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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think 5h45m for a standard cotton wash is an absolute piss take???

271 replies

babyproblems · 17/08/2023 11:37

Had our washing machine about 18 months. Paid about £750 for it, new. It was the latest Samsung model, and (claims) takes a 8KG load. It is a combi dryer aswell but that’s not what my post is about.
I have just put a load in, nowhere near 8kgs, and on a standard cotton wash at 40 degrees, the time is 5 HOURS AND 45 MINUTES.

I think this is insane. The only quick wash option is a 20 min cycle which I do often use but not always and I like to wash some items ‘properly’. When you buy white goods you don’t realise how crap they really are and I’m so pissed off with this shit machine! Tempted to change it. DH thinks it’s ‘fine’!! I think 5 hours and 45 minutes just for a wash is a complete joke and nowhere near efficient. AIBU to get rid of this machine and buy a new one insisting on a full info of standard cycles before I buy!!!

OP posts:
TheCraicDealer · 17/08/2023 11:46

Our Samsung has a ‘Daily Wash’ setting on the dial which I use pretty much exclusively- it’s 1hr 5mins. I take it yours doesn’t have that?

i can only assume yours is considered so efficient because there’s little opportunity for you to do more than one wash a day!

Fooksticks · 17/08/2023 11:49

I don't know why you don't consider a 20 minute wash a proper wash?

5 hours is ridiculous and the damage to the stuff in the washer must be huge if they're washed like that often.

HorsePlatitudes · 17/08/2023 11:50

Your washing machine is a CF

Caspianberg · 17/08/2023 11:51

Does it not have ‘speed options’? I think our cotton is around 3hrs, but there’s a small touch button near I can speed it up to either 2 hr or push twice and it’s 1hr

YouBetYourBippy · 17/08/2023 11:52

Make sure you haven't got a Speed Perfect button - mine cuts the wash time in half on most of the presets! I didn't know what it was until an engineer came out for something unrelated 😂

EmmaEmerald · 17/08/2023 11:53

Agree
my bestie literally chose a new machine by googling what has the shortest cycles

if you're working at home and don't have kids, I think a short cycle is important! Washing gym kit and bedding is different.

ApolloandDaphne · 17/08/2023 11:53

I too have a 'speed perfect' options which cite the time of many cycles. You need to play around with it and see what cycles suit you best.

dementedpixie · 17/08/2023 11:54

My Samsung machine also has a daily wash option that takes under 1h 30mins. The cotton wash is 3h 20m unless I bump the temperature up to 60⁰C and then its just over 2hrs.

My machine is 9 years old though so newer machines may not have the same options.

Comefromaway · 17/08/2023 11:54

It will be eco friendly. Washing machines with the best energy efficiency tend to have longer washes. 5 hours is ridiculous. My eco cotton wash takes 3 hours and the normal cotton wash just over 2.5 hours.

madeinmanc · 17/08/2023 11:57

These so-called eco friendly cycles end up pushing people into using less environmentally friendly quick washes.

I miss my machine from the early 2000s that took about an hour or ninety minutes for a full cycle.

RaininSummer · 17/08/2023 11:57

I am dreading having to get a new machine as my old one offers 30 and 44 quick wash options.

dementedpixie · 17/08/2023 11:57

@babyproblems on my samsung machine you can press the quick wash button several times and it gives various times for the length of wash so not just 20 minutes. Maybe yours is the same

ReviewingTheSituation · 17/08/2023 11:57

That is on the long side... but it's the way washing machines are going.

Longer cycles are often more eco friendly and cheaper (less agitation, slower water heating, more soaking). It's better for your bills and better for your clothes.

ditalini · 17/08/2023 11:59

With the ultra long cycles the clothes spend a long time soaking so it doesn't use that much energy.

You might also find that this is an estimate at the beginning of the cycle and it doesn't take as long - my machine's longest cycle is about 4 hours but it doesn't actually take nearly that long.

user76541055773 · 17/08/2023 11:59

If you are wanting it done more quickly, why don’t you use a quicker cycle? Or shorten the time?

That cycle is that length because that’s what the manufacturer has established is the best balance between time, water, energy and cleanliness. It will have a lot of time build in for soaking the clothes.

if you are more concerned with time than with energy, water or cleanliness then select a different cycle. Clearly that one is not for you.

it would be fine for me because I want the cycle that uses least energy and least water while still getting clothes clean. I don’t care about the time element because we wash over night anyway.

Clefable · 17/08/2023 11:59

I just use the mixed load setting if I want an hour as that is a fixed setting and doesn't change based on the weight of the washing inside. That does seem bonkers though. I have a new Samsung that is 11kg and with a fully loaded cotton wash it doesn't take more than 3ish hours.

Clefable · 17/08/2023 12:00

I'd want to get it checked in case it's faulty. Perhaps it's having problems detecting the weight of the load or something 🤔

BringOnSummerHolidays · 17/08/2023 12:01

The long cycles are supposedly more economical. I wash a load overnight with a delayed start. I don’t really care if it’s 3 or 5 hours.

madeinmanc · 17/08/2023 12:03

I can't run mine overnight because of fire safety and because my neighbours would hear it. So that leaves me no time for daytime drying and hanging around waiting.

Abergale · 17/08/2023 12:03

Does it actually run that long? Mine weighs it and then cuts time according to weight. Before I click go the time shows up at 3:45 but it drops an hour nearly straight away

megletthesecond · 17/08/2023 12:04

Yanbu.
My eco wash is almost 4 hours. I've never used it as I line dry and don't iron. Everything goes on a 1hr shirt cycle.

Even my stupid bosch dishwasher doesn't bleep or stay lit up when it's finished to save energy. Result, I forget to open it and it stays wet.

FrogOfFrogHall · 17/08/2023 12:04

Has it got a timer? I put mine on a long wash with a timer so it finishes at 8am. Then I can get another wash on while that one dries. That works for us because the machine is away from where anyone is sleeping, obviously might not work for you if in flats or next to the bedrooms

PinkiOcelot · 17/08/2023 12:04

RaininSummer · 17/08/2023 11:57

I am dreading having to get a new machine as my old one offers 30 and 44 quick wash options.

Mine too. I don’t want one that takes all day to do a wash. I’ll be stating short washes when I’m buying my next machine.

How the hell can over 5 hours be economical?

cornflower21 · 17/08/2023 12:05

Whaaat?
My washing machine have a mixed wash option for 1h 6 minutes and the longest one is synthetic option that's 2.50 h.

loislovesstewie · 17/08/2023 12:06

I'd expect it to be entertaining me by showing a film as well if it's going to take that long. My Hoover washing machine does an eco wash that takes 2 hrs11 mins,and that's quite long enough for me. Also does a daily wash that is 59 minutes.