New Washing Machine Required

[BibiBelle]

Snooze fest I know, sorry but ours has died a death. Bearing plate has gone so it isn't worth fixing. The chap has been out and confirmed the issue, we're still using it but the noise is horrendous and we're needing to get a new one in the sales.

Has to be at least 7kg load and efficient spin cycle as 3DDs and manky DH and a dog make for a lot of laundry!

Am not fussed regards colour but it's going in next to the tumble dryer which is a silver colour.

Previous one was hotpoint but had Candy before that.

Any clues/ideas/recommendations would be gratefully received

Every washing machine I have has big problems BUT have been told the best is Miele, very expensive but last for ever.

Got my Miele from M&S about £900
You can now get them cheaper but only with 5 yr guarantee not renowned 10yr

I've got a Miele (well 2 actually, one in my house and one in the rental house we own) and they are great. My mum has had hers 16 years and not a single problem or repair (have probably cursed her now....)

But don't buy a Miele tumble dryer, mine has been nothing but trouble.

You can get silver Miele machines, but they will be stainless I think (not silver plastic - the body of Miele washing machines is enamel, not plastic) and they are £££££££££. I paid £650 ish for my basic washing machine (from O'Gormans online shop) but the stainless steel ones are double that.

how much do you want to spend?

As a rule of thunmb, get Bosch, or Miele if you can afford it.

John Lewis give a 2-year warranty as standard. Their sale is on now.

worth a look

Over the last few years, my friends, family and I have been very pleased with cost and quality of John Lewis own brand white goods.

A quick hijack here but I'm also looking at a new one. I bought a cheap indesit one 3.5 yrs ago, less than £200 - was the cheapest argos had - because we live in a very hard water area and all of my kitchen equipment that uses water dies very quickly, so my thought was buy very cheap ones that I can afford to replace every couple of years.

So am I best off replacing it with another cheap one? Or should I make an investment and get a good quality one? I could stretch to a Miele if I know it will last me a good 10 years or so. But I'm wary of spending that much money if it is likely to break after a couple of years or if its often out of action awaiting repair under waranty!

From what I hear, the hard water damage story is a fib marketing angle made up by the makers of Calgon.

In May 2011. "Which" challenged them for the evidence, and reported that tests did not support the claim, and said "As a result, Which? has submitted a complaint to the Advertising Standards Authority, asking it to investigate the claims made in Calgon's adverts."

If you tell me your budget, I can look up a few "Which" best buy w/ms for you.

Some of the Miele machines still come with a 10 year guarantee, but seems to be the more expensive models. I wouldn't bother, I would get one of the basic ones. You can buy an extended guarantee for 10 years for £150 from Miele direct (if you want one).

Bosch used to be German construction like Miele, but now made in Italy and not so good.
I love my Miele, bottom of the range but fab. Love the soak button, adds a two hour soak which gets the best out of a scoop of vanish for DCs grubby stuff. John Lewis own make are also solid German construction.

I don't really have a budget, well could spend up to £1000 but I would want bells, whistles and a back massage every night for that! I would like a nice one like a Miele but also I'm not made of money and so if there is a good machine of a more modest price then I wouldn't spend that much.

I never know what to make of the hard water thing, I've heard that about calgon before (maybe from you on another thread), but it is the bane of my life in this house, toilets are crusty in days, kettles need descaling within 2 weeks (have a filter kettle now so not so bad), dishwasher fire (that I put down to the limescale), and my washing doesn't get as clean as I would like and apparently thats due to the hardness of the water not letting the powder work!

I wasn't really wanting to spend more than £300 - £400 but then maybe I should

We have a miele cat & dog hoover which is brilliant but didn't realise they were the brand to buy for washing machines too!

I'm not overly fussed about them matching in terms of colours - they're in the utility room and not on full view.

Oh I don't know if this is fact, but when our German friends were over this year we were shopping and he needed a drill, and asked what were good brands over here - so SF said Bosch, and our German friend said that Bosch is a basic brand in Germany and not what they would spend money on? That has made me a bit wary of Bosch - but he/I could be totally off the mark about the quality!

We got a bosche and love it. Siemens m, zanussi and of course miele v good. Get it from appliances online. Vv good discounts and free next day delivery!!

You could use your washing machine budget to buy a water softener instead? I am in a hard-water area and wouldn't be without mine. No limescale in taps, shower, round sink, in WC etc, you use far less soap and detergent, towels and hair wash softer, you can clean mirrors with a damp sponge and a drop of WUL, no water marks and no polishing needed. You have to get a ionic-exchange like the Permutit design, where you tip in a sack of salt granules every month or so. The magnetic ones ones work only by faith and magic.

Back to WMs...

