had brought with us.

Just too much to break at once.

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AlwaysLatte · 21/11/2020 08:45

Following with interest. Thinking of changing my washer and drier for two washer/driers after the washing machine packed up recently. Hated being without it while I waited for the repair man

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Shoxfordian · 21/11/2020 08:46

We just bought a combo one, seems to work pretty well or so my husband says, he does the washing

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anxiouswaiting · 21/11/2020 08:55

Hate mine. We are in rental and an old crappy one was here when we moved in. Wash cycle fine, drying took 7-8hrs! Even drying half the load at a time was about 6 hours total.

It recently broke and was replaced, I thought since it is new rather than a 10+ year old model it would be more efficient. Nope!

When it was installed the guy said I
He always advises only a 1/2 load if you are using the dry function. It's awful, takes hours and hours.

Luckily we had a tumble dryer from our last house, annoying as it takes up space we dont really have, but with 3 kids I just cant have it taking so long to dry or I would never get through all the washing.

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Flowerblue · 21/11/2020 08:55

I’ve just got rid of my washer dryer and replaced it with just a washer. Planning to get a heated airer to go with it. We are a small family though.

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chipsandpeas · 21/11/2020 09:04

yes if you have get seperates

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chipsandpeas · 21/11/2020 09:04

@chipsandpeas

yes if you have get seperates

i meant yes if you cant get seperates
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PoisoningPigeons · 21/11/2020 09:21

We live in the North, where it is dark, cold and damp for a large proportion of the year - I know that many people have no difficulty hanging out and air-drying to crisp perfection vast quantities of laundry in January, I salute you all, but I am mysteriously incompetent at this feat.

Over the years, we have somehow contrived to live in a series of dwellings that didn't have space for two machines. So we have always had washer-dryers.

They're fine. They wash clothes. They dry clothes.

Unlike a dedicated dryer, they usually can't dry as many clothes as they could wash. You could consider this a terrible flaw.

Mostly we find it quite handy, because often in the laundry basket we have a mixture of tumble-dry-able and non-tumble-dry-able items that we want to wash:

so we chuck the whole load in
wash it using the wash function
when the wash finishes we extract the non-tumble-dry-able items
hang up the non-tumble-dry-able items on drying-rack arrangement of choice (in our case a collapsible rack in the bathroom, with a dehumidifier)
use the dryer function on the tumble-dry-able items

Summary:
whole load laundered
partial load tumble-dried
partial load air-dried, meaning (1) requires smaller drying rack arrangement (2) requires less tedious hanging of clothes on drying rack arrangement (3) generally air-dries quicker than a full load because less moisture in the air.

Result:
whole load clean and dry.

YMMV.

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anotherboyontheway · 21/11/2020 09:23

We live in a flat so we need it as we don't have space for separate washer and dryer, we've only had it a month but i absolutely love it!! Highly recommend it especially if you're short on space x

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Fluffycloudland77 · 21/11/2020 09:41

I hated ours.

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TrySarahTops · 21/11/2020 09:53

I used to have separates, and if I had space, I would have two machines again, but I don't. So I have a washer dryer.

Ours is 4 years old now. It's a Bosch but still works really well. I manage to wash and dry all my clothes over the weekend, and then bedding and towels I put on timer- either overnight or when I'm at work, and I come back to perfectly dry bedding or towels. It's great!

So yeah, separate machines are better if you have the space, but otherwise it works well.

A complete cycle is supposed to take 3.5 hours. It's normally more like 4.5 hours!

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HillaryWhitney · 21/11/2020 10:11

No they are rubbish

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user1471538283 · 21/11/2020 11:23

I've always had separate apart from the years with no dryer at all. We are now renting an apartment and it has a washer dryer that I hope is good because I need to get rid of the dryer.

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TotalBitch · 21/11/2020 11:26

We have one. I really wanted two separate, but, like you, I have a strange and small kitchen. The one we have is ok. No, it's nowhere near as good as a tumble drier on it's own, but it's a damn sight better for our family than not having one at all! We have a dc still in reusable nappies and some of those fucking things take days to dry even on a hot summer's day!

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BashfulClam · 21/11/2020 11:28

I like mine and I reduce the trying time or it does take hours. I can dry sheets etc in 1 hour by just reducing the cycle time. It’s rare that I dry as I don’t like the environmental impact. So line dry when possible (in Scotland so that’s 4 days a year) or in a clothes horse with a dehumidifier... towels dry in about 4 hours.

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