Can I ask for your opinions of washer/dryers

[Minniem2020]

I've been looking at buying a tumble dryer as I can't stand the thought of another winter of having every radiator in the house covered in washing just to get stuff dry. I do use an airer but it never seems to get 100% dry without finishing it off with a bit of heat.
Obviously I'm concerned about how much they cost so have been looking at heat pump options. I also have the issue of very little space so am now looking at combi washer/dryers. I'm reading everything I can online and info seems to be very mixed with regards to how well they perform and what they cost so I thought I would ask you lovely people.
Does anyone have or has had a washer/dryer that can give me some honest info?

I have a washer dryer and it works fine and is really convenient as I only do two or three loads a week. If you do more than one a day it ties up the machine too long. Can't comment on cost as I have always used one (so don't know how much cheaper my bill would be not using it).

How about a heated airer? Cheaper to run than a tumble dryer and dry much faster than a normal airer. The one from Lakeland is very good. Plus it'll heat your room a little too so saves on heating.

Our washer dryer experience is awful. Doesn't dry properly, and ours kept tripping because of the heat (hot wash followed by tumble dry = too much). It was the engineer who told us to leave at least half an hour between finishing a wash and starting a drying cycle.

Washer dyers are only suitable for small households.

Have you thought of trying a heated airer OP? I bought one for my DD about 6 years ago and it’s still going strong, it cost about £50 though no doubt they will be much more now.

Thank you for all the replies, it's really helpful.
@MoreCreamDear I've actually just been looking at heated airers.
I've spent my night again looking at all the different options, you'd think it was a huge life changing decision I was making😅

I have Samsung washer/dryer, I love it.

It is never going to be as good as a dedicated dryer but it is infinitely better than not having a dryer at all. In winter it's a godsend as I can have stuff dried in 2-3 hours instead of days.

@Minniem2020
I get you!
My MIL bought a washer dryer and like someone mentioned previously it was like a 6 hour cycle from start to finish 🙈
If love my dryer. There are 6 of us.
I use my clothes airer as much as I can. Preferably outside - as it does seem to dry a lot better than indoors.
I also throw towels and bedding over indoor doors. And if lord and master isn't home I've been known to make a kind of tent over my dining chairs to dry our quilt cover lol! And then I finish off - if needed- in the dryer.
And Yeah - don't overload your airer.
Make space for a Dryer if you can - even if it's stood on top of your washing machine or in the garage etc.. it's fab.

We’ve got a John Lewis brand washer dryer. It’s great. I’m sure it would be more efficient to have a separate dryer but we don’t have the room.

It’s a large drum washing machine (I think) - but you can only tumble half what you can wash at most. But that works fine for me cos I don’t tumble everything. It really helps cos I tumble the things that don’t matter as much - like pants, socks, basic kids T-shirts etc, and of course towels. That then leaves loads more space on the airer for “nicer” tops, trousers, things that I worry about tumbling in case it’s not good for them etc. (My DH is deeply suspicious of tumble dryers and is convinced they shrink things so I don’t do his things!).

It doesn’t smell. It takes a while to tumble a full tumble dryer load of towels - 2-3 hours - but it makes my life simpler. If I need something drying fast, I put it in on its own and it takes just 30 mins or something. And I don’t mind waiting. I have to put it on “cotton” “max dry” to get towels dry- the “synthetics” dryer setting is useless. The washing machine is great.

Basically it’s an excellent compromise. It means we always have the option. I probably use the dryer one time for every 2-3 times I use the washing machine.

We also have an airer and a heated airer. Heated airer is a good addition too.

I've got a washer dryer and a heated airer. I only do towels in the washer dryer as it makes them fluffy but it takes forever, can sometimes leave a smell and doesn't always get them completely dry unless I put dryer balls in. My heated airer is fab. Dries things very quickly, even jeans. I do 1 or 2 loads per day and everything is dry each day ready for the next lot. It's worth getting one with a cover because that really speeds up dying time.

Can anyone pls tell me If you have a standalone drier - how long does that take to dry a load? Compared a washer dryer setup?

Get a tumble drier if you can. Washer-driers are rubbish. The biggest problem is they have a washer size drum, which simply isn’t big enough to dry clothes efficiently. Driers have a much bigger drum.

Your other option is a dehumidifier next to the clothes rack which would help a lot.

Depends soooo much what the load is but I think it’s usually 1.5 hrs. Is a Miele.

Surely depends on the dryer model but mine takes about 1h 30m. It says 2h 40 at the start but it always recalculates. It's a heat pump which everyone says means it takes some implausibly long time 😂

Being separate means I can have stuff washing at the same time.

My question is that I have a dryer Hotpoint Aquarius fetvcp60p had for two years has got insurance but now that the energy prices are going up what kind of dryer should I think about buying as mine is vented and I was considering with either the heat pump or condensed or washer and dryer give me option

@MUNSHI786 If it's energy use in particular that you're concerned about then the heat pumps use the least of all of them.

I would avoid getting one in two, we had one (albeit it was hotpoint) - broke twice in 3 years. First it was repaired under warranty, afterwards it just rusted through. But we live in a very hard water area. Which? also do not recommend getting 2 in 1 as there are more faults with it. If there is anyway you can fit both washing machine and the dryer that would be the best way to go. Could you install it in a garage?

And yes, miele here and about 1,5 hrs as an average to dry four bath towels and bits directly from the washing machine

Off topic a bit but I refer back to a previous post about a cover that goes on a whirly line to allow washing to dry outside. Look up ChimneySweep Laundry mac raincover on Amazon. Cost £50 and much cheaper than a tumble drier. Apart from if you've got horizontal rain washing will dry fine.

@lillipilli thank you for your replies. We haven't got a garage unfortunately. We do have a shed but I'm reading that cold weather can cause faults with tumble dryers so it isn't recommended. I may have the option to move the chest freezer into the shed and put a dryer there. From what everyone has said I've decided against a combi so it might have to be the shed option

@loopylindi Thank you. I was wondering what these were like as was looking at them last night, I'm spending way too much time on this!

I had a hotpoint w/d that was brilliant and lasted ten years. I have just (well, April) replaced it with a Hisense w/d, which admittedly I haven't tested the drying of yet, but no issues with the washing. I only ever use the dryer function to part dry though, and never the full load. So long as that is how you would use it, a w/d is fine

Agree with all of this. I find mine really handy but I'm not an obsessive tumbler! I usually run the wash (11kg drum), give it an extra spin (1600) and then sort through what I want on the airer and what I want to tumble. I always do 180mins.

Great compromise with no space for a separate drier.

I've always had a combi washer/dryer as my kitchen is small and I've no utility. I try not to use the dryer at all, like you I get as much on outside to dry and watch the weather forecast religiously to achieve this. Even if I can get it mostly dry outside it doesn't take long to finish off on an airer in the bathroom.

For me it's not too bad as it's only me and ds, so I only need to do 3/4 loads a week max. But with a bigger family it would be hard when the weather is as bad as it's been this week. Plus the dryer can't take as big a load as the washer cycle, so you would need to split a wash into two to dry it - taking up even more time and preventing you from putting on another wash.

However, I've never noticed problems with it not washing properly or having a funny smell.

Look all round your home with a tape measure and see if there’s any 60cm corner you can fit a heat pump or condenser dryer into. Bedroom, under the stairs, even the bathroom depending on layout of electrics. All you need is an electric socket.

Heat pumps will take a long time but by comparison with a washer dryer will have the advantage of being able to do a full wash load and being able to do the next load of washing while you dry.

I also love my Dri:Soon pod