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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

New washing machine. Can't cope. Urgent advice. (Lighthearted)

100 replies

EntropyCentral · 23/02/2025 03:47

My old washing machine was about 17 years old and very good until it packed in. Time for a new one.

So got a new one. And I'm shocked at the washing times!!

Eco : 3 hrs 45 mins

Easy care : 3 hours.

Cottons: 3 hrs 20 mins.

Way, way too long! Surely that will wear out the fabric of the
things being washed, being swished about in water and detergent for hours on end.

The easy care and mixed wash programmes are less than an hour so not an option. It's just not enough when you include two rinses. Surely things can't be clean in less than 30 mins.

There's a 'quick wash' button you can press on most programmes but then it reduces the time from 3hrs 45 mins to an hour. Which isn't quite long enough
if half of it is rinsing. I'm at my wits end. I want stuff to be clean but 3 hrs 45 mins
seems hugely excessive. And one hour seems not nearly enough.

I've read the manual, tested all the many various programmes and options available, pressed all the buttons and I still cannot make my new washing machine get in line and do what I want it to do. Which is to complete a wash in one hour and a half. Not almost 4 hours, or less than one hour. One and a half hours all told is all I ask. One hour wash, 30 mins rinse, like my old one did, very well, for many years.

I just want comments really. AIBU?

My view might be skewed because I'm old, and never met a washing machine until I was 18 and my mother got a sort of 'drum' washer with an agitator at the bottom. It washed your clothes and took most of the hard work out of washing.
You had to fill it up with hot water via a rubber pipe from the geyser in the kitchen.
When the things were washed you had to drain the dirty water out from the bottom into a bucket in stages and empty it down the sink.

Then you had to take the stuff out and wring it out by hand and then fill the drum up with cold water and put all the stuff back in to agitate and rinse. And you had to do that twice because once didn't get all the soap out. Obviously draining and filling as necessary. It all sounds like a load of faff, and it certainly was a load of faff. My two brothers and I often got home from school and helped my mother with this and that. They were both much older than me by 8 and 9 years so probably much more helpful than I was. But I did my bit.

In those far off days though, nobody had social media or mobile phones to distract them, and take them away from the here and now.. We got off the bus from school and walked home with our friends if they got off at the same stop.
If not then you walked home alone. It was so normal it simply wasn't an issue.
Kids walked home quite happily without a screen to stare at.

It makes me so sad when I see young people so engrossed in their phone screen. They are missing out on so much of real life. It's limiting their overall development as a functioning adult human being.

OP posts:
AuntyMabelandPippin · 23/02/2025 11:40

I have a 30 degree 40 minute cycle. I put the temperature up to 40 and it does it in 55 minutes. That's enough for any normal wash.

ickky · 23/02/2025 12:05

If they made a simple washing machine, it would sell out immediately. All you need is time, temperature and spin. Also much less to go wrong.

Most people only use 2 different cycles anyway. Has anyone ever used all the cycles on their machine?

MrsMoastyToasty · 23/02/2025 12:21

I have the cheapest 10kg Beko I could find. (I plan on replacing the kitchen in the next 5 years but my old machine didn't read the memo. )😀
It does a quick wash in as little as 30 mins, but increases that figure as you increase the spin speed and water temperature. So, towels, which I always do at 90°c with a 1400rpm spin, takes about 1 hrs 35.
It also has a time delay function so I often set longer washes to run overnight and finish around 9am so I can pop them on the line.
My mum had an "automatic" hoover washing machine in the 70s. The automatic bit was a large plastic card with various notches cut into it. Depending on which way you inserted the card into the machine gave you the wash you wanted.
Gran had a sink in the kitchen and a mangle in the yard..and grandad to help.

EntropyCentral · 23/02/2025 12:35

What brand is it?

It's a Bosch. Thanks all. I'll persevere with the short wash. I suppose I just can't get used to the idea that it can be clean in such a short time.I might daub a white shirt with tomato sauce, mustard and chocolate like they do on telly and see what happens. If it comes out clean after an hour I'll eat my words.

OP posts:
EntropyCentral · 23/02/2025 12:42

Mine (also new) says it's going to take 3.5 hours but never does. It's normally about 1.5-2 hrs

Ok. This gives me hope. I have 3 loads lined up for today so I will be experimenting.

OP posts:
biscuitsandbooks · 23/02/2025 12:45

EntropyCentral · 23/02/2025 12:35

What brand is it?

It's a Bosch. Thanks all. I'll persevere with the short wash. I suppose I just can't get used to the idea that it can be clean in such a short time.I might daub a white shirt with tomato sauce, mustard and chocolate like they do on telly and see what happens. If it comes out clean after an hour I'll eat my words.

I'm a dog walker and all my work gear is washed "for thirty at thirty" and everything comes out perfectly clean.

Onlyvisiting · 23/02/2025 12:46

Hah. You think that's bad, you wait until you realise that the cycle times are a complete fiction and no matter what cycle you choose the actual time will vary by over an hour depending on thst mood the machine is in.
I hate them all. I want a machine with 3 knows so I can select temperature, time and spin speed. That's all.
It is none of the machines business if I am washing cotton or synthetic or whatever. Stop being clever and let me choose those 3 things.

Zenana · 23/02/2025 12:48

LoveSandbanks · 23/02/2025 07:36

I e hot this hot point thing that came with our house. I was initially appalled by such a poor brand name but it’s got wash cycles galore, you can choose the temperature independently of the wash cycle chosen AND you can choose between several different lengths of programme within each programme iygwim.

I rarely use a wash cycle that’s lasts much more than an hour except for bedding and my
laundry is always clean.

Hotpoint is a poor brand name? Is it? It's been around for a very long time.

