To think I need .ore than a 9kg drum for a family of 5+

[NotAnotherHeffalump]

There are 5 of us in my family, but we'd like to have more kids. I want something that's going to get clothes really clean, and something that's big enough that I won't have to replace it if we have another baby or two in the next few years. I don't mind spending more at this stage, but really want it to last.

I'd been looking at the Samsung Ecobubble 12kg because it's huge. But some of the reviews on reliability are a bit hit and miss.

I was also looking at Miele as we have their vacuum cleaner and we love it, and it gets fantastic reviews on reliability. They only seem to go up to a 9kg drum, though.

Is this big enough for a family of potentially 7/8?

Thanks

Oops, title should have said more not .ore

Why not look into industrial machines? They might not look as aesthetically pleasing as domestic ones but they would take the capacity and amount of use you seem to be after

www.wolflaundry.co.uk/commercial-washing-machines/industrial-washing-machines/
It might sound crazy but these start at 9kg and seem to go up to 100kg if you've got the space for one it might be worth the investment

We are moving into a new house and the previous washing machine was built in, so ideally I'd like it to fit into a standard undee counter 600mm space. I just don't know where else we'd put it, and definitely don't want to be running out to the shed or anything.

Costco fo some good large capacity washers, they have 12kg by Samsung and LG, as well as some 10kg models. There are a couple of twin machines which appear to be tall but regular width and could be worth looking at.

www.costco.co.uk/Washing-Machines/c/cos_2.4.1

I’ve got 6 mostly adult children now and have managed on an 8kg machine. The youngest is 12 and I used cloth nappies on him and it was still fine. I normally did 1-2 washes per day.

I've got an 11kg Hotpoint Aqualtis AQ113F.

There are 5 of us and we've a Samsung Ecobubble and it's big enough and I've never had an issue with it. I'd go as far as saying best washing machine I've ever had.

9kg of washing is actually quite a lot - most people vastly underfill their machines so don't realise quite how much they can take. It can also damage your machine by doing much smaller loads than its capacity because it won't spin correctly if there's not enough weight in there.

If you avoid using the super-quick programmes, but use the machine's capacity properly, you should have no problems using a 9kg machine.

(Caveat - this may not apply if you're someone who puts EVERYTHING in the wash after one use, therefore generating a zillion loads of washing every day)

We are a family of 6, and have a 10kg washing machine. I
wouldn’t want one any smaller. We did have a 7kg machine before, and it was a struggle.

What make do you have NotAnotherUserName5 ?

NotAnotherHeffalump

It’s a Whirpool. It can sense how much washing is in each load, and adjusts the cycle accordingly. Love it
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Family of 6,and upgrading to a Bosch 9kg machine was plenty, about 6-7 loads a week, even when I had 1 in washable nappies and DP has builder clothes to wash. Plenty of scope for a couple extra loads.

Family of 6, and have a 9kg. Not sure I need any bigger? I gather all washing up in the morning and usually do two loads a day just to keep it under control.

Family of 5 with a 6kg. It's better because we need washing quickly - and doing a smaller load is more economical if you don't fill 10kg+ each time.

speed of washing is good point... I think OP doesn't care about doing too small loads, though. We are family of 6/5 & have managed fine with mere 5kg machine.

If you can afford the Miele, everything I've read is in favour of them.

Wash duration will be just as important as drum size though. Some modern "eco"-ey machines can be very slow - I think they basically spend ages flopping the clothes in the same water because that uses less energy and water. It's similar for our dishwasher - the speedup button makes it use more water and energy despite being a shorter programme.

There are only 4 of us in this household but I have a holiday cottage right next door for which I do all the laundry. I have a Miele machine with an 8kg drum. I'm just waiting for cheap rate electricity to kick in so I can wash a double duvet cover, flat double sheet, single duvet cover, single flat sheet, 6 pillow cases, a pedestal mat, 2 bath mats and 2 tea towels from our last guests. The machine is quite full and it will fill almost all my outside drying space, so there is no point for me having anything bigger as I simply would not have the space or means to dry it all.

The machine is very quiet and does a good job. It was not cheap but I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Miele to anyone.

Thanks everyone. I think maybe a 9kg miele is the way to go....

I’ve been impressed with my 10kg Zanussi. I can replace it a couple of times and it would still be less than one Miele.

I have a larger family (considerably) and bought a hotpoint 11kg aqualtis. I used it 2-4 times daily and felt quite happy with it. Unfortunately after only 30 months it has died. The circuit board went and repair man deemed it not financially worth repairing.... so I have downsized but to a much higher quality machine with a 10 yr warranty as for me reliability is far more important than size. Shelling out over £400 every couple of years is not cost effective. We've also noticed our clothes are washed much better even on lower temperatures. So I would check your budget and buy the best you can. John Lewis had some really good AEG and own brand 9kg ones in clearance (John Lewis brand scored highly on which) and our previous AEG lasted 11 yrs. the repair man said to avoid Hotpoint/indesit/Bekie etc unless you want to replace frequently and look at budget-Samsung, the AEG, Siemens and Miele.

Don't buy Samsung, their customer care is shocking. Decent enough machines, but tbh spend a little more and get bosch or miele.

Def not bastard Hotpoint. No Hotpoint appliance lasted more than 4 years in our house. Build quality is awful, and don't forget about the whole tumbledrier issue.

Rather than drum size, look at run time. Some of them have incredibly long cycles. If you can get a good machine with a standard wash that's less than an hour, that's going to be more use than one with a huge drum. Lots of washes aren't massive, but still need to be done separately anyway, so a good quick wash is better.

9kg is actually pretty huge anyway.

We have an 11kg LG washing machine and i do 3 non full loads a week. I wash darks on a wednesday and Saturday. If I waited it would be 1 very full load in summer but probably more in winter, and 1 white wash. I can do all the bedding (1 superking and 2 singles) plus towels in a load too. No way would I want to be washing on a daily basis!

I have a 9kg Miele for 4 of us, nice big drum, much larger than my mums standard 6kg drum. We got it when the price included 5yrs warranty, so worked out very reasonable.