New Bosch washing machine | 3 hours and 50 minutes cotton cycle | WTF?

[ThisOldThang]

Our old Bosch washing machine gave up the ghost. The cotton cycle took around 90 minutes with extra rinse selected.

The new one has a 3 hour and 50 minute cycle.

How is that acceptable to anybody?

From what I've read it's all due to water efficiency. I live in Britain. We've got shit loads of water falling from the sky. This isn't an arid Greek island.

Am I unreasonable to think this is total bullshit and not what any family needs? Which morons allowed this to happen?

And trying to find the information on cycle lengths is near impossible.

My Bosch has a 40 degree mixed cycle. It lasts an hour. I use it for everything bar delicates and when I need to blast the bed linen at 60.

If you keep pressing the spin speed it will go back to the top. I always spin my washing at 1400 rpm.

Like a PP my default wash cycle is the mixed load one, but I like to run a longer hotter one for bedding and towels.

I never use laundry liquid either. A combination of laundry liquid and low temperature washes isn't good for washing machines

I also run a drum clean regularly to prevent detergent build up and mould.

Our washer is just over a year old. I replaced it when our old 21 year old Bosch washer died mid wash. I bought a Best Buy recommended by Which? and have been very pleased with it. It's a Bosch WGG24400GB.

I bought a top of the range Bosch and my previous Boschs and Mieles have all been fine.

As this thread has noted, washing machines in general have shifted onto longer cycles.

@ThisOldThang I don't entirely disagree with you here. Some people also won't buy anything if it isn't eco-friendly or can't say it is eco friendly, so there is pressure on manufacturers from different directions, including the ones you have said, to come up with the goods. But I would also add that technology has moved on since older tests and research and I don't agree with you that now it is impossible to get a well cleaned wash in a newer washing machine.

Like many are saying here, there are other programmes which are not making the claim they are eco-friendly and can be done in shorter time scales while still giving good results. As I said in my previous post, do you not have the option to play around with the different programmes and find something that suits you? My 3 week old Beko - same idea as the Bosch - Does have super-quick options which most of the time I won't use as I think they aren't long enough, and the eco programmes are much too long and can't be reduced. But the cottons, synthetics and mixed fabrics ones are very adjustable for temperature, spin speed and time of the wash. Average time when set the way I want is about 1 hor 30 minutes

@ThisOldThang I don't entirely disagree with you here. Some people also won't buy anything if it isn't eco-friendly or can't say it is eco friendly, so there is pressure on manufacturers from different directions, including the ones you have said, to come up with the goods. But I would also add that technology has moved on since older tests and research and I don't agree with you that now it is impossible to get a well cleaned wash in a newer washing machine.

Like many are saying here, there are other programmes which are not making the claim they are eco-friendly and can be done in shorter time scales while still giving good results. As I said in my previous post, do you not have the option to play around with the different programmes and find something that suits you? My 3 week old Beko - same idea as the Bosch - Does have super-quick options which most of the time I won't use as I think they aren't long enough, and the eco programmes are much too long and can't be reduced. But the cottons, synthetics and mixed fabrics ones are very adjustable for temperature, spin speed and time of the wash. Average time when set the way I want is about 1 hor 30 minutes

@ThisOldThang I don't entirely disagree with you here. Some people also won't buy anything if it isn't eco-friendly or can't say it is eco friendly, so there is pressure on manufacturers from different directions, including the ones you have said, to come up with the goods. But I would also add that technology has moved on since older tests and research and I don't agree with you that now it is impossible to get a well cleaned wash in a newer washing machine.

Like many are saying here, there are other programmes which are not making the claim they are eco-friendly and can be done in shorter time scales while still giving good results. As I said in my previous post, do you not have the option to play around with the different programmes and find something that suits you? My 3 week old Beko - same idea as the Bosch, as I was looking at a couple of Bosch models too - Does have super-quick options which most of the time I won't use as I think they aren't long enough, and the eco programmes are much too long and can't be reduced. But the cottons, synthetics and mixed fabrics ones are very adjustable for temperature, spin speed and time of the wash. Average time when set the way I want is about 1 hour 30 minutes.