Which has a rating for reliability of wms. The top brands, all with 5-stars, are:
Miele 93%
John Lewis 91%
Beko 89%
Bosch 88%

Looking at their best-buy list of recently tested w/ms, and selecting only freestanding ones in those brands, there are eight:

Miele W5740 Series W5000 £829 79% score
Miele W1914 £735 79%
Bosch WAQ28460GB Exxcel £398 75%
Miele W1613 Series W1000 £629 74%
Beko WME7247W £265 71%
John Lewis JLWM1604 £499 71%
John Lewis JLWM1407 £399 70%

If you want to read the reports, go to your local library or subscribe to "Which"

Thank you thats really usefull

Will do some further research but looking at that list alone the Bosch one with 74% seems a good price - Would have to discount my own earlier comment about Bosch though!!!

So, water softeners! How much do they cost? And is that something I would buy and fit or is that a job for the professionals? Is it a major job? - Would my kitchen need to be pulled to bits type of thing?

you need to look at the numbers counted in the reliability tables in Which - there are usually at least 4 times as many Bosch as anything else, which makes their performance more significant, iyswim

(can't find the figures atm though )

I have a fairly cheap Bosch, 1200 spin & 6kg capacity, best thing is the time remaining display - I would never buy one without that now! I think the current equivalent is the WAE24367GB Avantixx, which does have 7kg capacity, is a Which best buy (just - 71%) & costs around £300

oh I've found those reliability figures now:

Miele 93%

John Lewis 91%
Beko 89%
Bosch 88%

AEG/AEG-Electrolux 84%
Zanussi/Zanussi-Electrolux 84%
Siemens 84%
LG 80%
Indesit 80%

Hotpoint 76%
Whirlpool 73%
Hoover 70%

Sample sizes:

Miele (390)
John Lewis (162)
Beko (215)
Bosch (1355)

AEG/AEG-Electrolux (162)
Zanussi/Zanussi-Electrolux (468)
Siemens (141)
LG (107)
Indesit (204)

Hotpoint (628)
Whirlpool (139)
Hoover (155)

(total sample size 4126)

thing about the Which reports as that participants are self-selecting, & all Which readers of course, so not necessarily representative of washing-machine users as a whole. maybe MN could do something similar!

A softener costs "some hundreds of pounds"

They are available in DIY sheds and plumbers merchants, and specialist suppliers where they always cost more. I got a genuine Permutit when they were the best-known brand, but the name has apparently been bought up by a manufacturer of lower-quality machines. There are local companies who can service them, but a budget brand from B&Q might be a throw-away item.

They are as easy to plumb in as a washing machine (they need access to the incoming water main, and a drain, and an electricity supply). A plumber could do it in an hour or so, or a DIYer with some skills and equipment. If you already know a reliable plumber he will probably know a source. A Kitchen and Bathroom company will probably charge the highest possible price to supply and fit. Get a Metered one as it measures the amount of water that has passed through it and regenerates when it reaches the limit, automatically.

here are some examples

Mine is in the garage, where the water main comes in, next to a drain. I only need to look at it every month or two to check the salt level or top up. Some people put them in the kitchen, if you have "wasted space" in the corner near the sink that will do, but you need access for the salt (the sacks are quite heavy) so if any appliance is in the way it needs to be on wheels or rollers so it can be pulled out easily, and/or the worktop panel above has to lift out or hinge up. They are usually of a size that will fit in a kitchen cabinet, but the higher-capacity ones are taller. That means they hold more salt so need filling less often. They are very heavy when full so should sit on the floor or sturdy steel brackets off the wall.

I don't need a softener as we're in Scotland.

I've had a look at the miele and just cannot justify that amount of money on a washing machine As bad as that sounds, we need a new bathroom, a new car and a new fridge freezer too!

I think it'll be a hotpoint for us again and fingers crossed it lasts 5yrs like this one did. I've worked out that having had this one for 5 years and it's been on an average of twice a day here so I don't think it owes us anything

Thank you PigletJohn I do have a good plumber and I'm eagerly awaiting his return on Thursday from holiday (Have put a big renovation job back 2 weeks to wait for him!) So I shall ask him about them when I see him, and hope he can advise!

I agree MN should have a 'Which' type section

bibibelle, before you decide, have a look at

\link{http://www.appliancesonline.co.uk/product/wae24367gb-bosch-avantixx-washing-machine-white-23060.aspx\Bosch WAE24367GB Avantixx} - 7kg capacity, Which best buy & around £300 (it is white though)

We've got the model below the one Ponders has linked to and it is really good (except ours doesn't have the time left display as that one was out of stock and we were desperate after 2 weeks without a washing machine)

It's surprisingly quiet and things come out much drier than our old machine

Ponders, you're right, it is a Which best buy. I can't think how I missed it.

Which says it is available at £329.00 incl delivery from John Lewis, presumably with their 2-year guarantee.

I am often surprised to see Beko in the most-reliable and best-buy tables, as they have a reputation for being quite a budget brand. I would be tempted if I needed an inexpensive machine.