Patagonianpenguin · 23/02/2025 12:50

We have a Samsung washing machine. I don't use the ecowash setting. If you put it on cotton on 30 or 40 it starts at 3.45 but then calculates based on the weight. I don't fill it completely full as it doesn't come out clean/or takes the full 3 hours. We just have the washing machine on all the time, but then we do have small children. Anything I vaguely care about (ie my own clothes) I wash separately and use the delicates cycle.

thedogatethecattreats · 23/02/2025 12:53

My quick 1 hour wash works just fine, have you even tried it?

I always use the eco on the dishwasher, the 3h30 is ridiculous but I switch it on after diner so it does its thing in the night, I don't care. When I need it, I put a fast program after lunch.

Washing machine however, I need it quick!

EntropyCentral · 23/02/2025 12:58

My quick 1 hour wash works just fine, have you even tried it?

Yes I've used it, most washes on the new one are for an hour or less apart from the eco one or the cottons which claim to take over 3 hours. I just wanted something in the middle. 90 minutes or thereabouts. I am obviously being unreasonable.

OP posts:
Sherararara · 23/02/2025 13:02

Mines a modern Samsung and it has a quick wash option which is fine for most things. It takes 41 mins at 40deg and 1000 spin.

spanieleyes · 23/02/2025 13:02

40 degree wash, 1800 spin, 38 minutes. Plenty long enough, never had things coming out " unclean". Mind you, I don't have children at home and I'm fairly clean in general!

thedogatethecattreats · 23/02/2025 13:04

EntropyCentral · 23/02/2025 12:58

My quick 1 hour wash works just fine, have you even tried it?

Yes I've used it, most washes on the new one are for an hour or less apart from the eco one or the cottons which claim to take over 3 hours. I just wanted something in the middle. 90 minutes or thereabouts. I am obviously being unreasonable.

but why? I mean, either it works or it doesn't.

I wash sport kits in 1 hour, they are covered in mud and come out clean. So works perfectly fine for me, it's not even on a very hot wash.

I tend to do everything on a 1 hour program, but I change the temperature.

Dollshousedolly · 23/02/2025 13:06

How dirty are the clothes you are going to be washing ?? I use a 30 minute wash at 40 degrees, which spins at 1200, most of the time. Sometimes, I then use a 13 min spin setting with towels/denim/heavier fabrics.

Our clothes come out perfectly clean at that temperature and length of wash. Sometimes I use a setting which is around 1 hr 40 minutes for a 60 degree wash.

Don’t over do the detergent, I always use less than recommended, and you don’t need a prolonged rinse. Really if the machine isn’t over filled, clothes get a good soaking in water and tossed around and then a rinse and spin, they should come out perfectly clean.

Gingernaut · 23/02/2025 13:15

I accidentally bought a WiFi enabled machine

It 'talks' to me through the app and lies

Asking for any wash and it tells me it takes 1hr 17mins

Once started, it tells me the 'real' time.

Currently waiting for it to finish a 2hr 56mins wash

I have no complaint about how it washes, though

biscuitsandbooks · 23/02/2025 13:19

@Zenana Hotpoint appliances were known for causing a lot of fires not so long ago.

Ilovelowry · 23/02/2025 13:27

I have a button to push which halves the washing time from 2hr20 to 1hr10. It's 'power wash'.

But personally I do most things on the power wash 45mins or the 20mins then do an extra spin.

Stuff is clean.

EmmaStone · 23/02/2025 13:33

Oh no, my Bosch is still working fine at ?12/13 years old, but I'm sure its days are numbered. Mine has a button that will shorten every cycle, and I use it in every wash, so my 'normal' wash for clothes at 30 or 40 takes about 45-50 mins, I use a shortened cottons wash for towels and sheets which take just over an hour.

I'm nervous of leaving the machines on while out of the house (as I understand wm and dishwashers are big fire risks - I know of 3 dishwashers that have caught fire at friends' in the last few years).

So these long cycles fill me with dread. I'm out of the house for long days, so when I am available, I do LOTS of loads in one go (yesterday I did 6 loads, today 2). So 3hr+ cycles don't work for me 😭

biscuitsandbooks · 23/02/2025 14:31

EntropyCentral · 23/02/2025 12:58

My quick 1 hour wash works just fine, have you even tried it?

Yes I've used it, most washes on the new one are for an hour or less apart from the eco one or the cottons which claim to take over 3 hours. I just wanted something in the middle. 90 minutes or thereabouts. I am obviously being unreasonable.

Why, though? What do you think 90 minutes will do that 60 or even 30 doesn't?

All our clothes are washed at 30. Nothing is stained or dirty or smelly.

smooththecat · 23/02/2025 14:34

I believe that washing machines have changed. It’s all about soaking to clean now rather than beating things around in the drum which uses a lot of energy.

ShockedandStunnedRepeatedly · 23/02/2025 14:39

EntropyCentral · 23/02/2025 04:01

Yeah, You're right. Just figuring out how to delete the post. Started off on one thing and finished on another.Wonder If I can delete it?

I loved it! It made me laugh to see someone whose thoughts wander just like mine do! Pls don’t delete. I love a good old chat about anything and everything !

ShockedandStunnedRepeatedly · 23/02/2025 14:42

JadeSeahorse · 23/02/2025 09:24

The "Bosch beep"! 😁

I don't have a Bosch washing machine but do have Bosch tumble dryer which does this.

Yeah mine sometimes starts, other times doesn’t… also Bosch. Weird!

Bignanna · 23/02/2025 14:56

My dear old Beko does a daily wash of 28 minutes, which is the one I use most. It also does a 15 minute quick wash. I’ve never used any of the long washes. If it’s not going outside on the line, I do a second spin.

BertieBotts · 23/02/2025 21:35

You can usually mute the beeping if it drives you mad - look in the manual.

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