What is very difficult though, in my experience, is to compare any of these machines like for like and to check if they have exactly the options and settings you want until you get the machine at home!! For example, my 1400 spin is not available on some programmes. Mostly 1200 is fine as it's for more delicate synthetics etc, but I can use the rinse and spin programme only if something needs to be spun harder ( hasn't happened yet). And a 50 degree wash isn't available at All which I found useful before. And I did do quite a bit of reading up/research before settling on the one I wanted. It's a bit of a minefield!!

You dont have to do it for all that time
There's a button that will halve that time.

Does have super-quick options which most of the time I won't use as I think they aren't long enough, and the eco programmes are much too long and can't be reduced.

So it’s not just Bosch doing this.

I recently went through same thoughts. I rechecked times and really looked at all the other washes that iv never used before and tried to use them, seemingly machines work best at longer runs to go through proper cycles. The drying is much better if full cycle is used. I also give it another spin if iv cut down cycle time. I'm trying to use the delay button so if it's a long cycle put it on before bed, and ready to hang next morning

No, it absolutely isn't. I'm still very happy with my new Beko though. Just took a bit of time to read the instruction booklet and understand what the different options on the digital display and the buttons underneath it actually did.

Thing is, they put all these cycles on, and apps, and charge you a fortune, when all anyone ever uses it wants, is a 40c mixed cycle of about an hour and a half, and a 60c hot cycle for two hours.

I think I saw a survey once that said that most people only use two cycles, and pretty much no-one uses eco or cold washes.......

This had me in stitches :D

Isn't this the issue with most new technology.

IMO new tech products have way too many features these days. When I buy a new phone my main concern now is how long the battery lasts and how good the camera is.

Absolutely true! You nailed it.
Why they over complicate things I have no idea.

I must be rare, I use the eco cycle, sports wash, quick wash (now and then) and multiple variations of those. My app allows me to tweak the cycles and I can put some details in and it tells me which is the best cycle to use

My aeg machine does 69 mins 5 kg at various temps, double time save on some programmes

I must be an anomaly too. In the last couple of weeks I've used the mixed load cycle on both 30c and 40c, the fast 30 minute wash, the 60c wash on both standard and eco, plus a 90c drum clean wash. During the summer when we were drying outside all the time I was washing a lot of stuff on 20c.

My parents had a new washer delivered a few months ago. The fitter said if your washer does not have a clean program, every 2 months do a 90c wash with nothing - laundry or laundry products. My washer I can set a wash without a spin. Once cycle finishes, turn the dial to drain. Drains in minutes. The first time I did this the machine stunk. So did a 15 min program with a drop of laundry liquid.

I cannot use powder as triggers asthma. I’m ok with bedding and towels washed in powder such as when staying at hotels as I’m not touching the powder

I have a Bosch. There’s a button on some of the settings that reduces it. The cottons goes to 1.5 hours, that’s what I use, or the mixed button which, with the button reduces it to 45 mins approx

Our Samsung has a 3 hour eco cycle. We're on a water meter so I'm happy if that makes it use less water. We use the timer delay a lot so that it finishes just as I get home from work, and I think there's more options if you use their app (we don't).

You are my hero. I need to up my game as I’m very guilty of using a single setting 🫣

Exactly classic example of not understanding the energy expended by the person, the woman of course, of household tasks, which are mainly performed by said woman. No energy saving there. Instead of getting evyerhing in the wash over the course of a few hours, hanging it up and then being being able to put it away the same day if weather allows or with a dehumidifier or whatever, job done, job over

No, job goes on for days, washing hanging around clogging up the laundry baskets because you can only do about one wash a day.

Men calculated all these black and white numbers.

'dont care about climate change'

lol

I think you're spending too much time around linear, black and white thinking men and now you're mansplaining about what people should or shouldnt think and care about and what a washing machine cycle choice seems to imply that they think about climate change

People are busy, people dont have time to sit with washing piled up and have the job of washing that stuff stretching over days and days. No I wont use the machine while Im out or overnight. IM not interested in cutting a miniscule cost of running a a machine down by 30 or 60%, its not the most costly thing to run in this house and even if it was, its a work horse, its got a job to do.

Perhaps the manufacturers could also show they care about climate change by 1. going back to making machines that lasted 20 years and 2. not moving their factories to far flung places away from the majority of their market, just to get cheap land and labour.

FWIW I have solar power so it's better for the environment and cheaper for me to run my machine during the day. I'm sure, since you know your customer base so well, you'd already factored that into your advice right?